About the role
Description
Haddad is a privately held family business with over 100 years of experience in the children’s apparel & accessories industry. A leader in the industry, Haddad Brands is the exclusive global licensee for the most iconic brands in the world, including Nike, Jordan, Converse, Hurley, Levi’s, Polo, Abercrombie and Fitch, Lacoste, and Huggies. Supported by a team of professionals skilled in design, sourcing, production, sales, marketing & distribution of premium quality children’s wear, Haddad distributes globally to 100+ countries and maintains sales and sourcing offices in 22 cities globally, including New York, Paris, Hilversum, Shanghai, Egypt, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, and Montreal.
Overview:
The Senior Product Approval Associate will monitor and approve bulk fabric, art execution and trims according to Haddad Brands and licensors’ standards to drive product execution and on-time deliveries while providing support to the Product Approval Manager throughout the approval process for a category/brand.
Key Accountabilities:
Partner with Product Approval Manager on the approval process to provide clear direction on all approvals including fabric qualities, wash, lab dips, artwork, accessories, trims and pre-production samples in a timely manner
Partner with overseas vendors and offices to ensure timely delivery of all submissions and approvals and resolve pre-production and production issues
Work cross functionally with Design and development teams to review all fabric and trim standards
Monitor and maintain the tracking system to manage approvals and deliveries by category/brand
Create pre-season risk assessment for categories owned and develop game plan to ensure risks are mitigated
Organize and maintain seasonal boards, directive assortments and design catalogs by brand
Monitor Time & Actions calendars and PSR reports to ensure approval deadlines are met
Create risk hind-sight post season to further improve development process with factories
Partner with the Production and Sourcing teams to review placements by program and vendor
Organize, review and send back QRS samples to licensors
Hang and maintain pre-production sample rack
Special projects as assigned
Requirements
Required Skills/Abilities/Education:
Bachelor’s Degree in Product Management, Fashion Merchandising or related field
2+ years of experience as a Product Approval Coordinator or Product Approval Associate
Excellent organizational and communication skills with attention to detail
Ability to multi-task and prioritize in a fast paced environment
Knowledge of fabric construction, finishes and trims
Proficient in Microsoft Office
Consistent in-office presence is vital to the role as it is for all Haddad Brands team members, so that we all have a full appreciation, aesthetically and tactilely, of the qualities that define our brand partners’ products and set them apart from their competitors.