Senior Product Approval Associate

Description

Haddad is a privately held family business with 100 years’ experience in the children’s apparel & accessories industry. A leader in the children’s wear industry, Haddad Brands is the exclusive global licensee for the most iconic brands in the world, which include Nike, Jordan, Converse, Hurley, Levi’s, Polo, Abercrombie and Fitch, Lacoste, Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein 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, Bangkok, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, London 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.