Head of Research And Development

A NOTE FROM THE FOUNDER
"I'm building CACO & CO. from scratch, and I'm looking for the R&D lead who will make every chocolate and bake we create safe, consistent and ready to scale. If you've ever wanted to build an R&D function from the very first formulation, with the tools, backing and freedom to do it right, I'd love to talk."
– Shaishav Mittal, Founder
ABOUT US
CACO & CO. is a new-age, offline-retail luxury chocolate brand from the Lovely Group, the parent company behind Lovely Professional University, Lovely Autos, Lovely Sweets and Lovely Bake Studio. Backed by the Group's strength and built with a fresh, modern outlook, CACO & CO. becomes the ultimate destination that brings together artisanal chocolates, a signature chocolate beverage bar, specialty coffee, a 100% eggless patisserie and curated luxury gifting under one roof, crafted for indulging, celebrating and gifting.
Every product carries the Group's name, and R&D sets the standard it must meet. You will build the function from the ground up, with authority over technical standards company-wide.
ROLE OVERVIEW
- Experience: 4–7 years in chocolate, confectionery or bakery R&D
- Qualification: M.Sc or B.Tech in Food Technology or Food Science
- Employment: Full-time, on-site, permanent
- Reports to: The Founders
- Works with: Executive Chef, marketing, procurement, production, packaging, finance
- Compensation: ₹1,25,000–1,50,000 per month (≈ ₹15–18 LPA), based on experience
- Location: Punjab, India
PRODUCT RANGE YOU WILL WORK ON
- Chocolate: bean-to-bar bars, bonbons and truffles, pralines and gianduja, spreads, dragées and barks
- Eggless pâtisserie & bakery: entremets, celebration cakes, tea cakes, cookies, brownies and viennoiserie
- Chocolate beverages: hot and cold chocolate drinks for our signature beverage bar
- Gifting: festive and seasonal collections, hampers and wedding favours
ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES
Product development
- Run the pipeline from concept to launch across chocolate, eggless pâtisserie, fillings, spreads and gifting.
- Turn chef concepts into standard formulations, scaled from bench trial to full production.
- Develop eggless cakes, cookies and viennoiserie that match conventional bakes in taste, texture and volume.
- Run sensory panels and tasting trials, and plan seasonal and festive launches with the Executive Chef and marketing.
Bean to bar
- Build our bean-to-bar programme: source, grade and select cacao beans, with a focus on Indian origins.
- Set roasting, winnowing, grinding, refining and conching profiles that bring out each origin's flavour.
- Develop single-origin bars and signature couvertures, and scale them up on the Selmi line.
Shelf-life and stability
- Run shelf-life studies for every product and set best-before dates.
- Resolve fat bloom, heat instability, moisture migration, staling and texture loss.
- Specify packaging that keeps products fresh and safe in storage and transit.
Food safety and quality
- Set up HACCP, GMP, hygiene SOPs and batch records.
- Lead FSSAI compliance: licences, product approvals, label claims, nutrition and allergen declarations.
- Define ingredient and finished-product specifications, run incoming checks, and audit and approve vendors.
Costing and process
- Cost every formulation and confirm the target margin before launch.
- Find ingredient and process changes that cut cost without cutting quality.
- Document recipes and process parameters so every batch is identical.
Lab and team
- Help set up the R&D kitchen and test laboratory, including equipment, tools and documentation.
- Train and mentor the technologists and trainees on the team.
WHAT WE LOOK FOR
Required
- Relevant industry experience with brands such as Theobroma, Theos, Manam Chocolate, Smoor, Subko or Haldiram's.
- Hands-on chocolate and bakery formulation, scale-up and shelf-life testing.
- Hands-on experience working on a Selmi line: tempering, moulding, enrobing and depositing.
- Strong working knowledge of FSSAI regulations, labelling and HACCP.
- Disciplined documentation: specifications, SOPs and batch records.
- Self-driven and analytical, able to decide with incomplete data.
Preferred
- Chocolate science: tempering, fat bloom, couverture versus compound.
- Eggless baking and egg-replacer systems.
- Bean-to-bar experience: roasting, winnowing, refining and conching.
- Food-safety certifications (HACCP, FSSC 22000, ISO 22000).
- Experience leading a small R&D or QA team.
HOW SUCCESS IS MEASURED
- New products launched on time, and their sales in the first six months.
- Zero food-safety incidents, and clean FSSAI and hygiene audits.
- Consistent batches with minimal complaints, and every product at or above target margin.
HOW TO APPLY
Email your CV (PDF or Word) to foundry@cacoandco.in
Subject line: Head of R&D, Chocolate & Bakery – Caco & Co.

Work arrangement
No