Head of Sourcing & Production London, United Kingdom Employee

TALA, a digital-first sustainably made women’s activewear company, has been on a rocket ship since its founding in 2019 by Fitness Entrepreneur Grace Beverley. Scaled on amazing organic social traction, we’ve matured into a business with a multi-faceted performance marketing strategy across multiple channels. Off the back of our success, we’ve raised funds with world class venture capital and are in a period of extraordinary growth.

This full time role is the perfect opportunity for a Sourcing Manager experienced in performance fabrics, knitwear and beyond, to make their mark within a fast-paced, scaling business. In this role, you will lead TALA Sourcing & Production working across all product categories developing our Supply Base in line with our Strategy. You will work closely across the product team but will be a self starter and good at working independently.

Tasks

• Be accountable for the quality, timeliness and cost of production from ideation through to final customer.
• Continuously review current supplier base taking a strategic and practical eye to areas for improvement and expansion.
• Future proof and develop the supplier base for scale.
• Guard the quality and timeliness of production.
• Work across the full life cycle of the seasonal critical path, first planning production, then supporting on sample reviews and approvals, and through to the management of bulk and in warehouse QC.
• Anticipate and support expansion into new product areas at both long and short horizons.
• Continuously optimise for product costs, through increasing degrees of sophistication from cross costing to scale, open costing, pattern optimization and beyond.
• Maintain a supplier base which is consistent with our commitment to ESG across the supply chain and organisation including up to date audits, certifications, inspections.
• Support the operations supply chain with production of packaging, tags etc consistent with our standards.
• Take ownership of finding new suppliers for both the core business and new product areas.
• Manage the onboarding process of new suppliers in line with TALA manual.
• Ensure materials are suitable for their end use through wearer trials, reviewing the fabric specifications and approving the test reports.
• Build strong relationships across the supply base, including through factory visits.
• Lead the Garment Tech and Production team.

Requirements

• A minimum of 7 years Sourcing and Production experience, preferably within Activewear or other performance categories.
• Demonstrable experience managing an evolving and optimising supplier base whilst a company scales.
• Experience managing a team.
• A track record of production excellence in timeliness, quality, ESG standards, and costs.
• Passion for ESG and a sense of mission to minimise the fashion footprint.
• Ideally have experience/knowledge with Seamless Product.
• Knowledge of working with environmentally conscious materials and production standards.
• An in depth understanding of yarns and fabric types and their properties.
• Be comfortable working in a startup environment: working lean and quickly, being hands on and willing to get your hands dirty, working well both autonomously and collaboratively.
• Ability to work from our London office every week.

Benefits

• Competitive compensation package.
• Fun, startup working culture.
• A sense of mission, and contribution to the greater good.
• Clothing allowance and discount on the best athleisure in the game.
• Beautiful and bright offices in a historic building in central London (near Vauxhall) with other startups on site.

About us:

Our shopping habits are driven by global powerhouse fast fashion brands, churning out hundreds of thousands of cheap clothes every day, telling us we must shop and wear the latest styles. TALA is the brand you always knew you wanted but could never quite find - sustainable activewear and athleisure styles at competitive prices without the need to compromise on high-performance designs and flattering fits. TALA is here to disrupt the industry and demand change with wardrobe staples and on-trend pieces, making conscious shopping choices easier for everyone. TALA was founded in May 2019 by entrepreneur Grace Beverley to disrupt the fast fashion and activewear industries after years of working in the space. TALA, conceptualised on pillars of sustainability, inclusivity, and accessibility, creates sustainable styles at competitive prices without the need to compromise on performance, design or fit. We are TALA. Performance fashion you will feel good in and good about.