Product Manager 
Do you want to help shape the future of an iconic brand with a strong health-driven mission? As a Product Manager at Yakult Europe, you play a key role in accelerating the European growth of Yakult. You translate consumer insights and market trends into a strong and relevant product portfolio, provide direction for New Product Development (NPD) and ensure that innovations truly make an impact in-store. With your strategic mindset and hands-on approach, you bring Yakult closer to the European consumer than ever before.

The Role
As Product Manager you are part of the Marketing Department and reporting to the Manager Product Strategy & In-store Activation, working closely with the Digital, Research and Insights teams. In this role, you actively contribute to Yakult Europe’s innovation funnel and support the development of a more market- and consumer-driven organization. You connect strategy, product portfolio and activation, translating plans into concrete results.

Strategy & Activation
You support the development of a 3-5 year roadmap with a clear overview of key projects, aimed at sustainable volume growth and aligned with group ambitions and brand positioning. Through strong project management, you ensure delivery on time and in full.
You coordinate logistical processes and technical feasibility, including the timely alignment of country-specific and Pan-European packaging and design changes, working closely with local markets, production and supply chain. You are able to bridge different stakeholder interests to maximize growth. In addition, you increase the effectiveness of local activations by challenging and coaching local teams, reviewing and approving activation proposals, and facilitating knowledge sharing and best practice exchange across countries.

Product Portfolio & New Product Development
You are a team member within European NPD projects, contributing to both the optimization of existing products for the European market and the introduction of new products from the Japanese portfolio. You are involved across all NPD phases, from consumer insights and research to positioning, product development and communication development. Your primary focus lies in close collaboration with design agencies, local markets and production.

Coordination Approval Proces
You are responsible for the operational execution and coordination of the VISA approval system within Yakult Europe. You collaborate with internal departments and applicants across multiple European countries, ensuring that external communication materials are reviewed for scientific accuracy, legal compliance, and adherence to brand strategy and graphic guidelines.

This role is ideal for a Product Manager who thrives in international environments, enjoys complex, cross-functional projects, and is motivated by translating strategy into visible market impact.

Knowledge & Skills

• 2–3 years of experience in a marketing or product management role within FMCG, with the ambition to grow and take on more responsibility.
• Creative thinker with an affinity for managing design, in-store and communication processes.
• Strong analytical skills, with a solid understanding of FMCG metrics, combined with curiosity about consumer behavior and purchase motivations.
• Strong organizational, communication and project management skills; able to plan, prioritize and structure work effectively.
• Proactive team player who takes initiative, ownership and solves problems independently.
• Comfortable challenging stakeholders at all levels in a professional and constructive manner.
• Experience with relevant software and systems.
• Authentic, reliable and pleasant to work with, with a sense of humor.
• Comfortable working in a highly international, multicultural environment.
• Fluent in English; knowledge of Dutch and/or another European language is a plus.

What Yakult Offers
A unique opportunity to work for an international organization with a strong scientific foundation and a social mission. You will play a central role in shaping Yakult’s communication with impact, meaning, and creativity.

The position is based in Almere at Yakult Europe’s headquarters, which serves 13 countries. It is a full-time role (40 hours), though 36 hours is negotiable. Yakult offers an attractive employment package. This position offers the possibility of hybrid working.

About Yakult
More than 38 million people in over 40 countries drink Yakult every day. The brand, developed over 90 years ago by Dr. Minoru Shirota, has a solid scientific foundation and plays a vital role in promoting a healthy lifestyle worldwide.

In Europe, Yakult operates in thirteen countries through six local marketing and sales organizations.

This vacancy is exclusively managed by WerfSelect. Interested? Please contact Marja van Velzen, Senior Recruiter, at marja@werfselect.nl or +31 (0)6 57070781.