My food & drink job: Sabrina Reinke, assistant brand manager, Graze

Name: Sabrina Reinke

Age: 25

Job title: Assistant brand manager

Company & location: Graze – Unilever, London

Education BSc Management, Warwick Business School; MSc Strategic Marketing, Imperial College London

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up? I loved creative pursuits like drawing and painting and even considered studying art and becoming an interior designer. However, an economics class in school sparked my interest in business and strategy, leading me to a career in marketing as I can blend creativity and strategy to build impactful brands like Graze.

Why did you decide to go for a career in food & drink? More than just meeting basic needs, food is a source of delight and has a unique power to connect people.

Working with Graze allows me to share this joy by creating and marketing healthier and delicious snacks that people can savour guilt-free. I’m also drawn to the culture in food & drink fmcg companies like Unilever as I’ve found them to be extremely friendly, yet ambitious, which makes my work even more fulfilling.

“It’s incredibly rewarding to work in a team that drives better practices and for a brand that has been leading the category in innovation and sustainability”

Explain your job to us in a sentence (or two): I bring the Graze marketing strategies to life by executing campaigns and working on new product launches to attract more people to healthier snacking. I also analyse consumer and performance trends to inform our plans, ensuring our products resonate with consumers and align with our B Corp standards.

What does a typical day look like for you? One day, I might be conducting performance analysis or planning and executing our above-the-line strategy. On another day, I collaborate with various teams, such as the e-commerce and social teams to enhance our online presence, the innovation team to launch new products, or the shopper team/account managers to drive in-store activations.

No two days are the same, making the role both challenging and exciting.

Tell us how you went about applying for your job: After completing my master’s in marketing and an internship at Olaplex, I was approached on LinkedIn by Graze for an assistant brand manager role.

The application process had three stages: an initial call with the brand manager to discuss my background and interest, an in-person interview with the team where I presented a case study on the performance and brand recommendations for our oat boost flapjacks range, and a final in-person interview with the CMO.

Although daunting, it was a fantastic opportunity to visit the office, meet colleagues, and experience the company’s culture and tight-knit relationship with senior leaders.

What’s the best part about working for a food & drink company? Aside from our delicious tasting sessions (and Graze office snacks of course!), the best part about working for Graze is the opportunity to be creative in developing and marketing tasty snacks that are also healthier and more sustainable.

It’s incredibly rewarding to work in a team that drives better practices and for a brand that has been leading the category in innovation and sustainability.

And what’s the biggest misconception people have about working in food & drink? There’s much more to it than just tasting delicious food and designing pretty packaging! Extensive market research, considering sustainability and compliance, pricing strategies, customer sell-in meetings and performance analysis are just the beginning. It’s an exciting yet complex process to bring a product to market.

Read more:

• New Unilever boss Fernando Fernandez set to offload Marmite and other food brands

• Why has Unilever ditched well-liked CEO Hein Schumacher?

• Graze cuts costs ahead of Unilever integration

What advice would you give to other young people looking to get into the food & drink industry? Keep an open mind about role descriptions, even if some elements seem daunting or not immediately appealing – gaining knowledge and experience across various functions will give you a well-rounded perspective and make you more effective in your role.

What’s your ultimate career dream? Pinpointing an ultimate career dream this early on can be challenging. Currently, my passion lies in marketing and working on a brand that resonates with me. As my career progresses, I remain open to discovering new opportunities and paths!

Ultimately, I want to be passionate about my work, be a part of a positive working culture, and continue to be challenged.

Interested in finding out more about food & drink careers? Check out GrocerJobs for the latest vacancies