Merchandise Operations Lead

Industrial Color; Los Angeles (CA); On-site; USD 75,000 - 85,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Major medical, dental and vision insurance

FSA and HSA options

Employee discounts

Job summary

A creative production company in Los Angeles is seeking a Merchandise Operations Lead to manage and scale merchandise workflow operations. This high-impact role involves leading systems that handle a large volume of SKUs through the production pipeline, directly influencing client confidence and studio performance. The ideal candidate has extensive experience in merchandising operations and strong leadership skills. A competitive salary and benefits package are included with this position.

Qualifications

• 3-5+ years of experience in sample management or merchandising operations.
• Proven experience leading team members with accountability for output.
• Exceptional attention to detail with a track record of data accuracy.

Responsibilities

• Own the integrity and flow of products across a full production lifecycle.
• Lead a small team at the center of studio operations.
• Implement systems that reduce delays, errors, and production risk.

Skills

Advanced Excel proficiency

Operational judgment

Attention to detail

Systems-oriented mindset

Confident communicator

Job description

Industrial Color is hiring a Merchandise Operations Lead to own and scale merchandise workflow operations for one of our largest and most complex eCommerce production accounts.

This is a high-impact operational leadership role, not a coordinator position. You will architect, lead, and continuously improve the systems that move 15,000-20,000 SKUs annually through a fast-paced studio production pipeline. Your work will directly influence production efficiency, client confidence, and studio performance.

If you are a systems-minded operator who brings structure to complexity and thrives on accountability, visibility, and ownership, this role offers meaningful impact.

Key Responsibilities

• Own the integrity and flow of thousands of products across a full production lifecycle.
• Implement systems and standards that directly reduce delays, errors, and production risk.
• Lead and develop a small but critical team at the center of studio operations.
• Maintain cross-functional visibility with Production, Styling, Digital, Retouching, Account Management, and client stakeholders.
• Make operational decisions that shape scalability for one of our most significant accounts.

What you will own

• Lead the full lifecycle of merchandise through the eCommerce production pipeline: intake, tagging, tracking, on-set execution, post-production, and return.
• Own merchandise accuracy and tracking integrity across 15,000-20,000 SKUs annually.
• Establish and enforce quality control standards that protect schedule, data accuracy, and client deliverables.
• Maintain operational clarity in a high-volume, deadline-driven environment.

Team Leadership & Accountability

• Directly manage and develop two Sample Team members.
• Set daily and weekly priorities aligned to production schedules.
• Build cross-training systems to strengthen team scalability and coverage.
• Provide hands‑on coaching and performance feedback to elevate execution standards.

Cross‑Functional & Client Partnership

• Act as operational liaison between client stakeholders, account management, production, styling, digital, and retouching teams.
• Validate and scrub product data before it impacts shoot schedules.
• Anticipate and resolve sample discrepancies before they disrupt production.
• Partner with Production to align inventory flow with weekly shoot planning.

Systems & Process Optimization

• Identify inefficiencies and implement scalable workflow improvements.
• Build and document SOPs that reduce errors and increase team autonomy.
• Generate operational reporting for internal leadership and client stakeholders.
• Proactively elevate risks with actionable solutions.

On‑Set Operational Leadership

• Serve as subject matter expert on merchandise tracking systems.
• Provide hands‑on support during production to ensure product accuracy and shoot readiness.
• Partner closely with Styling to ensure correct product pairing and execution.

Requirements

• 3‑5+ years of experience in sample management, merchandising operations, retail operations, or high‑volume eCommerce production.
• Proven experience leading or mentoring team members with accountability for workflow output.
• Advanced Excel proficiency (pivot tables, lookups, data reconciliation) and comfort working in data‑driven environments.
• Exceptional attention to detail with a track record of maintaining inventory and data accuracy at scale.
• Strong operational judgment in high‑SKU, deadline‑driven environments.
• Systems‑oriented mindset with experience improving processes and reducing inefficiencies.
• Confident communicator comfortable partnering with clients and senior stakeholders.
• High ownership mentality with accountability for outcomes — not just activity.

Benefits

The anticipated salary range for this role is $75,000 - $85,000 annually. Ranges are based on various factors including the labor market, job type, internal equity, and budget. Exact offers are calibrated by work location, individual candidate experience, and skills relative to the defined job requirements.

We offer a competitive benefits package including major medical, dental and vision insurance, FSA, HSA, and employee discounts.

Industrial Color is a division of CoCreativ, a family of integrated creative production companies. Industrial Color partners with top brands, agencies, and creative professionals providing a full range of essential production services. For over 30 years, we’ve led the industry through a culture of innovation, bringing state‑of‑the‑art digital production and post‑production solutions to our clients.

Our headquarters is based in Tribeca, NY, with offices in Los Angeles and studios in Brooklyn and Los Angeles. Our clients include: L’Oreal, Publicis, Procter & Gamble, Tommy Hilfiger, Absolut Vodka, Nike, Estee Lauder, Amazon...