About Us
Spore.Bio is a deeptech startup founded in 2023, building the next generation of microbiological quality control for food & beverage, pharmaceutical, and cosmetics manufacturing. Traditional microbiology testing is slow, costly, and a bottleneck to production, where results take days when manufacturers need them in hours. We built something better: a platform that combines advanced optical imaging and deep learning to detect bacterial contamination in 10 minutes, not days.
About the Role
We’re looking for a Senior Business Development Manager for Food & Beverage Applications to own and build Spore.Bio‘s commercial presence across the US food and beverage manufacturing industry.
You know the F&B QC world. You understand the pressure that food safety teams are under – regulatory compliance, outbreak risk, shelf-life testing, supplier qualification, and the constant cost of holding product while waiting for micro results. You’ve sold into these environments before, you know how food safety decisions get made, and you have the relationships to open doors at major food manufacturers, ingredient suppliers, co-packers, and contract labs.
This is a senior, quota-carrying role reporting directly to our CEO. You’ll be our primary commercial driver in the F&B vertical, working with the founding team to build pipeline, close deals, and establish Spore.Bio as a trusted partner in food safety and QC.
What You’ll Do
- Own the full F&B sales cycle from prospecting through close, including pilot agreements, validation coordination, and commercial contracts
- Build and develop pipeline across food manufacturers, beverage companies, ingredient suppliers, co-packers, and food safety contract labs across the US
- Engage and build relationships with QC Directors, Food Safety Managers, Regulatory Affairs leads, VP Operations, and procurement teams at target accounts
- Help customers understand how Spore.Bio fits into their workflows and compliance
- Deliver technically credible demos and proposals tailored to F&B QC environments – from high-throughput production facilities to specialized ingredient labs
- Lead pricing, negotiation, and contracting discussions
- Develop relationships with food safety distributors, testing equipment vendors, and contract lab networks serving the F&B industry
- Represent Spore.Bio at food and beverage industry events (e.g. IAFP Annual Meeting)
- Feed market intelligence – customer objections, competitive dynamics, regulatory trends – back to product and R&D teams
- Maintain rigorous CRM hygiene, pipeline forecasting, and reporting
Background and Experience Required:
- 8–10+ years of B2B sales experience in food safety technology, food & beverage QC instrumentation, laboratory testing equipment, or related industries
- Demonstrated track record selling into F&B manufacturing, ingredient supply, or co-packing environments – you know how food companies buy and who makes the decisions
- Solid understanding of food safety and regulatory frameworks and how they drive purchasing decisions for testing and QC technology
- Experience managing complex, multi-stakeholder sales cycles involving food safety, QC, operations, procurement, and executive teams
- Comfortable engaging both technical stakeholders (food scientists, QC microbiologists, lab managers) and business decision-makers (VP Operations, VP Quality, C-suite)
- A proven hunter mentality: you’ve built pipeline in new markets, opened accounts cold, and know how to earn trust in a conservative, risk-averse industry
- Strong consultative selling skills – you lead with the customer’s food safety challenge, not a product pitch
- Proficiency with CRM; disciplined about pipeline hygiene and forecasting
- Based in or willing to relocate to New York City; comfortable with 35–45% US travel
Bonus/Desired Background and Experience:
- Background selling rapid microbiology, pathogen detection, environmental monitoring, or ATP/hygiene testing solutions
- Experience selling to large CPG companies (food manufacturers with complex, multi-site QC programs)
- Existing relationships at food safety and QC teams at major F&B accounts
- Familiarity with contract lab or third-party testing business models and how they influence manufacturer purchasing
- Experience as a founding or first commercial hire at an early-stage food tech or food safety company
Compensation
Base Salary: $130,000 – $160,000
On-Target Earnings (OTE): $200,000 – $250,000 (base + uncapped commission)
Equity: Meaningful early-employee equity grant with standard 4-year vest / 1-year cliff
OTE assumes achievement of quota. Commission is uncapped — strong performers will exceed this range. Compensation will be finalized based on experience.
What We Offer
- Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance (employer-sponsored)
- Flexible remote/hybrid setup – you manage your territory
- Travel budget for customer visits, conferences, and roadshows
- Quarterly in-person gatherings with the global team, including visits to our Paris HQ
Interview Process
- 30-min introductory call with the Hiring Manager
- Take-home business exercise (territory plan or deal strategy — F&B-focused)
- 45-min interview with Amine, our CEO
- 1-hour final interview with Maxime (CTO) and Mohamed (COO)
- Reference calls
- Optional: lab visit in NYC or Paris
For more information, please contact Owen Carryl directly at (972) 265-5307 or ocarryl@kbic.com
