You will own ADYRO's product-creation system from founder brief to production-ready footwear. Dario sets the macro brand vision, provides inputs and makes selected key product judgments. You turn that direction into clear product decisions, a disciplined calendar and commercially sound footwear.
You will own design and development gates, costing, sampling, testing, manufacturability and follow-through. This is neither a graphic-design role nor a sourcing-coordinator position. It requires product taste, technical understanding and the judgment to challenge a design that cannot meet comfort, quality, target price or timing.
Activities
- Own the product-creation system from founder brief to production-ready footwear.
- Manage design and development gates, costing, sampling, testing, and manufacturability.
- Establish the operating model and make routine product decisions.
- Personally close critical exceptions until processes and the team are reliable.
- Lead a lean network including a factory-side Technical Footwear Developer, a design-side CMF resource, and specialist original-design partners.
Requirements
· At least eight years in footwear product development or design management, with multiple commercialized seasons.
· Hands-on factory or development-center experience in China or Asia.
· Strong knowledge of footwear construction, materials, lasts, outsoles, costing, fit, testing and commercialization.
· Proven cross-functional leadership across design, development and manufacturing.
· Clear English; Mandarin is strongly preferred.
· Independent judgment, practical problem-solving and evidence of real decision authority.
· At least one meaningful tenure of roughly three years or two completed commercial seasons. Repeat freelance clients can provide equivalent evidence.
· Ability to travel to Jinjiang at the cadence appropriate to your base and intervene on-site when a product gate is at risk.
Premium, Italian, heritage or higher-end fashion-footwear experience is valuable when it came with real ownership. Employer prestige alone is not enough.
Team
You will join as the first dedicated product-creation leader, initially leading a lean network that includes a factory-side Technical Footwear Developer, a design-side CMF resource, and specialist original-design partners.
Application Process
Provide a portfolio or case pack covering three commercialized footwear styles. For each, show your exact responsibility, sample path, technical or cost constraint, decision made and production result. Please do not send only mood boards.
Selected candidates will complete a practical work sample based on a style brief, sample evidence and cost/timing constraints. Applications are acknowledged or rejected within two business days. First screens are completed within five business days, and interviewed candidates receive a status update at least weekly.