Culinary Selling Specialist

Responsibilities:

Job Summary: As a Culinary Selling Expert, you'll perform selling activation events in the Cooking Connection kitchen while developing appropriate recipes targeted to the local Customer base using key focus items. You'll engage Customers by creating a hub of food experiences through your expertise and knowledge of multiple ingredients, beverage recommendations, and cooking techniques to drive customer engagement and sales.

Key Responsibilities & Essential Functions:

Sales / Customer Service:

Follows the customer service and hospitality model to connect with Customers, building a sense of community and driving loyalty

Creates an atmosphere of celebration by participating in total Store events, creating themed recipes, and cross merchandising

Welcomes / approaches Customers with the mindset of a host, catering to the needs of the Customer to ensure they feel welcomed, invited, and appreciated

Offers advice for menu / meal planning; scales recipes in size and skill level depending on customer needs

Conducts cooking method and recipe preparation demonstrations; executes food prep methods with high efficiency to maximize Customer interactions

Offers engaging, consistent, and relevant culinary conversations on the microphone to attract Customers

Serves as the expert in the day's recipes; answers culinary questions; recommends variations and substitute ingredients for food allergy or food lifestyle needs; adapts as needed to customer response, inventory changes, etc.

Suggests distinctive alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverage pairings

Develops / maintains relationships with Customers by recalling dietary needs / restrictions and wine preferences to tailor future visits; applies observation skills and intuitive selling techniques

Contributes culinary insights, food trends, local trends, and Customer insights to in-Store cooking events

Assists in Cooking classes, Wine education, and Dinner Series execution when applicable

May conduct Connections floor demos

Merchandising:

Ensures A+ standards at the Connections kitchen, including maintaining and cleaning fixtures, stocking conditions, plan-o-gram integrity, daily beginning, mid-day, and end-shift recovery, and perpetual inventory

Assists in building / maintaining merchandising displays; uses appropriate signs, tags, and branding for all events

Ensures Customer signage for the daily menu and daily sampling hours is updated and on display

Ensures backstock is worked

Guides customers to multiple product uses; shares product stories on origin, flavor, authenticity, uniqueness, etc.

May support food production for retail sale

Food Safety / Sanitation:

Ensures compliance with federal, state, and H-E-B food safety regulations / standards

Completes all required food safety and related trainings

Maintains professional, clean, healthy, and safe work environment

Ensures proper equipment use; cleans / sanitizes kitchen, equipment, and counter tops per the A+ Standards

Operates under 5-S guidelines set by department leader

Preps products for use in demonstrations, sampling, and production, using the mise-en-place method

Uses proper personal protection equipment during operation of the department and during required tasks

The responsibilities and essential functions outlined above describe the general nature and level of work assigned to this position. This is not an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities, and skills required. Duties and responsibilities may be modified at any time based on business needs. Employees may be required to perform other job-related tasks as requested by their supervisor, subject to reasonable accommodations.

Qualifications & Key Requirements:

Age Requirement:

21+

Work Experience:

2+ years of experience related to food and cooking or experience cooking in a professional environment, in sales or product demonstrations

Knowledge/Skills/Abilities:

Strong knowledge of H-E-B systems and processes (e.g., systems related to scheduling, recipe authoring, product ordering, display planning, MS Office, internal websites, H-E-B mobile apps) - Required

Advanced communication skills - Required

Advanced customer service skills; passion for hospitality - Required

Strong merchandising skills - Required

Skills in intermediate cooking techniques - Required

Ability to read and interpret documents (e.g., safety rules, maintenance instructions, procedure manuals, financial / sales reports) - Required

Ability to manage multiple priorities and shift focus between projects - Required

Ability and willingness to work flexible hours - Required

Education:

Degree in culinary arts, nutrition, home economics, or H-E-B Culinary certification (intermediate culinary skills) - Required

Licenses/Certifications:

H-E-B Wine selling certification or similar experience

Completion of / ability to complete TABC Certification

Physical Demands & Working Conditions:

Constantly stand, reach at waist, and grasp

Occasionally sit, walk, reach overhead, reach at shoulder, reach at knee, reach at floor, bend, stoop, squat, crouch, kneel, stair climb, ladder climb, pivot, twist, push / pull with arms, pinch, and perform fine motor movements

Occasionally be exposed to cold & hot temperatures, loud noise, wet conditions

Demonstrate the ability to lift 60 lbs, and manage more than 60 lbs

While there may be exceptions, the measurements noted are generally defined as -Constantly: 5.5+ hours per 8-hour day; Frequently: 2.5 - 5.5 hours per 8-hour day; Occasionally: 0 - 2.5 hours per 8-hour day

It is Partners' responsibility to never lift beyond their own safe lifting limit. If an item is too heavy to lift, push or pull, and / or carry, the Partner must break the box down into lighter, smaller, more manageable components, or ask for assistance from another Partner or a manager.

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those a Partner encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Last revised: 8/1/2022