Director of Operations - Local Eclectic

Local Eclectic is a 10 year old international e-commerce jewelry brand based in Chicago. We sell jewelry from emerging and independent jewelry designers from across the globe and have a handful of in house brands that we design and manufacture in house. We’re a social first brand that has built an authentic community of brand loyalists. We are dedicated to providing a best in class customer experience and offering exceptional, unique and one of a kind products. We are passionate about creating and selling high quality jewelry that is accessible to everyone. At Local Eclectic, we believe that every piece of jewelry is a work of art, a symbol of personal expression, and a connection to something greater; jewelry tells our story. Our mission is to inspire creativity and empower women and this is woven into every aspect of our business. 

Our brand has grown rapidly over the past few years, and we are looking for a creative, entrepreneurial, self-starter to join our team as the Director of Operations to oversee and optimize our day to day operations. We offer competitive benefits and a hybrid schedule. This role is based in Chicago and reports to the CEO.

Inventory and Demand Planning

• Work with planning and buying team to oversee demand planning and inventory forecasting to ensure adequate stock without overstock, reduce holding cost and ensure highly sought after products don’t stock out
• Accurately manage and track high demand products to reduce stock outs and ensure that supply and inventory do not act as constraints on grow

Data Analysis

• Analyze sales trends and historical data to identify trends, patterns and opportunities for improvement across all aspects of the business and our product assortment and inventory levels

Vendor and Partner Management

• Manage vendor and partner relationships 
• Lead contract negotiations

Operations

• Build new systems and refine our existing ones to enhance our operational capabilities
• Help to establish processes and build systems across all aspects of the business. Identify areas for operational improvements and work with the team to implement and improve systems and processes
• Implement and manage technology solutions to streamline operations, such as inventory management systems and order processing tools
• Evaluate receiving, fulfillment and returns process and work with the operations team to build strategic improvements to existing systems and/or outline new ones

Supply Chain and packaging 

• Work with our inventory and receiving team as well as external vendors to ensure timely deliveries of shipments and help to build systems to communicate efficiently with the Local Eclectic team to effectively plan for product launches and restocks
• Oversee all forecasting, planning and internal implementation of new and existing packaging 

Cost of Goods

• Regularly track cost of goods for in house and designer brands to ensure healthy and stable margins especially in light of increasing gold prices
• Price analysis and negotiation based on gold rates

Retail

• Recruit, hire, train, motivate, direct on the day-to-day, coach, evaluate and retain all levels of retail leadership, such as the General Manager, Store Managers and Assistant Managers
• Assist in standing up all retail operations from POS, on site order delivery, reservations and beyond

Leadership

• Act as a thought leader on the team and continually seek out and share opportunities for growth and improvement

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Marketing, Analytics, or a related field
• 5-7 years of experience within this job function in a retail and/or e-commerce environment
• Strong analytical mindset with proficiency in data analysis tools and techniques
• High attention to detail and a love of all things operations
• Excellent communication skills to convey complex data insights to non-technical stakeholders
• Self motivated with the ability to identify problems and solutions with minimal direction
• Ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously and balance priorities independently
• Detail-oriented and highly organized
• Enthusiasm for the jewelry industry and a passion for delivering exceptional customer experiences
• Knowledge of e-commerce platforms and digital marketing is a plus