VP Of PD & Production

VP Of PD & Production

Birdy Grey is a direct-to-consumer brand whose mission is to celebrate friendships during one of the most important milestones in a person's life: their wedding.

Founded in 2017 by best friends Grace Lee (Founder & Chief Creative Officer) and Monica Ashauer (Co-Founder & Chief Strategy Officer), Birdy Grey offers affordable bridesmaid dresses starting at just $89, groomsmen suits starting at $199, plus fun gifts and accessories for everyone in the wedding party. Since day one, we've dressed over a million bridesmaids and we're proud to be a trusted resource for brides and grooms on their most cherished day.

Birdy Grey is seeking a strategic, hands-on Vice President of Product Development & Production to lead and scale our U.S.-based product development and production operations across a dynamic range of categories—including bridesmaid dresses, newly launched groomsmen suits, and non-dress offerings such as pajamas, robes, and wedding accessories. This is a pivotal moment of growth and innovation for Birdy Grey: our new groomsmen line is scaling rapidly, we've just launched a new China-based team to deepen supplier collaboration and accelerate speed to market, and we're sourcing from a more globally diversified supply base than ever before. We're also building out our first-ever U.S. sample room to drive faster, design-led product development and bring our creative vision to life. This role offers a unique opportunity to help shape the next chapter of Birdy Grey by leading the U.S. PD & Production team and collaborating closely with our China counterparts to deliver beautifully made, trend-right products—on time and at scale. Both the U.S. and China teams report into the COO.

Scope of Responsibilities

Team & Process Leadership

• Lead and inspire a growing team (currently 5 team members with 4 open roles) across Product Development, Technical Design, and Production, with direct oversight of the U.S. team.
• Actively partner with the China team to align on execution, standards, timelines, and workflows—providing guidance, documentation, and support.
• Oversee the newly launched LA-based Sample Room (including Pattern Maker and Sewer) to accelerate design-led innovation and in-house prototyping.
• Build and implement scalable processes across PD & Production to ensure product quality, fit consistency, and timeline adherence across all categories and global suppliers.

Sample Room & Technical Design

• Ensure construction standards, fit specs, and technical processes are aligned between the LA and China sample rooms.
• Supervise the U.S.-based Technical Design team and partner closely with Design to translate creative vision into production-ready garments.
• Facilitate clear, organized handoffs of patterns, tech packs, BOMs, and samples between the U.S. and China teams, with proper documentation and version control.

Global Development & Production

• Oversee global development and production operations across China, Southeast Asia, and South Asia, ensuring timelines, quality, and margin targets are consistently met.
• In South Asia, directly manage relationships with manufacturing partners, including development approvals, production timelines, and vendor performance—serving as the key point of contact and decision-maker.
• In China and Southeast Asia, work in close partnership with Birdy Grey's China-based supply chain team, who maintain direct factory oversight. Provide them with strategic input, development handoffs, cross-functional guidance, and information from U.S. teams (e.g., Planning, Design, Merchandising, CX) to ensure local execution supports business goals.
• Serve as a collaborative liaison between U.S.-based teams and Asia-based production, ensuring clarity, alignment, and proactive troubleshooting across borders.
• Maintain tight coordination with Merchandising and Planning to support margin goals, capacity planning, and delivery execution.
• Partner with Finance to reconcile vendor costing, track product margin performance, and lead initiatives to improve cost efficiency across BOMs, sourcing, and factory operations.

Fast MTO (Made-to-Order) Enablement

• Play a key leadership role in scaling Birdy Grey's Fast MTO initiative, enabling rapid made-to-order production with minimal inventory risk.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to define timelines, owners, and deliverables for Fast MTO activation.
• Provide ongoing guidance and coordination with the China team executing Fast MTO, ensuring alignment in fit, construction, and production standards across both Fast MTO and traditional bulk models.

Strategic Leadership

• Collaborate with Design, Merchandising, Planning, Ops, and the China team to deliver trend-right, well-constructed, and on-time product launches.
• Create and maintain SOPs across development and production to improve efficiency and consistency across global teams.
• Actively engage in team-building, hiring, mentoring, and succession planning to strengthen the U.S. Product Development & Production function.

The Right Candidate: Qualifications & Personal Attributes

Education: Bachelor's Degree Required

Experience / Requirements:

• 15+ years of progressive leadership experience in Product Development and/or Production, ideally within apparel categories that require thoughtful construction, complex vendor coordination, and speed-to-market execution.
• Experience in DTC or high-growth fashion brands that require speed, innovation, and flexibility across categories.
• Demonstrated success leading both creative and operational teams across Product Development, Production, and cross-functional partners (Design, Merchandising, Planning, Operations, CX, China Supply Chain team).
• Experience managing a global supply chain and cross-border development workflows, including direct collaboration with overseas teams and factory partners in Asia.
• Proven ability to build scalable systems and processes that balance innovation, speed, and commercial viability across product categories.
• Strong communication and leadership skills—able to guide internal U.S. teams while also serving as a hands-on partner to Asia-based counterparts, ensuring consistency in fit, process, and quality.
• Comfortable working in mid-sized or high-growth companies, where agility, collaboration, critical thinking, problem solving, and strong judgment are required to scale effectively.
• Highly organized, strategic, and execution-oriented, capable of managing detailed calendars, cross-functional timelines, and deliverables.
• Strong financial acumen with ability to partner with Finance and Planning teams on product costing, margin targets, and vendor performance.
• Based in Los Angeles, with ability to work on-site 3–4 days per week for team management, sample review, and executive collaboration. Travel to China office / factories in Asia 2 - 4 times a year.

Nice To Haves:

• Mandarin Chinese fluency and/or experience working closely with Asia-based production, development, or technical teams.
• Direct experience launching or overseeing an internal sample room, including hiring and managing Patternmakers and Sewers, and setting up equipment and process flow.
• Background in bridal, occasionwear, or dresses—especially categories with long lead times, customization needs, or high construction complexity (e.g., polyester chiffon, satin).
• Familiarity with Fast MTO / Just-in-Time (JIT) production models and the ability to partner cross-functionally to enable a short lead-time, on-demand supply chain.

Why Birdy Grey: Benefits & Perks (for eligible Full-Time Employees)

• Competitive Compensation: Based on experience and performance + Annual Performance Bonus
• Healthcare Benefits: 100% employer covered medical dental & vision plans, 50% spouse and dependent medical coverage + access to One Medical + Mental Health Benefits
• Retirement: 401K + up to 4% match after 3 months
• Generous PTO: Flexible Open PTO Policy + 11 paid holidays
• Wellness: A monthly wellness day + monthly wellness stipend + summer Fridays
• Flexibility: Partial remote with a high level of autonomy and accountability + $25 monthly WIFI stipend
• Employee Discount: Free bridesmaid dresses + 50% discounts on Birdy Grey products
• Family Benefits: 3 months of paid parental leave
• Purpose: Join in the success of a high-growth, 80% women, minority founded, early-stage startup by driving performance and building