Product and Development Manager
Albion is on a mission to help people go outside and stay there for longer. We are a small team who are obsessed with making the best products we can, in a responsible way, for going on adventures by bike.
ROLE SUMMARY:
To manage and be responsible for the development and production process of Albion products. Your role will be to ensure the smooth running of all outsourced manufacturing across Albion’s apparel and accessories ranges whilst ensuring they are made to the Albion standard and delivered in line with the critical path.
The ideal candidate will be highly organised, detail-oriented, and will enjoy being a pivotal part of a small team that is focused on creating best in class cycling products. We are looking for someone to join our group who is passionate about cycling and the outdoors, and who will relish and thrive in an environment where collective problem solving makes the difference every day.
RESPONSIBILITIES AND DUTIES:
Development of Albion products from design handover to signed-off pre-production stage
To ensure that an Albion product is of the highest quality and performance standard at every sample stage
Working closely with the design team on the development of product specifications / tech packs etc
Building and maintaining strong relationships with our suppliers with continuous daily communication and weekly calls where needed
Collaborate cross functionally with design and marketing teams to ensure that products are risks assessed in a timely manner and that any subsequent risks are highlighted to the correct team or elevated to the Product Director
Tracking and measure supplier prototype samples before fitting to ensure they conform to size and construction specifications
Ensure that quality and performance standards are met through the whole sampling development process
Management of product costings at each sample stage; commercial thinking and product margin maintenance under the guidance of the Product Director
Set up new tech packs for supplier handover and maintaining bill of materials and measurement charts throughout the product lifecycle
Create measurement specifications for new products whilst maintaining the grading and sizing rules for each garment type
Managing the lab dip program and communicating comments effectively with fabric suppliers
To ensure that fit is consistent throughout the product range from season to season
To organise and lead fit and garment review meetings alongside the design team and communicate all fit and constructional comments to suppliers
To work with the design team to set and maintain quality standards
Provide weekly updates on technical and development issues
Working across all ranges for Ecom and Wholesale, ensuring all product is made and delivered on time inline with the critical path
Management of critical path and communication of weekly deadlines to wider team. Pro-active communication to engage the team in executing tasks needed
Maintain supplier WIP sheets and share on a weekly basis to communicate current status of all products
Ordering nominated fabric and trim for suppliers and internal production
Reserving greige of raw material for fabric and trims where needed
General management and raising purchase orders to suppliers inline with critical path dates
Seasonal Tracker set-up, maintenance and management with amends under the guidance of Product Director
Flagging to the Product Director any issues or delays whilst also bringing solutions and options for solving problems
Active in researching new sources of emerging technologies and industry best practices to ensure continual process improvement and long-term vision of the business’ ways of working
Assist in building sourcing strategies in collaboration with Merchandising and Product Director
THE IDEAL CANDIDATE
Regardless of role or department, everyone at Albion is treated with equal respect. We’re all striving for the same thing and this is bigger than any one individual.
Our team is made up of ambitious, motivated people who are excited to work together everyday as part of a purpose driven, small company with big ambitions.
The successful candidate will:
Have proven experience to deliver high-end premium products to market within critical path deadlines
Be able to source fabric and trim alongside the design team where required
Be a natural problem solver
Have excellent technical knowledge of fit, sizing, construction, finishing and manufacturing of apparel based products
Be able to use design technical sheets along with BOM/Measurement charts to build technical packs
Have excellent technical knowledge of fabrics and testing across knitted, woven and high performance materials
Will have up-to-date knowledge on garment legislation for labelling purposes
Will be able to fit a garment whilst able to communicate fit comments to suppliers during all sampling stages
Able to measure specialist sportswear garments with confidence
Have an excellent understanding of premium sports and outdoor apparel
Have good experience of working with factories overseas and an understanding of constraints and timescales
Have the ability and enthusiasm to grow and adapt within a fast-growing business
Have competent IT skills including Adobe AI and Google suite - Sheets, Slides and Docs
Enjoy working as part of a small team with a flat structure, in a fast paced environment
Be a passionate cyclist
LOCATION: Albion’s Deptford Studio, London UK
JOB TYPE: Full Time
REMUNERATION: Competitive salary reflective of skills and experience
BENEFITS:
25 days paid holiday, plus bank holidays, plus the period between Christmas and New Year
Free Albion products
Access to industry discounts from our network of partner brands
Wednesday morning to ride each week
12 Hours of May - a full day in the month of May to ride
Opportunity to ride Albion sponsored events and races for free
Workplace pension scheme
Team trips and travel opportunities throughout the year
To apply please email charlie@albioncycling.com