Food and Beverage Recruiting and Executive Search

Your Food and Beverage Recruitment Specialists

We are Bristol Associates, a boutique executive search firm, founded in 1967. As a core focus since our founding, our Food and Beverage recruitment division has been placing top talent at leading companies in the food industry for over 55 years. Our experienced F&B recruiters successfully complete searches using our comprehensive industry knowledge, extensive network, and ever-expanding database. We have an excellent track record and are regarded as one of the top search firms in the industry, recruiting key executives across all functions, both nationwide and globally.

Our vast client base encompasses a broad spectrum of companies of all sizes, including production and manufacturing businesses, first – stage agricultural suppliers, consumer packaged foods, finished food and beverage product manufacturers (for retail and food service channels), as well as formulated ingredients, food service ingredients, industrial ingredients, nutritional supplement providers, and businesses involved with CBD products. We also work with start-ups, turnaround operations, and private equity firms to find the best candidates to fit our client’s unique requirements. Bristol also practices in the Restaurant industry.

The retained search and recruitment service Bristol offers includes sourcing, screening, submitting qualified candidates, scheduling interviews, and negotiating employment and compensation packages of selected finalists. Each search is unique, and we provide personalized service to gain an in-depth understanding of our clients at the start of our relationship. Our recruitment strategy is mindfully tailored based on each client’s needs and culture. We strive to find the best fit for our client companies as well as our candidates. The connections we form with both our clients and candidates are valued, and we maintain these relationships with great care.

Given our firm’s industry focus and vast database of talent, we have in-depth knowledge of compensation ranges from C-suite executives to mid-level management. We regularly advise clients on current job market conditions and consult on matters of compensation including base salaries, bonus programs, commission structures, incentives, benefits, and long-term compensation. We can provide customized compensation information (wage studies) à la carte to our main retained executive search services. The salary data we provide is always anonymous, in that it is tied to job titles and not executives’ names.

Food and Beverage Manufacturing Survey

Since 2020, Bristol has conducted the Annual Food and Beverage Manufacturing Survey, which is designed to help the F&B industry attract, retain, and motivate its talent. Yearly analysis provides insight on professionals’ current attitudes and preferences towards their workplace and the industry at large, as well as how they change over the years and how they relate to overall market conditions. View more about our Survey here.

Join the Many Companies That Already Recruit with Bristol Associates

Our Satisfied Clients Love to Share Their Experiences Working with Bristol Associates

“Bristol Associates is my go-to firm for all manager level and higher recruiting needs in the food / bev space. The food and beverage team takes the time to learn about my company and the position as well as the subtleties that determine fit within the culture. I am grateful for their patience, as we have a stringent recruiting process, and that has led to more protracted searches than either of us would prefer. But the investment in the relationship has yielded some outstanding candidates. Most recently, we took months to look for a planning / purchasing manager, and they nailed it with the perfect person that brought skill, experience, worth ethic, and cultural fit all within our budget for the position.”

David Choe

Chief Executive Officer, Jo's Candies

“We hired Bristol Associates to help us fill a Director of Sales and HR Manager position. Long term successful talent acquisition requires a strong match for both the team hiring and a candidate’s motivations. Bristol Associates did a great job accurately sharing our employee value proposition and was committed to finding a great match for all involved. I’ve worked with several staffing agencies over the years, some of which have lost interest in hard to fill roles. Bristol’s team stayed committed to the search regardless of the difficulty and advised appropriately to what their team saw in the market so our hiring team could adjust expectations. Bristol brings strong market knowledge, collaboration, and dedication to the hiring process.”

Chintan Shah

Chief Operations Officer, Jeneil Biotech, Inc.

“I’ve found Bristol Associates to be incredibly helpful in working with COR strategically to identify how our organization needs to change as we grow. Bristol Associates has been adept at helping us find great employees in multiple sales channels and at multiple levels of the organization.”

Mike Forbes

Vice President of Sales and Marketing, California Olive Ranch

“I have partnered with the Bristol team both as a candidate and as a hiring agent over the past 20 years. Bristol Associates has been a pleasure to work with and does a great job of matching both skills and culture between candidates and companies. This is so important in today’s competitive job market to ensure good career alignment and retention.”

Dave Nicholson

Chief Executive Officer, GFF, Inc. / Girard's Haco Swiss

Why Work with Bristol Associates?

