Director, Supply Chain

Location: New York, NY

The Role

The Director, Supply Chain is a senior leadership role with full ownership of Nécessaire's end-to-end supply chain across strategy, cost structure, supplier relationships, risk management, and the team that executes against all of it. This role is accountable not just for operational continuity but for building the supply chain function into a durable competitive advantage as the brand scales.

The Director sets the strategic direction for the supply chain, leads commercial negotiations at the highest level, and partners with Finance, Planning, Product Development, and Operations to ensure supply chain decisions connect directly to business outcomes. Direct reports include the Supply Chain Associate and the expectation is to develop this team and build headcount in line with brand growth.

This is a player-coach role. Strategic ownership does not come at the expense of operational judgment and the right candidate is as comfortable making a sourcing architecture decision as they are daily execution and resolving a supplier escalation.

This role reports to the VP, Operations and is based in the New York City area.

WHAT YOU’LL DO

Supply Chain Strategy & Design

• Define and own the multi-year supply chain roadmap; translate Nécessaire's growth targets into supplier capacity, inventory positioning, and procurement infrastructure
• Lead supply base design decisions (make vs. buy, single vs. dual source, near-shore vs. offshore) with full accountability for the cost, risk, and speed tradeoffs
• Identify structural capability gaps across people, process, and systems; build the operating model required to support the next stage of growth
• Establish supply chain KPIs and a performance accountability framework; report regularly to VP and cross-functional leadership on function health and risk exposure

Supplier Strategy & Commercial Relationships

• Own the strategic supplier portfolio; cultivate and maintain executive-level relationships with contract manufacturers and key component vendors including leading annual supplier business reviews and SLA accountability
• Design and execute a preferred supplier strategy that reduces concentration risk, supports innovation pipeline requirements, and creates leverage in commercial negotiations
• Serve as the executive escalation point for supply disruptions; lead cross-functional response planning and own senior stakeholder communication

Cost Ownership & Commercial Leadership

• Own the supply chain cost structure; lead annual COGS target-setting in partnership with Finance and hold accountability for margin delivery across the full product portfolio
• Lead strategic cost negotiations with contract manufacturers and component suppliers; develop multi-year pricing frameworks that create stability and protect margin
• Identify and resolve ad hoc supplier cost increases through negotiation and commercial leverage; build cost analysis and scenario models that support rapid, data-backed decision-making
• Build and present cost/risk scenario models that support high-stakes decisions for new product launches, supplier transitions, market expansion
• Ensure supply chain cost assumptions are integrated into the annual operating plan and long-range financial model; partner with Finance as a peer, not a downstream input

New Product Development & Launch Commercialization

• Lead the supply chain workstream for all NPD from brief through commercial launch; own supply-side go/no-go milestone accountability
• Engage early in development to influence sourcing strategy, component selection, and BOM architecture reducing launch risk and preventing structural COGS problems before they're locked in
• Set lead time standards and procurement calendars that support the brand's innovation pace; surface supply constraints that affect launch timing to VP and cross-functional leads
• Partner with the Sr. Supply Planner on BOM setup, inventory planning, and safety stock strategy for new products

Procurement, Inventory & Operational Execution

• Oversee procurement execution across all finished goods and components; ensure PO management, receipt processing, and ERP data integrity are consistently maintained
• Maintain scenario playbooks for supply disruptions; lead proactive risk mitigation and cross-functional alignment on response strategy
• Own NetSuite supply chain data governance including master data integrity across items, BOMs, vendor records, and tier pricing and hold the team accountable to the same standard
• Oversee monthly WIP inventory reconciliation; own vendor-facing validation of component consumption against invoices and drive resolution of discrepancies directly with contract manufacturers

Process Excellence & Systems

• Define and implement SOPs and operating standards that enable consistent execution, clear delegation, and team scalability
• Evaluate supply chain technology capabilities; build and own the roadmap for systems improvements that reduce manual load and improve visibility
  

QUALIFICATIONS

• 10+ years of progressive supply chain experience in consumer goods; minimum 3 years in a role with direct team leadership and cross-functional strategic ownership
• Demonstrated track record of owning supplier negotiations, COGS accountability, and supply chain architecture decisions not in a supporting role, but as the accountable leader
• Deep expertise in NPD supply chain management across the full lifecycle: sourcing strategy, component development, BOM setup, and commercial launch
• Hands-on experience managing contract manufacturer relationships in cosmetics, personal care, or adjacent CPG; existing supplier relationships in the category a strong plus
• ERP fluency required; NetSuite experience strongly preferred, with a track record of maintaining data governance standards across a cross-functional environment
  

PREFERRED EXPERIENCE

• Proven ability to build supply chain strategy from the ground up — defining the function's direction, not inheriting a playbook
• Strong commercial orientation: able to connect supply chain decisions to P&L outcomes, lead cost conversations at the executive level, and defend recommendations with data
• Confident communicator who can distill complex supply chain dynamics for senior leadership; equally effective in a supplier negotiation and an executive business review
• High-ownership mindset that is accountable for outcomes, not activities; takes responsibility for the team's results and creates clarity in ambiguous situations
• Structured and decisive; able to manage multiple strategic workstreams without losing attention to the operational details that matter

About Nécessaire

Necessaire believes in less, but better.

At Necessaire we design personal care – The Necessary (™) – that supports our health and wellness. We use our business to make a positive environmental impact everywhere we can. Necessaire is a Certified B Corp, Certified Climate Neutral, Certified Plastic Neutral, How2Recycle Verified and a 1% For The Planet Member.