Interim Group Head of Legal

Company Description

Valeo Foods Group is one of Europe’s fastest-growing food companies, specialising in sweets, snacks and treats. At Valeo Foods, we love to make everyday moments taste better and we are home to over 90 brands including Balconi, Pedro, Horalky, Rowse, Bernard, Barratts and Kettle Chips.  

We operate in over 100 countries serving major retailers, discounters, e-commerce, convenience stores, wholesalers, and foodservice operators. With revenues exceeding €1.8 billion, we employ over 5,400 people across more than 30 facilities in the UK, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, Ireland, Slovakia, Czech, and Canada. Valeo Foods Group is owned by Bain Capital.

To bring our purpose to life, we uphold five core behaviours that define how we work and what we stand for:

• Accountability • Agility • Disciplined • Transparency • Teamwork.

These behaviours shape our culture and drive us towards excellence.

We are committed to building a sustainable future for our people, clients, communities, and the planet. We drive efforts to reduce environmental impact, invest in health and safety initiatives, enhance training and development, and nurture an inclusive workplace where everyone can thrive.

Job Description

We’re looking for an experienced, commercially minded legal leader to join Valeo Foods on an interim basis, stepping into a key Group role during a period of maternity cover.

This isn’t a “care and maintenance” role, it’s an opportunity to come in, provide continuity, and keep momentum across a fast-moving, entrepreneurial business. You’ll be a trusted partner to the Group CFO and senior leadership team, helping the business navigate risk while continuing to deliver at pace.

What you’ll be doing

• Acting as the principal legal adviser to the executive and senior leadership team
• Leading the legal function across the UK, CEE and Bulgaria, providing direction, clarity and support to a well-established team
• Supporting a range of corporate activity, including M&A, strategic projects and commercial initiatives
• Ensuring pragmatic, solutions-focused legal advice that enables delivery rather than slows it down
• Maintaining strong governance and risk management, with clear visibility of key issues and decisions
• Managing external advisors effectively, ensuring high-quality, commercial advice delivered efficiently
• Keeping a close pulse on emerging risks across the group and proactively managing them

Qualifications

• A senior qualified lawyer with broad commercial experience, ideally within an international, FMCG business
• Strong track record across corporate and commercial law, including M&A
• Someone who can hit the ground running, get up to speed quickly and operate with limited ambiguity
• A commercial thinker, pragmatic, solutions-led and focused on enabling the business
• Experience working closely with senior stakeholders and influencing at leadership level
• Comfortable operating hands-on, from strategic input through to delivery

Additional Information

This is a fantastic opportunity to step into a visible, high-impact Group role, where you’ll play a key part in ensuring the business continues to deliver against its ambitions.