Director of Retail

Rasa is an adaptogen-based coffee alternative company and Public Benefit Corporation based in Boulder, CO. We're a small, mighty team making drinks that support your nervous system — with zero marketing manipulation and a deep commitment to doing business with integrity. Learn more at wearerasa.com

Role Summary

The Director of Retail owns everything retail at Rasa — across the natural channel (our primary focus), Faire, iHerb, and specialty/boutique. That means making the current footprint perform, building the internal systems that don't exist yet, and growing the channels over time. This role starts by building the operational infrastructure that retail needs to scale, and grows into owning retail sales and channel expansion as the footprint matures.

The natural channel is where the heaviest lift sits today — that's where most of the work, complexity, and opportunity live. Faire, iHerb, and specialty/boutique are real accountabilities but operate at lower volume and require less day-to-day attention.

Right now, much of the natural channel work is happening externally through a fractional sales team, but it needs increased internal visibility, documentation, project management, and integration with the team. This hire doesn't duplicate that work; they build the infrastructure around it, manage the external team, fill the gaps between external retail activity and the internal team, and ensure Rasa is ready to act when retail opportunities arise across any channel.

Currently we have a smaller footprint in retail than online but we want retail to be a major growth driver for Rasa in the coming years.

Direct Reports

• Fractional VP of Sales — external, managed by this role
• Retail Strategy Advisor(s) — external, coordinated (& mentored!) by this role
• Future: Junior Sales Rep, Demo Team, Data Analyst as channel grows

Core Accountabilities

1. Build the internal retail system

The infrastructure that doesn't exist today, regardless of what's happening externally:

• Build and maintain the retail operational playbook in Notion — the repeatable system for how Rasa succeeds in retail
• Own trade spend modeling and retail P&L tracking
• Track velocity by retailer and SKU
• Maintain a master category review calendar — submission windows are sacred; missing one means waiting a year
• Own what gets submitted to retailers — which SKUs, at what price, with what support.
• Own the operational and account management of Faire, iHerb, and specialty/boutique retail channels — listing optimization, pricing, promotional cadence, and account health

2. Manage the external natural channel team

The fractional sales team currently reports to nobody internally. This person becomes their internal counterpart:

• Set priorities and direction for external sales work
• Ensure their efforts (selling in, store support, relationship management) is tracked, documented, and visible
• Collaborate on the right division of responsibilities as the role evolves — what stays external, what moves internal
• Translate strategic retail advice into actionable plans for the team

3. Fill the gaps between external and internal

When retail needs assets from the Brand Director, inventory confirmation from Supply Chain, or a decision from the CEO, those requests currently bounce around until someone catches them. Ruh-roh. This person catches them, routes them, and follows up:

• Manage cross-functional coordination: supply chain, brand, marketing, & logistics
• Translate retailer requirements and pipeline activity into internal project plans
• Own internal execution of all retail activations — natural channel launches, Faire activations and promotions, iHerb listing and merchandising, specialty/boutique partnerships
• Create creative briefs for retail-facing materials; the Brand Director designs and produces them
• Manage demo strategy, calendar, and contractors; over time, build out Rasa's own contracted demo team (the Herb Gang), with the CEO and Brand Director owning training and brand experience
• Ensure retail-specific content and materials are brand-aligned (via Brand Director review gate)

4. Be in the room (or on the call)

This person needs to be able to represent Rasa to retailers:

• Attend buyer meetings and sales presentations — know the margins, the story, and the competitive landscape
• Manage retailer relationships for existing accounts — New Seasons, Natural Grocers, Whole Foods Rocky Mountain
• Be the face of Rasa in the field — store visits, staff training, checking shelf placement, building relationships at store level
• Understand pricing, profitability, and trade spend well enough to make smart decisions in real time with buyers

5. Grow the channel (Year 2+)

As the operational foundation solidifies and DTC funds retail growth, this role could evolve into retail sales leadership for the right candidate, in partnership with external sales support:

• Identify and pursue new retail opportunities across all channels — timing submissions strategically around category review windows
• Evaluate which retailers to pursue and when, balancing growth ambition with operational readiness
• Manage broker relationships as the footprint expands & we need a broker again
• Build toward a small retail team over time: junior sales rep, data analyst, trade marketing support
• If you've read this far and it resonates, put a unicorn emoji in your subject line when you apply.

New Retail Director, Who Dis

Please apply if you:

• Have 2-5 years at a natural channel CPG brand in retail ops, trade marketing, or sales (with operational experience)
• Have lived through at least one major retailer launch
• Understand planograms, trade spend, fill rates, UNFI, broker dynamics, velocity tracking
• Have strong project management and documentation instincts — can build systems while executing within them
• Want to grow into a Head of Sales / Director of Sales role — you see this as a launchpad, not a ceiling.
• Are comfortable being in the room with buyers and representing the brand, with or without the CEO there, and can hold your own on margins, pricing, & the Rasa story (we’ll teach you that last part of course ??)
• Are Self-starter AF — our Chief Revenue Officer will support and manage you, but not direct day-to-day retail operations
• Are detail-oriented on the operational side but also relationally competent enough to nurture sales relationships
• Are a cultural fit: direct, scrappy, comfortable in a small team, proactive, kind, high EQ, aligned with Rasa's values, & have a sense of humor
• Have developed AI fluency, or are willing to learn
• Experience or familiarity with Faire, iHerb, and specialty/boutique retail a plus

Comp

• Base salary: $95-120K depending on experience
• The role & comp package is designed to grow as the channel and responsibilities expand
• This is a full-time, remote-friendly role with a preference for Boulder/Denver-area candidates. Benefits include 100% Medical, Dental, Vision coverage, retirement plan, 8 company holidays, one Friday off every month, open vacation policy (most people take 2-4 weeks/year).

Application Tips

• Send 1-2 paragraphs on why you + Rasa are a great match. Not a formal cover letter, just why you’re awesome for this role
• Optional but highly encouraged:1-3 min video or voice memo introducing yourself
• Visit Rasa at a retail store near you and give us your comments on our retail presence
• We love personality, please share yours with us!

Reporting

This role reports to: Chief Revenue Officer

Manages: Fractional VP of Sales, Retail Strategy Advisor — both external

Travel: ~15-20% of time, concentrated around launches and industry events. Remote is fine; Boulder/Denver-area candidates preferred.

???? Equal Opportunity, Obvs: Your gender, your gods, the color of your skin, who you love, who you know (yep, even if you’re friends with someone here)...none of that matters. Rasa is a meritocracy: if you’re smart, good at your job, and sincerely want to make the world a kinder place with adaptogens, hard work, and a whole lotta love...we want to hear from you.