Zavida Coffee Roasters was founded in 1982 by Charles Litterst, who turned a passion for exceptional coffee into a thriving roasting business. The company is proudly Canadian and specializes in sourcing and blending quality coffee beans enjoyed by customers around the world. Zavida focuses on the art of coffee, experimenting with flavors like an artist works with colors to create distinctive roasts and blends.

The team is dedicated to delivering great-tasting classic and uniquely flavored coffees, inviting coffee lovers to explore life’s flavors one sip at a time. Applicants can expect to join a creative, quality-driven environment that values craftsmanship and innovation in coffee.

Zavida Coffee Company is seeking a dynamic and experienced Business Development Manager to join our team!

The Business Development Manager is responsible for driving profitable growth by identifying, developing, and securing new business opportunities for Zavida across Canada, USA and international markets. The role focuses on expanding Zavida’s presence across new markets, customers, and channels, with emphasis on retail, private label, co-packing, distributors, and international opportunities.

The Business Development

Manager will actively prospect new customers, identify market opportunities, and represent Zavida at key industry trade shows and events.

A key responsibility is developing and managing private label and co-packing partnerships, from initial discussions through costing, product development, commercialization, and launch, while identifying opportunities for continued growth. Working closely with Sales, Marketing, R&D;, Operations, Procurement, and Finance, the successful candidate will translate customer needs into commercially viable solutions and efficiently move opportunities from concept to market.

This role requires an entrepreneurial and commercially driven individual who excels at opening doors, , building relationships, negotiating partnerships, and converting opportunities into sustainable revenue growth.

New Business Development

- Identify, prospect, and secure new business opportunities across retail, wholesale, foodservice, distributor, and private label channels.
- Build and manage a robust sales pipeline from lead generation and qualification through proposal development, negotiation, closing, and onboarding.
- Conduct market and competitive research to identify emerging trends, prospective customers, new channels, and opportunities for growth.
- Develop and deliver compelling customer presentations,



proposals, product demonstrations, and pitches that effectively communicate Zavida's capabilities and value proposition.
- Negotiate pricing, commercial terms, contracts, and partnership agreements while balancing customer requirements with company profitability and strategic objectives.
- Partner with Product Development, Marketing, and other internal teams to understand prospective customer needs and develop innovative product and business solutions.

Account Management & Customer Growth

- Build and maintain strong, strategic relationships with key customers, retail partners, distributors, wholesalers, and foodservice operators.
- Manage and grow existing accounts by identifying opportunities to increase revenue, profitability, distribution, and overall customer value.
- Conduct regular business reviews and strategic planning discussions with key accounts to evaluate performance, identify opportunities, and establish growth priorities.
- Identify and pursue opportunities for new product introductions, line extensions, promotional programs, and distribution expansion within existing accounts.
- Monitor customer and account performance, identify gaps and opportunities, and develop action plans to achieve sales and profitability objectives.
- Serve as a key point of contact for customers, ensuring business needs are understood and effectively communicated throughout the organization.
- Partner cross-functionally with Operations, Customer Service, QA, Supply Chain, Product Development, and other internal teams to support customer requirements and resolve issues in a timely manner.
- Foster long-term customer partnerships by delivering a high level of service, responsiveness, and commercial support.

Sales Strategy & Commercialization

- Develop and execute sales strategies and annual account plans to achieve revenue, profitability, customer penetration, and market share objectives.
- Prepare and maintain sales forecasts for assigned customers and business opportunities, providing timely and accurate information to support business planning.
- Analyze sales performance, customer trends, market data,



and competitive activity to identify opportunities and inform commercial decisions.
- Participate in the commercialization of new products and customer programs, coordinating customer requirements, timelines, and launch activities with internal stakeholders.
- Collaborate with Marketing to develop and execute customer promotions, product launches, in-store activations, merchandising initiatives, and other customer-specific sales programs.
- Work cross-functionally with Operations, Supply Chain, Product Development, Marketing, and other internal teams to support forecasting, production planning, inventory management, and customer requirements.
- Monitor the performance of new product launches and commercial initiatives, identifying opportunities to optimize results and support continued growth.

Qualifications

- Bachelor's degree or diploma in Business, Marketing, Sales, Commerce, or a related field is an asset.
- Minimum 5 years of progressive experience in sales, business development, or key account management, preferably within food manufacturing, consumer packaged goods (CPG), beverage, coffee, or foodservice industries.
- Proven track record of identifying and securing new business while successfully developing and growing existing customer relationships.
- Experience working with retail chains, distributors, wholesalers, foodservice operators, and/or private label customers is strongly preferred.
- Strong prospecting, sales, negotiation, presentation, and relationship-building capabilities.
- Strong business acumen with the ability to understand customer economics, profitability, market dynamics, and commercial opportunities.
- Demonstrated ability to analyze sales performance and market information and translate insights into actionable growth strategies.
- Excellent verbal and written communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills.
- Robust organizational, planning, and project management capabilities with the ability to manage multiple customers, opportunities, and priorities in a fast-paced environment.
- Collaborative approach with demonstrated ability to work effectively across functions and influence internal and external stakeholders.
- Self-motivated, results-oriented, and comfortable taking ownership in an entrepreneurial environment.
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite and CRM platforms.
- Ability and willingness to travel regularly for customer meetings, business development activities, trade shows, and industry events.

📌 Business Development Manager (Concord)
🏢 Zavida Coffee Roasters
📍 Concord