VP of Sales (with path to Chief Commercial Officer)

Job description

Full-time In-person ## Our Mission At Interstellar Lab, we are building a future full of life, on Earth and beyond. We advance plant cultivation and science through AI-powered autonomous greenhouse systems that enable precise and controlled plant growth. Our solution provides sustainable, high-performance production of botanicals — enhancing terrestrial biodiversity, resource efficiency, and natural ingredient quality—while preparing life for multi-planetary expansion. On Earth, our BioPods provide optimized, low-impact cultivation for the beauty, fragrance, pharmaceutical, and nutraceutical industries. In space, we conduct microgravity plant research to reveal fundamental insights into growth, adaptation, and biochemistry—driving spin-off innovations for Earth applications and supporting long-duration missions in Space through partnerships with agencies and commercial providers. ## About the Role As Director or VP of Sales (poised to become Chief Commercial Officer), you will lead commercialization with a plant-science-driven strategy. You will manage two distinct yet synergistic commercial streams: - **Primary focus – Sustainable plant production on Earth**: Drive sales of BioPods and recurring services to large enterprises in cosmetics, fragrance, perfume, nutraceuticals, and pharmaceuticals. Position BioPods as the leading solution for controlled-environment, sustainable cultivation that boosts metabolite yields, ensures batch consistency, minimizes environmental footprint (near-zero water/pesticide use), and delivers premium, traceable natural ingredients. - **Separate strategic track – Space program opportunities**: Independently pursue customers and partners for microgravity plant research collaborations. Target the same industries (or their R&D divisions) plus space-focused entities to fund and co-develop experiments on upcoming orbital platforms—exploring low-gravity effects on plant physiology, nutrient uptake, phenotyping, genetic responses, and bioactive enhancement—to unlock proprietary insights that accelerate Earth-based optimization while building our space program revenue. You will engage at the CEO and C-level with confidence, own end-to-end commercial strategy across both tracks, and report directly to the CEO on segmented revenue, pipeline health, and growth metrics. ## Responsibilities - Develop and execute a high-impact sales strategy for Earth-based BioPod deployments, securing large-scale contracts for sustainable, high-value plant production. - Separately cultivate a dedicated space-program pipeline: identify and qualify partners interested in sponsoring or collaborating on microgravity plant science experiments, leveraging synergies for terrestrial R&D benefits. - Qualify leads, negotiate, and close complex deals—including BioPod hardware + long-term services on Earth, and research/partnership agreements for space-based studies. - Maintain a segmented, robust pipeline: lead generation through industry networks (beauty/pharma for Earth; R&D/innovation + space stakeholders for partnerships) to contract signature. - Deliver accurate, trackable revenue forecasts and KPIs (split by Earth contracts vs. space milestones/partnership funding), with direct CEO reporting. - Represent Interstellar Lab at targeted events: plant science, cosmetics, pharma, and ingredient conferences for Earth sales; life-sciences and microgravity research forums (U.S. and Europe) for space opportunities. ## Profile / Qualifications - 7+ years of B2B sales leadership in cosmetics, fragrance, nutraceuticals, pharmaceuticals, or plant-derived ingredient supply chains—with strong knowledge of plant science, bioactive/metabolite production, and sustainable sourcing practices. - Demonstrated success closing complex, seven-figure+ deals with Fortune 500-equivalent companies. - Established C-level network in target industries; proven ability to engage R&D/innovation leaders on advanced plant research and cross-sector opportunities. - Experience owning full commercial P&L and scaling revenue from <$5M to >$20M in tech-enabled or high-growth settings. - Entrepreneurial mindset to establish scalable processes in a startup; adept at handling dual-market strategies (mature terrestrial vs. emerging space). - Fluent English (native/bilingual); Bachelor’s in Business, Life Sciences, Plant Biology, Agronomy, or related field; MBA a plus. - Bonus: Background in agtech, space intersections, microgravity biology, or industry-funded scientific partnerships. ## Compensation Competitive fixed salary + uncapped commission based on revenue milestones (Earth contracts + space partnership/funding achievements), plus equity in a mission-driven, high-growth company. ## Equal Opportunity Interstellar Lab is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate based on race, color, national origin, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, age, protected veteran status, disability, or other legally protected characteristics.