Product Development Chef

Reporting directly to the Head Development Chef, you will work side-by-side in the kitchen throughout the entire menu lifecycle—from initial concept to final execution.
This is a fast-paced role where you will master the product development process while driving key operational tasks and managing multiple moving parts. Crucially, you will also act as our on-site representative within the Operations team, serving as the vital bridge between your manager's creative recipe concepts and the final production reality on the fulfillment floor.
This will be a varied role, and would require someone with strong attention to detail, excellent multi-tasking skills, great communication and a willingness to learn.
This is an active role, requiring you to be on your feet for most of your shift.

In addition to your contractual pay, any time worked between 22:00 - 06:00 will attract Night Premium at a rate of £4.25 per hour. This will also apply to existing Partners who have enrolled onto Enhanced Hours Premium arrangements.

• Expected salary - Salary up to £37,500 depending on experience.

• Contract type - This position is a Permanent contract.

• Working pattern - 40 hours per week

• Location - Our Dishpatch base in North Greenwich, London 

Key responsibilities

• New Product Development (NPD): Participate in creative ideation sessions, assist with project timelines, create & develop recipes and prepare high-quality food samples for internal tastings, photo shoots, and marketing events.

• Test Box Process: Manage the end-to-end trialling process for new dish concepts.

• Kitchen & Stock Management: Oversee development kitchen stock control, counting & moving stock, labelling, and maintain a spotless, presentation-ready kitchen environment.

• Operational Handover: Create 100% accurate recipes, specifications, and handover documents for the Operations team, providing hands-on training where needed. 

• On-Site Representation: Act as the primary face of the Food Product team within Operations—updating teams on launch schedules, collecting feedback, and resolving query items.

• Packaging & Delivery: Partner with Fulfillment to optimise dish packaging for quality and transit, and oversee special VIP delivery preparations.

Essential skills/experience you’ll need

• Kitchen Experience: Minimum 2 years Chef de Partie (CDP) level experience in a professional kitchen environment. You should be confident in finding your way around the kitchen.

• A True Foodie: A deep, genuine passion for food innovation, ingredients, and current culinary trends.

• Agility & Multitasking: The ability to seamlessly switch gears from cooking to administrative tasks in a fast-moving scale-up environment. 

• Sharp Communication: Exceptional written and verbal communication skills; you can write clear instructions and build great relationships across teams.

• Organization: Highly organized with excellent time-management skills and great attention to detail.

Desirable skills/experience you may have

• Prior experience in recipe testing or a New Product Development (NPD) environment.

• Prior experience in a high volume production environment. 

• Experience working with a central recipe database, calculating yields, or writing technical food specifications.

• A basic understanding of food costing or the logistics of a food-tech/dark kitchen business model.

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We’re the largest employee owned business in the UK and home of our cherished brands, John Lewis and Waitrose. We’re not just employees, we’re Partners, driven by our purpose to build a happier world. As we look to our future, there’s never been a more exciting time to join us.  

We’re ruthlessly focused on being brilliant at retail. We continue to innovate, adapt and diversify. Never Knowingly Undersold on price, quality and service in John Lewis and passionately serving food-lovers in Waitrose.   

As Partners we all share the responsibility of ownership and in its rewards. We use our voices to contribute to our success, working together through the good and challenging times, holding true to our behaviours and treating everyone with kindness and respect. 

We all own making the Partnership somewhere we belong. Embracing our differences and creating an environment where we’re free to be ourselves and can THRIVE. Growing ourselves individually, and as a collective. 

As Partners, we make all the difference. And, we all own it.  

Important points to note:  

It’s important to note that some of our roles are subject to pre-employment vetting (which may include DBS checks for successful candidates). If required, you’ll be informed and provided with information about vetting during the recruitment process and we encourage you to complete any vetting documents quickly to avoid delays. Any DBS checks required will be carried out by a third-party registered body and financial probity checks may also be required for some of our roles.  

We occasionally close vacancies early in the event we receive a high volume of applications, and therefore, we recommend you apply early. If you require a reasonable adjustment due to a disability which means you may need longer to complete your application please contact us as soon as possible.

We want all of our Partners to have a good work-life balance and we support flexible working. This might mean flexible or compressed hours, job sharing or shorter hour contracts, where possible. Please discuss this further with the hiring manager during your interview. 

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