About the role

Packaging Innovation Specialist

Bombay Sweet Shop · Mumbai · Full-Time · 2–4 years

WHO WE ARE

Hunger Inc. is home to The Bombay Canteen, O Pedro, Bombay Sweet Shop, Veronica's and Papa's. We build brands across restaurants, cafés, and gifting, rooted in culture, craft, and attention to detail. We're a people-first company that values clarity, ownership, and consistency. As we grow, we focus on building strong teams and systems that help us create meaningful experiences, every day.

THE ROLE

The Packaging Innovation Specialist at Bombay Sweet Shop owns one thing: what packaging could do next for the customer opening it, and for the operation shipping it. A better box isn't just a better box. It's shelf life extended, a fragile SKU that survives transit, a shape that cuts material cost, a structure that makes gifting feel premium without adding a rupee. You're the person who sees all of that at once, not just "does this look good" but "does this work, hold up, ship clean, and meet every norm it needs to." You're finding formats, materials, and structures worth exploring, testing them for real-world feasibility, and bringing them from idea to sample. Artworking, spec proofing, and vendor tracking are part of the job, but they support the innovation work, not replace it.

WHO YOU ARE

You can't look at a box without seeing two things: what it says, and what it does. You've noticed a packaging format somewhere and immediately thought about both the shelf appeal and the practical problem it solves. Less damage in transit, easier stacking, lower cost per unit, better shelf life. You think operationally as much as creatively. A beautiful format that doesn't survive a delivery bike ride isn't a solution. You test ideas against real constraints: cost, compliance, production feasibility.

YOUR TEAM

You'll work alongside the Head of Design, the design team, and both existing and new packaging vendors. The best weeks here are when a new format goes from sketch to sample to something the team can actually greenlight.

WHO YOU WILL REPORT TO

You report to the Head of Design. They hold the brand standard: does this look and feel like Bombay Sweet Shop? You hold the innovation standard, does this genuinely improve the product, creatively and functionally? And you hold the accuracy standard on execution, is everything print-ready and compliant? All three gates are independent and non-negotiable.

WHAT YOU'LL LEAD

Innovation & Functional Development

Packaging Ideation: Research formats, structures, materials, and finishes from India and globally. Bring forward concepts for Bombay Sweet Shop's sweets, snacks, and gifting lines. A standing responsibility, not an occasional brief.
Functional & Operational Problem-Solving: Evaluate packaging against real operational needs: shelf life, transit durability, stacking, storage, cost per unit. A great idea has to survive the supply chain, not just the photo.
Compliance & Standards: Ensure every new format meets FSSAI and other regulatory norms before it moves past concept.
Prototyping & Mock-ups: Take an idea from sketch to physical sample: build or commission mock-ups, test structural feasibility, iterate with vendors until it's ready for review.
New Vendor Sourcing: Find and vet vendors who can execute new materials, structures, or better economics at scale.
Seasonal & Gifting Innovation: Lead new packaging directions for Diwali and other major gifting.

Execution Support

Artworking: Support the design team on packaging artwork production across SKUs.
Spec & Artwork Proofing: Check artwork against spec sheets: copy, addresses, barcodes, nutritional info, MRP.
Vendor & SKU Tracking: Maintain the tracker across active SKUs: version, print status, vendor timeline.

WHAT YOU BRING

2-4 years in packaging development, structural/packaging design, or packaging engineering, ideally in F&B or FMCG.
Genuine curiosity about packaging as a category. You notice formats and materials outside of work, not just when briefed.
Ability to think functionally: durability, shelf life, cost, compliance, not just visual appeal.
Comfortable initiating and managing vendor relationships from scratch.
Hands-on prototyping experience, comfortable building or directing physical mock-ups.
Working knowledge of print production: die-lines, substrates, color separations, finishing.
Proficient in Illustrator/InDesign; meticulous enough to catch what others miss on a spec sheet.

WHAT YOU GET

Health insurance for you, your spouse, and up to two dependents.
24/7 access to doctors for physical and mental health, plus wellness discounts via Plum.
Covered under PF, ESIC, and the Employee Compensation Act.
Staff discounts on dining and products across all Hunger Inc. brands.
Ownership of what Bombay Sweet Shop packaging becomes next. Creatively and functionally with the room to actually build and test new ideas.