Director, Product Development & Production - Chase
Posted
THE PURPOSE: The Director, Product Development & Production, Chase leads the end-to-end Chase business (Denim & Sportswear) from initial development through receipt at the distribution center. This role is accountable for building and onboarding a qualified factory base that can execute small production runs of 300–600 units per style within True Religion’s established costing parameters and IMU targets. The Director drives rapid development, two rounds of Design sample approvals, and a 90-day lead time from purchase order placement to receipt at the DC. Through strong technical expertise, hands-on vendor leadership, and disciplined cross-functional execution, this role delivers fashion product with speed, quality, and commercial viability.
- End-to-End Chase Ownership: Lead Product Development and Production for Sportswear and Denim Chase from initial concept, sourcing, sampling, and costing through production, shipment, and receipt at the DC. Own execution against agreed design, quality, cost, and delivery commitments.
- Required Factory Network & Onboarding: Must bring an established, directly accessible network of sportswear and denim factories that can be introduced and onboarded at True Religion. Qualify and secure factories with proven ability to produce 300–600 units per style at True Religion’s required costs, quality standards, and timelines; do not rely solely on existing vendors.
- Costing & Margin Accountability: Own costing and factory negotiations across Chase development and production. Ensure styles meet True Religion’s established costing parameters and IMU targets at small order quantities; challenge quotations and drive commercially viable alternatives in fabric, wash, trims, and construction without compromising design intent.
- Sampling Speed & Design Approvals: Establish factory and internal critical paths that deliver each sample round within two weeks, with two rounds of samples available for Design review and approval. Coordinate timely comments, revisions, fit and construction resolution, and final approvals to protect the 90-day PO-to-DC calendar.
- 90-Day PO-to-DC Execution: Own production planning and factory commitments to deliver finished goods to True Religion’s DC within 90 days of PO placement, including manufacturing, inspection, freight, customs, and DC receipt. Escalate any lead-time or capacity risks immediately and execute recovery plans.
- Sportswear, Denim & Fashion Construction Expertise: Apply strong technical knowledge of sportswear fabrics, denim fabrics, denim washes and finishes, trims, and garment construction. Ensure factories can execute complex fashion bodies, novelty fabrications, washes, embellishments, and construction details consistently at small quantities.
- Factory Capacity, Quality & Performance: Validate raw material availability, minimums, factory capacity, wash capabilities, sample-room responsiveness, bulk quality, and shipping readiness before commitments are made. Hold vendors accountable for accurate reporting, first-quality execution, and on-time delivery.
- Cross-Functional Decision-Making: Partner with Design, Merchandising, Technical Design, Planning, Sourcing, Logistics, and other stakeholders to align product priorities, cost targets, sample comments, approval dates, POs, and DC delivery requirements. Drive timely decisions and communicate tradeoffs clearly.
- Critical Path, Risk & Reporting: Maintain an integrated development-to-delivery time-and-action calendar and transparent reporting on sample rounds, cost gaps, approvals, production status, factory performance, and DC delivery exposure. Anticipate bottlenecks and provide actionable mitigation plans.
- Team Leadership & Process Improvement: Lead and develop the Chase Product Development and Production organization; establish accountability, fast decision-making, repeatable processes, and vendor scorecards. Continuously improve speed to market, cost compliance, factory capability, and execution reliability.
YOU ARE: You bring a strong combination of hands-on sportswear and denim product development expertise, factory sourcing relationships, and production leadership. You already know factories that can deliver fashion-forward, technically complex product in 300–600-unit runs while meeting True Religion’s costing parameters. You understand sportswear fabrications, denim fabrics, washes, finishes, and fashion-body construction, and you know how to drive two sample rounds on a two-week-per-round cadence and execute a 90-day PO-to-DC timeline. You are decisive, highly organized, commercially focused, and comfortable holding factories and internal partners accountable in a fast-moving Chase environment.
- 10+ years of progressive apparel product development, sourcing, and production experience, including leadership responsibility across sportswear and denim.
- Mandatory existing direct relationships with sportswear and denim factories that the candidate can introduce and onboard; demonstrated ability to place small orders of 300–600 units per style at competitive costs.
- Proven success meeting defined target costs and IMU or margin requirements for low-volume, fashion-driven apparel programs.
- Demonstrated ability to obtain samples within two weeks per round and manage two rounds of Design approvals against a compressed calendar.
- Proven ability to execute a 90-day lead time from PO placement through actual DC receipt, including factory production and freight coordination.
- Strong knowledge of sportswear fabrications, denim fabric, wash and finishing processes, trims, and complex fashion garment construction.
- Experience qualifying factories for small minimums, fast sampling, technical execution, bulk quality, capacity, and delivery reliability.
- Experience managing both product development and bulk production, including purchase orders, critical paths, vendor negotiations, and recovery plans.
- Strong cross-functional leadership, analytical judgment, communication, and ability to drive decisions under tight deadlines.
PREFERRED EXPERIENCE:
- Experience delivering men’s and women’s Chase, capsule, or fast-turn fashion programs across knit, woven, outerwear, and denim categories.
- Established relationships with specialty fabric mills, denim laundries, and factories skilled in novelty construction and embellishment.
- Familiarity with PLM/ERP systems, costing reports, IMU tracking, and factory performance scorecards.
- Compensation: The anticipated base salary range for this role is $150,000 – $180,000. This is a full-time, exempt position. This range represents the low and high end of the expected base salary range for this role based on the applicable location. True Religion reasonably expects to pay within this range in compliance with all applicable federal, state, and local laws. Actual compensation will be determined based on factors including relevant experience, skills, knowledge, and internal equity.
- Perks: We offer a mix of benefits and perks to support our employees at work and beyond, including health benefits, a 401(k) with employer match, merchandise discounts, commuter benefits, wellness & employee assistance programs, and more.
- Work Model: This role is based in El Segundo, CA, and will initially require five days per week in the office to support onboarding, team integration, and cross-functional collaboration. Following the initial transition period, the role will move to a hybrid work model of four days per week in the office and one remote day, with an expectation of in-office presence on designated days to support collaboration and business needs.
- Employment Eligibility: Employment with True Religion is contingent upon meeting applicable employment eligibility requirements.