Head of Sourcing and Production (FTC Maternity Cover) in City of Westminster

ROLE TYPE: Fixed Term Contract (Maternity Leave Cover, 12 months May 2026 to May 2027)

DEPARTMENT: Supply Chain

REPORTING TO: CEO

LOCATION: Fitzrovia, London

SALARY: Competitive

COMPANY PROFILE: Orlebar Brown (Chanel group) launched in March 2007 as a more tailored approach to men’s beach and swim shorts. Our collections are built into broader lifestyles imagined around Beach, Resort, Coast and Sport. We have multiple product releases throughout the year to maintain excitement and interest for our customers. Since 2007, we have built the brand to achieve our stated purpose which is to encourage, excite and inspire everyone to ‘Holiday Better’. The brand has rapidly gained global recognition and is sold through online, more than 30 O.B. stores, and the best retailers and hoteliers in the world.

THE POSITION: As the Head of Sourcing & Production, you will own the end-to-end supply chain journey – from SMS handover to on-time delivery into the warehouse. This is a leadership role that ensures the brand meets seasonal launch deadlines, delivers impeccable product quality, and maintains a resilient and commercially agile sourcing and sustainable strategy. Reporting directly to the CEO, you will lead and empower the Production team while partnering closely with Design, Product Development, Merchandising, and Logistics to bring collections to life.

GENERAL RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Manage the sourcing and production process with a focus on driving quality margin and innovation.
• Support the business with creation of a successful sourcing strategy and supplier portfolios.
• Closely collaborate and negotiate with factories (predominantly Portugal and Italy) to ensure OB has enough capacity with each supplier.
• Manage any counter sourcing and costing opportunities – collaborating closely with product development and design.
• Partner closely with design, development, merchandising, logistics to ensure a seamless handover of critical path & dates are met.
• Collaborate with Production & sustainability manager, review the production critical path dates collated from suppliers each season.
• Review and analyse seasonal collection for margin and suggest improvements if needed.
• Plan dates for forecasting and pre-booking key fabric and trims.
• Understand costs involved and ensure sign off when booking annual fabrics.
• Plan production dates with factories to achieve target delivery dates.
• Support production team in resolution of any production issues.
• Ensure production admin is created on time and be accountable for accuracy.
• Manage EU preferential origin by ensuring accuracy of data on ERP (Netsuite).
• Manage and update all commodity codes for product on ERP.
• Perform a check every season to ensure accuracy for finance team.
• Review SMS, image rights and team travel budgets.
• Oversee annual operational carbon footprint.
• Lead on all compliance projects.
• Manage consumables by forecasting usage and placing top up orders.
• Collaborate with the creative team on branding project.
• Gather and analyse data needed for EPR submission every 6 months.
• Work closely with internal stakeholders on exclusive projects.
• Oversee Image rights renewals.
• Lead, train, coach, & inspire a team to deliver the purpose of the brand through sourcing and production excellence.

CANDIDATE PROFILE: Experience and competencies to carry out the responsibilities listed above. A shared passion for the brand O.B. Have a natural openness, honesty and enthusiasm about how you approach your work. Understand how to motivate your colleagues positively. Demonstrate brand thinking and be capable of dialogue to assist with how the brand is brought to life through development and production. Ability to work as a team member and have productive interactions within your team and peers. Well developed feedback skills. Ability to present succinctly to all levels of the organisation. Demonstrable analytic and financial skills required by the role. Ability to work across borders and cultures; language skills would be an advantage.

WHAT WE OFFER: Being part of a diverse working environment. The chance to train and develop your skills in a fast-working environment. Competitive benefits package including private medical insurance, company pension scheme, product discounts, employee recognition incentives, and a week off in August.

It’s never just a job at Orlebar Brown. It’s a way of life. We live and breathe our brand values – Tailored, Vibrant and Brave. Our team define who we are and how we get the job done. We are focused on creating an inclusive culture that nurtures personal growth, contributing to collective progress.