Sample Operations Manager, North America

Join a creative, fast-moving team that brings style and innovation to every project across North America. You’ll be the go-to person connecting creative, styling, and product operations—building workflows, managing samples and budgets, and leading small teams to bring projects to life.

This is a 1-year contract and will start early May.

Our client is a Vancouver company with global operations and an impeccable reputation. They are a people-centric organization, known for their collaborative team culture.

This role sits within North America (NA) Creative Operations and works directly with the NA Styling Team who executes the elevated look and feel of our client’s products. Their imprint as a team touches all NA regional projects that are guest-facing from a Brand Creative lens This role will support many NA projects upstream and downstream with expertise in operational workflow, cross-functional communication, delivery into key GTM milestones for creative / styling, and budget management. This role will be the main connection point with NA Styling, NA Brand Management & GTM Ops, NA Product Operations partners and Global Styling & Sample Operations.

• Be a primary conduit between our Global Product Operations, Global Styling & Sample Operations and NA Styling teams.
• Strategize, build and implement operational workflows for NA Styling and Samples.
• Oversee NA sample operations and samples program with a goal to optimize year over year, including Top Of Production (TOP), Brand Marketing Early Samples (BM), Distribution Centre (DC), Sample Order Request (SOR) programs.
• Oversee Internal Use Product Orders (IUPO), logistics and sample management for NA Campaigns & Weeklies.
• Optimize sample order intake and volume with Brand Management, Merchandising and Styling to ensure orders align with project objectives, key looks and budget.
• Redefine roles & responsibilities within NA Sample Operations, and support with org design.
• Manage day-day of Store Operations Support (SOS) team, support with time-tracking, recruiting and onboarding of new hires as needed.
• Manage and report on NA samples budget.
• Report on NA samples activity (ie. what’s ordered vs used, discrepancies) and find ways to optimize, forecast and inform data-driven decisions.
• Oversee Closet and Archive exit strategy and implement policies to ensure appropriate inventory and physical space considerations are actioned.
• Build business cases for any CAPEX investment opportunities, ie. additional physical space, closet infrastructure.
• Lead development and ongoing evolution of Inventory Management tool assessment and implementation.
• 8+ years of direct experience supporting cross-functional work in an operations function.
• Experience managing and developing people (1-4).
• Strong proficiency with inventory management tools and systems like TRACK.
• Strong proficiency with budgeting tools, including Microsoft Excel and PM software like Monday.com.
• Experience working with styling teams and business partners.
• Ability to prioritize multiple projects and tasks, with project changes, and reliably meet deadlines.
• A genuine passion for creative, styling and creative operations; track record instilling operational excellence for a creative, product or styling team.
• Must be a self-starter, critical thinker, team player, thrives working in a fast-paced entrepreneurial environment, organized, detail oriented, collaborative, and flexible.
• Strong sense of ownership and accountability.
• You love building processes from scratch and being a connector.
• Strong communication skills with a focus on clarity.
• Clear understanding of retail GTM process and creative process.
• Ability to lead people as direct reports and those around you through sometimes ambiguous processes, as we build and develop along the way.
• Positive approach to problem-solving via analytical thinking and operational efficacy.
• Self-motivated, able to build new processes and bring new ways of doing things, in a fast-paced environment on multiple workstreams.
• Aptitude for working quickly, efficiently, and keeping pace with a fast-moving and ever-evolving team.

• 8+ years of direct experience supporting cross-functional work in an operations function.
• Experience managing and developing people (1-4).
• Strong proficiency with inventory management tools and systems like TRACK.
• Strong proficiency with budgeting tools, including Microsoft Excel and PM software like Monday.com.
• Experience working with styling teams and business partners.
• Ability to prioritize multiple projects and tasks, with project changes, and reliably meet deadlines.
• A genuine passion for creative, styling and creative operations; track record instilling operational excellence for a creative, product or styling team.
• Must be a self-starter, critical thinker, team player, thrives working in a fast-paced entrepreneurial environment, organized, detail oriented, collaborative, and flexible.
• Strong sense of ownership and accountability.
• You love building processes from scratch and being a connector.
• Strong communication skills with a focus on clarity.
• Clear understanding of retail GTM process and creative process.
• Ability to lead people as direct reports and those around you through sometimes ambiguous processes, as we build and develop along the way.
• Positive approach to problem-solving via analytical thinking and operational efficacy.
• Self-motivated, able to build new processes and bring new ways of doing things, in a fast-paced environment on multiple workstreams.
• Aptitude for working quickly, efficiently, and keeping pace with a fast-moving and ever-evolving team.

$61.50-$63.90/hr + 4% vacation pay.

Vancouver | hybrid schedule - 4 days/week onsite, 1 remote

Swim Recruiting has been engaged as a trusted recruitment agency partner on this important search. If you are interested, please reach out very soon!