Customer Service Assistant

Reporting to: Brand Manager/Customer Service Lead

Location: Thaxted, Essex (local transport links are limited, so ideally you will live locally or drive).

Working Hours: 20 hours studio based. Must be available to work Fridays weekly, but we are open to having conversations about working flexible hours Monday-Friday to reach the contracted 20 hours. Please note, you may occasionally be asked to work weekends to support pop-up events, but good notice will be given.

Apolina Values

Alignment to our company values is the most important characteristic we look for in all employees. Our values are the behaviours that we appreciate above and beyond anything else. We are considerate and responsible, open-minded and positive, we have a deep appreciation of craft. We strive for constant improvement and we empower and trust you to take ownership of your departments.

About the Role

We are seeking a highly organised and proactive Customer Service Assistant to join our small, dynamic team. This role plays an essential part in maintaining an exceptional customer experience and supporting the smooth running of our fast‑paced studio. The ideal candidate will be detail‑oriented, efficient, and have a strong interest in fashion, e‑commerce, and creative studio processes. They will like working in a busy environment, be able to calmly multitask with ease, and enjoy contributing to a fashion‑leading brand that values quality, craftsmanship, and thoughtful customer service.

Key Responsibilities

• Support our Customer Service Lead with a busy customer service inbox.
• Respond to customers in a friendly, professional, and timely manner.
• Resolve order issues, returns, exchanges, and product‑related queries while maintaining the brand’s tone of voice, with the guidance of the colleagues.
• Track and manage customer cases to ensure all are resolved efficiently and followed up appropriately.
• Liaise with delivery companies to track customer shipments and resolve delivery delays or issues.
• Support communication with our external fulfilment team to ensure orders are dispatched smoothly.
• Monitor returns at fulfilment centre.
• Record and report returns and recurring customer feedback or issues to help improve products and services.
• Support the creation and maintenance of customer service templates and FAQs to improve efficiency and consistency.
• Support with planning and participating in occasional customer facing pop‑up events.
• Support with customer research when required.
• Maintain the studio space, ensuring it is clean, tidy, and efficiently arranged for ongoing projects.
• Support order fulfilment from the studio when required, ensuring accurate box packaging, labelling, and shipment preparation. Box lifting will sometimes be required.
• Manage incoming and outgoing studio parcels, ensuring items are logged, tracked, and distributed correctly.
• Assist in studio operations including preparing products for photography or events (steaming, labelling, folding and organising samples).
• Support photoshoots or pop‑up events by ensuring products are ready, organised, and returned to correct storage locations after use.
• Provide general administrative support to the Office Manager and wider team as needed, helping with document organisation and internal communication.

What Are We Looking For?

• Excellent written communication skills and attention to detail.
• A friendly, professional, and empathetic manner when dealing with customers.
• Strong organisational and time management skills; able to prioritise multiple tasks.
• Confident using Gmail and other digital tools (e.g. Google Sheets, Excel, and Shopify or similar platforms).
• A proactive, positive, can‑do attitude with a willingness to help across different areas of the business.
• Interest in fashion, e‑commerce, or creative industries.
• Collaborative, hands‑on approach and a willingness to learn.
• You will be comfortable performing manual handling tasks as part of your day‑to‑day duties, such as box lifting.

Preferred experience

Experience in customer service or an administrative/studio‑based role is preferred.

What We offer

• A creative and supportive working environment.
• Hands‑on, varied role within a small, passionate team.
• Growth and learning opportunities across customer service, e‑commerce, and studio operations.
• Insight into the full product journey, from concept to customer.
• A meaningful role supporting a fashion‑led brand that values quality, care, and conscious production.
• Competitive salary (to be discussed at interview stage).

Closing date for applications is 18th May.