VP of Marketing

Welcome to Apothékary™, where Nature is Medicine™. We harness the intelligence of nature by creating clean, effective herbal remedies that target the root cause of health imbalances like helping to ease stress, support the gut, strengthen immunity, boost energy, and sharpen mental focus. Our herbal formulas feature traditional herbs from several medicinal modalities including Ayurveda, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), Japanese Kampo, and Western herbalism. We believe in getting to the root cause of health issues and herbs can be a great place to start your journey and promote wellness for the long-term. 

We were founded in early 2019 by Shizu Okusa, a serial entrepreneur in the wellness industry and named E&Y’s Entrepreneur of the Year in 2021 and most recently awarded the prestigious Inc. 500 Female Founder Honoree award.  After leaving an intense finance career, she became inspired to live a more balanced lifestyle and revisit her Japanese roots and passion for herbal medicine. Shizu set out to help others regain their holistic health using traditions she grew up with and ones she learned along the way.

Why work with us?

1. You will get the chance to be an early team member at a fast-growth health & wellness startup disrupting the intersection of food and medicine – preventative healthcare rooted in herbal medicine
2. We are growing fast (100x growth in two years, over $16M in capital raised, and quadrupled the size of the team)
3. We’re a tight-knit, passionate team, where you'll learn a ton and have ownership over your responsibilities.
4. Work with a seasoned second-time founder and executive team
   

The Role:

As our Vice President of Marketing, you will work with Apothékary’s Founder & CEO to develop our brand and growth strategy and will oversee the planning, development and execution of all Apothékary’s marketing programs. You will play a vital role in leading the marketing and growth team to develop Apothékary’s brand and marketing campaigns that build awareness, consideration, conversion and active engagement with our customers. 

The VP of Marketing will be a key member of the Executive team helping to guide the company’s overall strategy and ensure we have strong consistent brand positioning and a robust media plan. 

Your responsibilities will include: 

Strategy 

• Develop an integrated marketing plan across paid and non-paid marketing channels including Paid Social, Paid Search, Display, Affiliate, Influencer, Organic Social, Public Relations, Loyalty, Email/SMS, Events, Partnerships, and CSR 

• Define Apothékary’s brand strategy, positioning and creative vision 

• Determine strategy for each marketing channel at Apothékary and work with marketing team to execute and drive measurable results 

Brand Development 

• Work with our creative freelance team to develop creative assets that engage customers including packaging, photography, marketing collateral, and digital design 

• Manage creative team including freelancers and agencies; oversee selection process of our key creative partners 

• Oversee consumer and shopper marketing research, driving analysis into action 

Growth Marketing 

• Partner with our Director of Growth to create a media plan and testing roadmap across paid marketing channels

• Monitor paid marketing campaigns and optimize strategy accordingly

• Own paid marketing budget and ensure we meet our company’s growth and profitability metrics

• Create lifecycle marketing strategy across owned channels focusing on retention and LTV

• Partner with our Director of Retention and Operations team to reduce subscriber churn and create a best-in-class subscription experience 

Analytics

• Work with our Director of Digital to create data analytics processes and tools that inform brand and growth strategy 

• Leverage and instill a culture of rapid testing, speed, and analytical-based decision making through the use of AI

• Identify key drivers of marketing performance and work with marketing team to build reporting that informs the profitability of our marketing portfolio 

• Monitor category and competitor performance and adjust marketing programs accordingly 

Governance 

• Oversee annual and quarterly business planning including budgeting and performance goals 

• Set OKRs (objectives and key results) annually and quarterly for marketing department 

• Partner closely with Finance, Accounting, Sales and Operations on monthly close process and forecasting

• Oversee the development and management of the marketing budget 

People 

• Inspire internal team with your passion for brand building and growth marketing 

• Lead a multi channel marketing and creative team that currently consists of more than 10 full-time employees and several freelancers/agencies across public relations, photography/videography, web development, design, creative, and copy 

• Continue to build out marketing team and external partners as our business grows and needs evolve 

• Hire and lead a Director of Sales role to bring Apothékary’s brand to life in wholesale/retail channels 

• Work collaboratively with Operations to launch new products and create a best-in-class customer experience 

• Key contributor and thought leader of the Apothékary executive team helping to guide overall business strategy and company vision

Requirements

• Minimum of 15 years of work experience, with 8+ years of experience in Marketing 
• Are excited about entrepreneurship and are committed to helping people live healthier lives 
• Beauty and/or wellness experience is required, supplements is ideal 
• Excellent written and oral communication and interpersonal skills with ability to present to various levels 
• Able to quickly pivot between strategy and execution 
• Proficient in ChatGPT, Meta Business Suite, Google Ads, Microsoft Office and Google Suite. Shopify experience is preferred. 
• Strong record of leadership, team management, and strategic acumen 
• You love problem solving and have a data driven approach. You are direct with communication and have a strong point of view. 
• Self-driven, Resourceful/Scrappy, Curious, Confident, Optimistic, and Passionate 
• You have a bias for action, a sense of urgency and you’re not afraid to get your hands dirty 
• Quick, reliable and detail- oriented. Nothing slips by you! 

KEY COMPETENCIES 

Ownership and Mastery of Craft: Focused on outcomes. Able to deliver on commitments while installing the right amount of process to enable steady performance. Flexible in approach to deliver quality and brand excellence, in the face of high growth and unexpected twists and turns. A relentless execution expert with confidence in her/his expertise in core areas. Always learning, optimizing and improving. 

Team Leadership: Passionate, high integrity leader who can grasp and drive Apothékary’s DNA across the business. Fosters and maintains culture and community. Has a bias for the importance of talent and training, and possesses the energy, sincerity and drive to engage and build meaningful relationships grounded in trust with a diverse and distributed team. Genuinely excited to spend time in the spaces, with team members and customers, and always knows the “pulse” of each. Balances inspiration and accountability. 

Strategic Orientation and Growth/Scale Mindset: Has an ability to both develop a strategy and lead the organization in its execution. Eager to take on new challenges with open-mindedness, respecting team, peers, and leaders. Can think high and low. Possesses the intellectual horsepower/problem solving ability to lead the charge on tackling complex problems. 

Collaboration and Influencing: Will have the gravitas, willingness, and ability to work effectively at all levels of the organization. Facilitates connection and collaboration across the business. Brings the “playbook” to the table but has the flexibility and humbleness to adapt to business and stakeholder needs. Will contribute skill and experience with generosity, willing to work with anyone to drive real business impact. Balances strong quantitative and analytical skills with the emotional intelligence needed to influence organizational outcomes.

Effective Communication Skills: High integrity, no-nonsense approach. Knows how to communicate through the brand voice and at all levels of the organization. Understands how to communicate through a decentralized organization. Quick and to the point. Welcomes candor from above and below. An active listener. 

Innovation and Entrepreneurialism: Ability to thrive in a dynamic, fast-paced environment. Relentless focus on improvement and raising the bar. Leans in harder when times are good. Balances scrappiness and execution with business maturity, prioritization and thoughtfulness. Is curious, agile, a self-starter and welcomes challenge as a conduit to improvement. Can be creative with resources and has a history of getting things done in complex environments and flat hierarchies.

Benefits

• Starting salary: $200K + equity / bonus
• Comprehensive health, dental, and vision plans.
• Monthly paid Mental Health Days in addition to PTO.
• Opportunity to earn equity options.
• Monthly Apothékary product stipend.