Beverage Operations & Supply Chain Coordinator

About Bear Maple Farms: Bear Maple Farms is a U.S. beverage company making clean, functional sodas. We currently have four SKUs distributed through natural and specialty retailers, Amazon and distributors across the United States. We're a small, entrepreneurial company building simple, reliable systems that allow the business to operate efficiently with a lean team. This role will take ownership of our beverage operations and supply chain and work directly with our CEO and external manufacturing, ingredient, logistics and distribution partners. Time & Compensation: $800 USD/month. Approximately 6–12 hours per week on average, with workload varying based on production schedules. This is an ongoing part-time role. We care about ownership, reliability and results rather than hours worked. Key Responsibilities: The Beverage Operations & Supply Chain Coordinator owns Bear Maple's beverage operations and supply chain end-to-end. We have four SKUs, a few production runs per year, and a small network of manufacturing, ingredient, warehouse and distribution partners. Your job is to keep product in stock, production running smoothly, and inventory healthy without requiring day-to-day founder involvement. Production & Supply Chain: -Own production runs from planning through finished goods, managing co-packer relationships and maintaining readiness with primary and backup manufacturing partners. -Manage purchasing and availability of ingredients, cans, packaging and other production inputs. -Coordinate beverage-production requirements including can printing, quality control, processing/pasteurization, filtration, shelf life, labeling and certifications. -Coordinate freight and movement of materials and finished goods between suppliers, co-packers, warehouses, distributors and Amazon. -Coordinate with our beverage formulator to ensure formulas, specifications, QC requirements and production documentation are complete and delivered to the co-packer. -Own operational execution of new SKUs through commercial production, coordinating formulation, samples, approvals, packaging/artwork, documentation and manufacturing timelines. Inventory: -Maintain accurate inventory visibility and forecasts across all locations. -Maintain the production calendar and proactively initiate production based on inventory forecasts and lead times. -Anticipate production and replenishment needs before stockouts occur. -Monitor aging inventory and proactively manage excess or short-dated product. -Coordinate replenishment to distributors, warehouses and Amazon. Ownership & Reporting: -Serve as the primary operational point of contact for supply chain partners and drive issues through resolution. -Maintain simple inventory, production and shipment reporting, SOPs and key operational information. -Provide a concise weekly update covering inventory health, production, shipments, risks and decisions needed. Experience: -Hands-on operations or supply chain experience, including direct experience with shelf-stable canned beverages and beverage co-packers/contract manufacturers. -Experience managing beverage production runs, purchasing, inventory planning, freight and warehousing. -Working knowledge of beverage packaging, including can sourcing/printing, quality control, processing, shelf life and labeling requirements. -Experience working with distributors and Amazon FBA is a plus. Ideal Candidate: You have actually done this before. You understand how a shelf-stable canned beverage gets from ingredients and empty cans through a co-packer and into warehouses and distributors, and you know what can go wrong along the way. You think ahead, prevent problems, follow through relentlessly, and create calm through preparation and organization. You solve routine issues independently and escalate complex issues early, with clear context and recommended next steps. You're comfortable owning the function and involving the CEO only when a decision or interv