Strategic Procurement Manager

Probably the least boring job you'll ever have.

At air up, we don't just make bottles. We unbore water with flavor by scent. It makes no sense until you try it, and once you do, there's no going back. Behind it all are teams pushing boundaries every day. Product bends taste and design in new directions. Marketing turns ideas into moments people talk about. Operations makes sure those moments reach hands everywhere.
Working here feels like stepping on stage: professionalism meets passion, curiosity meets courage. You'll experiment, fail fast, learn faster, and actually see your ideas come to life. It's refreshingly low politics and low ego. Just smart, driven people who lift each other up and make things happen. And whatever happens, it sure won't be boring.
Welcome to air up.

You are part of the Product organization, playing a pivotal role at the intersection of Commercial, Contracts and industrialisation.You'll have the opportunity to shape our procurement strategies, manage key supplier relationships, and play a key role in bringing our drinkware and our patented scent based taste category to the next level. You will work in an agile and cross-functional setup along various stakeholders.This job is perfect for you if you're passionate about sourcing, supplier management, and driving sustainable product innovation.

***This role is located in Munich*** Our hybrid model is built for connection and concentration: we spend Monday through Thursday together in the office or at suppliers location to collaborate, leaving Focus Friday for remote, independent work.

Your Responsibilities

• Negotiate Master Framework Agreements (MFAs) including scale-up triggers and volume-based pricing.
• Lead Projects for manufacturing readiness for NPI/NPD by utilizing CBA and TCO models to justify tooling investments.
• Execute evaluation frameworks to assess partner technical stability and "fit-for-scale" capacity.
• Transition products from pilot phases to high-volume production, ensuring budget and quality alignment.
• Mitigate risks like material volatility and yield losses through negotiating performance-based incentives and contracts.
• Design and lead the Supplier Relationship Management strategy, turning suppliers into high-performance strategic partners.
• Conduct regular on-site QBRs and SPEs to check on strict technical and commercial compliance.
• Manage the lifecycle and commercial security of industrial assets and external manufacturing equipment.
• Represent the company in commercial disputes, enforcing contracts while maintaining partner alignment.

That's you

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Supply Chain or something similar (Master's/MBA preferred) with 5-7+ years in strategic procurement and supplier development and product industrialisation.
• You excel at independently drafting, negotiating, and enforcing Master Framework Agreements (MFAs) and Service Level Agreements (SLAs) that explicitly safeguard product margins, mitigate risk, and lock in volume-based pricing.
• You bring a disciplined approach to managing the NPI/NPD lifecycle.while not mandatory, holding CIPS, PMP, or PRINCE2 certifications are a plus that reflects your ability to manage complex cross-functional timelines..
• Hands-on experience with plastics, silicone, or contract filling, leveraging Value Engineering to drive aggressive cost-savings.
• Expert in TCO and CBA modeling to justify CapEx for tooling and complex sourcing shifts.
• Proven ability to build governance frameworks and data-driven KPIs to manage suppliers as high-stakes strategic assets.
• Experienced bridge between Engineering and Ops, translating technical hurdles into commercial milestones for NPI/NPD.
• Fluent in English and willing to travel 1-3x per month within Europe (and occasionally to the Far East).

The benefits listed below are intended for full-time employees. For other employment types, including working students and minijobbers, benefits may differ based on the terms of their contract and applicable regulations.
But what's in for you?

30 days of vacation

discount on our products

employer-funded pension & location related insurances (may vary per country)

purpose built office in MUC

personal development

regular team events

start-up spirit

workation options (availability may differ by role)

air up® have developed an innovative and world-first drinking system. Through scent alone, the air up® bottle brings flavour to simple tap water and can be enjoyed without any single-use plastic bottles, sugar, or additives. air up is a young, fast-growing company filled with ambitious and creative minds from various backgrounds.

air up® is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to maintaining an equal opportunity environment for all persons free of discriminatory behaviour. We will not discriminate and will take affirmative action measures to ensure against discrimination in employment, recruitment, advertisements for employment, compensation, termination, upgrading, promotions, and other conditions of employment against any employee or job applicant on the bases of race, color, gender, national origin, age, religion, creed, disability, veteran's status, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.