Over 55 Years in Business

We have specialized in executive search since 1967, and are now in our 3rd generation of family ownership.

Specialized

We have unrivaled industry knowledge in the areas in which we focus.

Individualized Service

We provide consultative, individualized service to our client companies. We pride ourselves in conducting our processes confidentially when necessary.

Network of Candidates

With over 1M+ relevant candidates in our private database, and growing every day, we have a strong network of senior-level talent across the board.

Responsiveness

Our recruiters value a communicative relationship with our select client companies and candidates, providing updates throughout the search.

Experienced

Our exceptional lead recruiters each have at least 15 years’ of experience in executive search.

Partner with Bristol Associates

Our Successful Food and Beverage Searches Keep Our Clients Coming Back

Chief Executive Officer

Our firm was selected by a privately held food ingredient distributor to complete their CEO search. The position serves as a hands-on manager, working to grow business profitably, improve the work environment, and increase the company’s efficiency. They will also collaborate with the Board of Directors and management team to plan, prioritize, and achieve financial and strategic objectives. Our placed candidate had nearly 20 years of experience as President and CFO in the food manufacturing industry at the time of hire. As part of the role, they are now the “face” of the organization internally and externally.

Chief Financial Officer

Our client is a fast-growing, progressive company providing premium-quality natural foods to consumer retail and food service channels. Responsibilities for the role include directing accounting policies, procedures and internal controls; overseeing insurance, risk management, IT Systems, corporate HR functions, and ERP systems; establishing and maintaining relationships with commercial bankers; structuring debt arrangements; and ensuring debt covenant compliance. Our placed candidate has a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting along with over 10 years of progressive food industry experience in a manufacturing setting.

Vice President of Quality Control and Food Safety Compliance

We completed this search for a privately held, family-owned and operated company that has been in the bottled water business for over 60 years. The position is responsible for assisting in the training and management of the quality control department and overseeing the company’s food safety program across nine manufacturing facilities, as well as leading and managing internal and external audit teams to ensure quality control and food safety compliance and consistency. Our placed candidate leads and manages the design and maintenance of a comprehensive food safety compliance program, including formulation and program document updates, performance of regular audits, and continual department personnel training.

Purchasing and Planning Manager

Our client is a long-established, highly regarded category leader located in Southern California. The Purchasing and Planning Manager works with the executive management team to implement new and improved processes. Our placed candidate is now responsible for developing and implementing ways to make the planning process of the organization more effective.

We Can Fill Your Roles Across the Industry

  • Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
  • Chief Operating Officer (COO)
  • Director of Food Service Sales
  • Food Scientist
  • General Manager (GM)
  • Plant Controller
  • Plant Manager
  • President
  • Purchasing Director
  • Quality Assurance Manager
  • Regional Sales Manager
  • Vice President of Engineering
  • Vice President of Food Safety and Quality
  • Vice President of Marketing
  • Vice President of Operations
  • Vice President of Research and Development
  • Vice President of Sales
  • Vice President of Supply Chain and Logistics

Check Out Our Latest Food and Beverage Jobs

Senior Mechanical Design Engineer

United States/Canada

Our client is a leading provider of equipment and technology solutions for agricultural commodities including…

Our client is a leading provider of equipment and technology solutions for agricultural commodities including…

Our client is a manufacturer of customized food and beverage products (powders, concentrates) for the…

We Recruit Nationwide Including the Following Major Markets

Our Latest Food and Beverage Blogs

Culinary Talent Acquisition: Proven Strategies for Hiring Top Culinary Professionals

The Bristol Breakroom Career Advice and More from Our Team Food and Beverage People are the heart of the hospitality industry. For a restaurant, catering service, cafe, or other food service business to succeed, it needs a kitchen staff with the skills to provide an...

Soft Skills in the Food and Beverage Job Search: Your Key to Success

The Bristol Breakroom Career Advice and More from Our Team Food and Beverage It’s a good time to start or advance a career in the food and beverage industry. The Bureau of Labor Statistics’s career outlook projects fast employment growth for a number of...

5 Proven Strategies for Long-Term Retention of Food & Beverage Employees

The Bristol Breakroom Career Advice and More from Our Team Food and Beverage Employee turnover is a significant concern in the food and beverage industry. The data shows the rate of staff turnover in 2022 was 83.4%. While pandemic-related disruptions have certainly...