Footwear Materials Manager (Contract) - job 1 of 2

Footwear Materials Manager

About the Role

The Footwear Materials Manager role will include sourcing and development for all footwear categories; Western, Work, English Heartland & Casuals. Sourcing will be primarily focused on Leather, Wovens, Knits, Yarns, some Trims and Components. The person in this role will work closely with design, product management, product development, quality and costing teams, and report directly to the Senior Director of Global Materials- Footwear.

You’ll Make a Difference By

• Analyzing supplier base and support relationships through effective communication
• Researching sustainability opportunities for materials to support brand goals
• Creatively and strategically sourcing and developing new materials to support business needs
• Building strong cross-functional relationships with Design, PD, and PM’s in product development process
• Attending seasonal material shows, stay up to date on WGSN & industry trends
• Managing PLM Database and support continuous improvement with data integrity
• Managing materials inquiry & development process with suppliers
• Collecting quick set up data from suppliers in advance of seasonal material selection
• Analyzing seasonal material selection and reporting on development and adoption ratios
• Overseeing organization of the materials library. This is a hands on role and will require working in UC office regularly
• Assisting in building presentations for trends, innovation, and new technologies.
• Monitoring all calendar deliverables to ensure all deadlines and development dates are met.
• Meeting regularly with core suppliers to learn about new technologies, updates in finishing and innovation in leather & textiles

About You

• 5+ years in materials sourcing or related experience
• Strong technical skills in material innovation and development.
• Experience in leather, denim, yarns, and/or performance/technical materials
• Working knowledge of footwear product development & production processes
• Experience with environmentally sustainable sourcing
• Creative thinker, strategic problem-solver, detail oriented, proactive with strong analytical skills
• Ability to manage multiple projects and work-flows simultaneously
• Strong verbal, written and negotiation skills
• Strong communication, ability to build and support cross-functional partnership
• Ability to work directly with outside vendors to complete tasks
• Experience in approving materials color & article developments
• PLM/Excel/Powerpoint

About Ariat

Ariat is an innovative, outdoor global brand with roots in equestrian performance. We develop high-quality footwear and apparel for people who ride, work, and play outdoors, and care about performance, quality, comfort, and style.

The hourly range for this position is $38 - $43 an hour.

The salary is determined by the education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities of the applicant, internal equity, and alignment with market data for geographic locations. Ariat in good faith believes that this posted compensation range is accurate for this role at this location at the time of this posting. This range may be modified in the future.

Job Type: Contract

Pay: $38.00 - $43.00 per hour

Schedule:

• Monday to Friday

Ability to commute/relocate:

• San Leandro, CA 94577: Reliably commute or planning to relocate before starting work (Required)

Application Question(s):

• Will you now, or in the future, require sponsorship for employment visa status (e.g. H-1B visa status)?

Experience:

• materials sourcing: 5 years (Required)

Work Location: In person