Nimble is seeking a Sales and Business Development Lead to drive growth and revenue by identifying new business opportunities, developing strategic partnerships, and direct its sales efforts. The role involves engaging potential customers, managing follow-up interactions, finalising agreements, and actively promoting Nimble’s innovative products and services.
If you are an experienced salesperson or business developer in the food industry, have a network in the Dutch catering or Horeca sector, and are motivated to help make the food system more sustainable, resilient, and fair, we encourage you to apply.
Please note that Nimble is exclusively partnering with KAIROS People to find the right candidate for this role.
Nimble, meaning flexible, is a Dutch startup providing a fair, flexible food processing infrastructure for nature-inclusive farmers. Chefs, caterers, and food businesses with professional kitchens collaborate with Nimble to access premium, sustainable, locally sourced vegetable mixes tailored to their needs and to those they serve, including offices, hospitals, public organisations, and the wider hospitality sector.
By directly linking chefs with local, nature-inclusive farmers with ready-to-use products such as precut seasonal vegetables mixes from their first product line The Better Cut, Nimble enables chefs and organisations to serve healthy, high-quality ingredients with ease. In doing so, Nimble empowers their customers to build a more transparent and sustainable agricultural system while ensuring a consistent and reliable supply.
To make this possible, Nimble developed its own light processing infrastructure. It can handle high-quality produce and surplus from smaller farms, something large-scale processors are not designed to do. This flexibility allows Nimble to support farmers who are often excluded from traditional processing systems, giving them a bigger market access and a direct sales point for multiple vegetables they grow.
Nimble serves customers such as Leiden University Medical Centre (LUMC) and the Province of South Holland. Supported by organisations including Fresh Ventures Studio, Van Kool tot Kimchi, Rotterdam de Boer Op! and Nieuwe Nassen, Nimble is now expanding its team to process at least 350 tonnes of Dutch vegetables annually by the end of 2026.
Nita van Dam (Co-Founder & CEO) brings a unique blend of experience in resilient farming, food systems, and entrepreneurship. She previously founded ReProduce, a US-based startup focused on reducing food waste on local farms and has over five years of hands-on experience in the restaurant and catering industry. At Nimble, she leads partnerships with farmers, develops new seasonal products, and refines the company’s strategy based on market feedback. Her vision is to bridge the gap between farmers and consumers to build a more sustainable, transparent, and fair food system.
Melchior Huijts (Co-Founder & COO), with a background in Aerospace Engineering and systems integration, brings analytical rigor and innovative problem-solving to Nimble. His experience in high-pressure environments and a biomaterials startup shaped his adaptable, systems-thinking approach. As COO, he leads the design and operations of Nimble’s processing facility, ensuring its infrastructure supports sustainable practices. He also builds partnerships with impact investors to fuel the company’s growth. Motivated by ecological restoration, Melchior ensures Nimble operates at the intersection of sustainability and technology.
As the Sales and Business Development Lead, you will play a key role in accelerating Nimble’s growth. In close collaboration with the founding team, you will lead the company’s commercial efforts, building strategic partnerships, expanding the customer base, and shaping how Nimble delivers value to professional kitchens through sustainable, locally sourced produce.
Lead sales activities and consistently meet or exceed sales, revenue and growth targets.
Identify and pursue new business opportunities through market research, networking, and prospecting.
Build and manage a qualified sales pipeline through proactive outreach, referrals, and industry networking.
Negotiate contracts, pricing, and terms of agreements with clients and partners.
Foster strong relationships that lead to long-term partnerships.
Work closely with product development to ensure that customers identified needs during meetings (risks and opportunities) are addressed and incorporated into Nimble’s offering and strategy.
You are an experienced sales and business development professional with a strong network in the Dutch food industry, particularly within Horeca, catering, or professional kitchens. You thrive on building lasting client relationships and helping businesses access premium, locally sourced vegetable mixes tailored to their needs.
You have a proven track record of managing the entire sales cycle, from identifying prospects and mobilising resources to negotiating deals and closing agreements. You are confident in engaging clients directly—whether through cold outreach, warm leads, or in-person visits—and consistently meet or exceed your targets. You are a self-organised, strategic thinker with excellent listening, communication, and negotiation skills. Your approach is both independent and collaborative: you proactively uncover new opportunities while ensuring that customer insights inform Nimble’s evolving offerings.
You are energised by the challenge of scaling mission-driven organisations. You are motivated to simplify how professional kitchens source quality local produce, reduce food waste, and contribute to a more sustainable and fair food system.
We are looking for someone who meets the minimum requirements. If you meet the requirements, we encourage you to apply.
A bachelor’s or master’s degree, or equivalent knowledge and experience, in sales, business administration, business development, or a related field.
7–12 years of relevant experience in sales and business development within the Dutch food industry.
Strong existing network in the Dutch catering or Horeca sectors.
Proven ability to manage the full sales cycle, from prospecting to deal closure, including cold calling, warm leads, events, direct visits.
Adaptable, hands-on, and comfortable working in a scaling environment.
Familiarity with integrating customer feedback into product development.
You have affinity with, or are interested in, sustainability, nature-inclusive farming, and fair-trade principles.
Fluent in Dutch and business English, both spoken and written.
This hands-on role is based in Rotterdam with the option to work remotely. Nimble values in-person meetings and collaboration but also offers flexibility to do so in a way that works for you.
Remote locations are ideally within commuting distance of the Rotterdam office and enable you to visit customers easily.
The monthly salary range for this role is €2,400 – €3,600, depending on your experience. This is based on a two-day-per-week contract or freelance arrangement for an initial period of five months. After this period, you and Nimble may decide to extend the contract or transition to a full-time position.
A performance-based bonus scheme is open for discussion, and as Nimble grows, there may also be an opportunity to participate in equity. Working with Nimble, you will have the opportunity to shape and realise its strategy within an innovative startup environment.
Apply to find out if this is the right role for you, or contact Ajaan Hijmans if you have any questions.
You can learn more about Nimble by visiting their website.
Personalities, motivations, and organizational cultures are unique and diverse, and may not always align perfectly. A personality or motivation assessment may therefore be included as part of our selection process.
