301: Leading the taste test team at the Good Housekeeping Institute

"When I go into a supermarket, I look at the ingredients of a product and I can tell exactly what something is going to taste like," says Angela Trofymova. "It's boring shopping with me."

Angela has one of those jobs that sounds too good to be true. She is Group Testing Manager for the Good Housekeeping Institute.

That means she is in charge of the institute's world-famous taste tests, which are so renowned they have a huge impact on sales and trends.

In this episode of the Career Conversations podcast series, we find out exactly what's involved in running taste testing sessions, and what a typical day looks like for someone in a role like Angela's.

Her route to the job has not been simple. She's held many roles within the food industry, and outside of it.

At one point she worked for a company where things really didn't click. "That completely depleted my energy," she says.

"It made me feel inadequate and I felt like I didn't know what I was doing."

But the truth is, things just hadn't worked out in this particular role and Angela dusted herself down, found a new job and has flourished ever since.

Angela's story shows that even the most successful people working in the food industry will have ups and downs in their careers.

"Where there's a will, there's a way," she says.

Listen to the full episode to find out how to work towards securing a job like Angela's, what qualifications you might need, what you can expect to earn, and how a meeting with Heston Blumenthal set her up for where she is today.

Sign up to join a testing panel

You can sign up to be part of a taste-testing panel at the Good Housekeeping Institute.

All you need to do is fill out a short questionnaire and you could be tasting next season's latest trends before they're available on the supermarket shelves.

Follow this link to sign up.

Angela Trofymova, Group Testing Manager, the Good Housekeeping Institute

Angela has over 13 years’ food industry experience, helping companies such as Pret, Sainsbury’s, Nando’s and Leon achieve sustainable growth through innovative product development – she’s even cooked for Heston Blumenthal! 

Her sensory evaluation training and finely honed taste buds mean she knows exactly what’s worth spending your money on, and leads the Hearst Institute food and drink testing team who test over 1500 products each year. 

Angela is WSET Wine and Spirits Level 2 certified and has been a judge five years in a row for the British Sandwich Awards and the Pizza and Pasta Awards.