Hightstown, New Jersey, United States
Iβm the VP of Blue Venture Inc. and Co-Owner of Mahzu Japanese Restaurants. By bridging supply chain scale with restaurant innovation, Iβve built a unique ability to lead both venturesβdriving growth in wholesale seafood while reimagining how Japanese dining can thrive in a competitive U.S. market. ππππ‘π§π’πππ₯ ππ€π’π₯π₯π¬ β’ B2B Sales & Negotiation | Relationship Management | Communication β’ HACCP Certified | FDA Food Safety Complaince β’ Salesforce | Apollo | Hubspot | NetYield | QBO | Toast POS β’ Google My Business | SEO Optimization | Digital and Direct Marketing β’ AI Proficiency (restaurant automation, CRM pipelines) β’ Leadership & Team Management (20+ Staff across Mahzu FOH/BOH and BV Sales team) ππ«π¨πππ¬π¬π’π¨π§ππ₯ ππ’π π‘π₯π’π π‘ππ¬: β’ Grew Blue Venture sales by bringing large American Distributors β’ Sourced and introduced sustainable seafood and new specialty products into major American foodservice channels. β’ Turned around a nearly bankrupt restaurant during COVID, implemented new menu, lead a digital transformation, streamlined operations, and sustained a healthy profit margin ever since. β’ Balanced dual leadership roles in two multi-million dollar businesses: managing the sales of a seafood distribution company while spearheading restaurant innovation and staff development. ππ‘ππ ππππ¬ ππ ππ©ππ«π I bring relentless drive, multicultural perspective, and deep love for the food & beverage industry. Whether Iβm negotiating container-load seafood imports or refining a restaurant menu, I thrive at the intersection of sales, operations, and creativityβalways focused on building sustainable growth. πππβπ¬ ππ¨π§π§πππ If youβd like to exchange ideas or learn more about my background, message me here on LinkedIn! Fair warning: I might chew your ear off about the latest F&B trend, from Japanese tapas to AI-driven restaurant tools.
VP and Head of Sales at a frozen seafood importer & distributor specializing in sushi products (tuna, hamachi, salmon, etc.), supplying major distributors, cruise lines, and regional restaurants nationwide. β’ Full-Scope Sales Execution: Oversee and directly execute the complete B2B sales pipeline β from outbound prospecting and negotiations through contract close and recurring revenue management. Expanded revenue from existing accounts while nearly doubling sales volume with new major accounts, securing predictable recurring revenue streams. β’ Strategic Sales & Product Direction: Define and implement sales strategy at the factory/import level, guide product development, and lead customer relationship management for national and regional distributors. Solve complex challenges including COVID-related demand shocks, U.S.βChina tariffs, global supply chain shortages, port congestion, oversaturated markets, and multimillion-dollar inventory cycles. β’ Marketing & Industry Representation: Lead all marketing initiatives and represent the company at industry trade shows including Seafood Expo North America and the National Restaurant Show. Direct booth design and management, oversee lead acquisition, and drive pipeline growth using CRM platforms such as Salesforce, Apollo, HubSpot, and Xpress Leads. β’ Regulatory Compliance Leadership: Serve as HACCP Team Leader, ensuring compliance with FDA, NOAA SIMP, USDA, and international standards. Manage hazard analysis, food safety packaging, recall readiness, and external audits β protecting the companyβs licenses and distribution access across U.S. markets.
β’ Account Growth & Client Management: Oversaw onboarding and management of new accounts, strengthening long-term customer relationships and increasing retention across wholesale and foodservice distributors. β’ Sales Team Leadership: Managed and mentored a growing sales team by creating a sales handbook, developing KPIs, training, and leading customer visits to ensure consistent messaging and successful deal closures. β’ Market Expansion & Revenue Growth: Identified and penetrated untapped customer segments, creating new sales categories that boosted recurring monthly revenue by 30%+. β’ Marketing & Outreach Strategy: Developed and executed a wholesale distributor marketing strategy, including automated outreach campaigns and tailored pricing offers, driving scalable lead generation and conversion. β’ Regulatory & Food Safety Compliance: Designed and implemented the companyβs first comprehensive HACCP plan; authored SOPs for hazard mitigation, recall protocols, and confidential product specification sheets β enabling seamless new item introductions to major distributors.
β’ Increased company revenue by approximately 30% with new customer acquisition strategies. β’ HACCP Team Leader, primary contact for all FDA/USDA related projects and issues β’ Signed 12 new major Seafood Distributors with high monthly sales in 2019. β’ Designed and executed a Marketing Strategy for passive customer outreach resulting in increased website traffic and brand recognition β’ Created a complete suite of digital and physical marketing tools to help educate prospective customers about product portfolio.
β’ Operational Leadership & Turnaround: Drove a 105% revenue increase since taking over the position, steering the restaurant through COVID, labor shortages, and competitive pressures; oversee all financial, operational, and strategic decisions with final authority. β’ Menu Revamp & Creativity: Implemented a modernized menu with rotating specials blending Japanese and contemporary American cuisines. β’ Financial Oversight: Turned the company fully profitable within 36 months of taking over accounting control through pricing strategies, upselling, digital marketing, new revenue streams, and creative cost controls despite unique labor challenges. β’ Innovation & Technology Leadership: Streamlined managerial operations by integrating modern AI tools such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Cursor AI, and N8N, positioning the restaurant at the forefront of AI applications for restaurants and the broader F&B industry. β’ Marketing & Brand Growth: Built Mahzu into the #1 sushi and food page in the region by executing rigorous SEO campaigns, reconstructing the companyβs full digital presence (website, Google, Yelp, Instagram, Facebook, TripAdvisor, DoorDash, Grubhub, UberEats), and driving customer acquisition through direct and digital marketing. β’ Leadership & Culture: Directly manage and mentor 20+ employees (chefs, FOH, BOH, support staff), implementing staff training programs, FOH scripts, and transforming an outdated work environment into a modern, welcoming, and inclusive culture. β’ Crisis Management & Problem Solving: Implemented a recovery strategy during a period of near-collapse in COVID by pivoting to takeout/3rd-party platforms, redefining high-ROI roles to cut labor costs, renegotiating supplier terms, and maintaining brand visibility despite severe market disruption.
Developed new Metal-Organic Frameworks from existing crystal structures using variations of organic synthesis.
Continuous Mixing Technology in the Solid Oral Dose division of Global Manufacturing Technology. Optimization, research, and data analysis of the mixing process of bulk solids. Consulting Pfizer Essential Health. Research and laboratory work on tablet coating, NIR spectroscopy, Advanced Process Control
Trained staff, assisted in inventory management, became the go-to customer service and conflict-resolution specialist.