Apparel Production Manager

Castlewood Group

$90K — $120K *
Manufacturing & Automotive
5 - 7 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 5+ years of hands-on apparel production management experience, preferably in men's or young men's categories
  • Expertise in managing the full production lifecycle from costing through shipping
  • Strong knowledge of import/export processes, FOB and DDP terms, and freight logistics
  • Experience with overseas factories, vendors, and QC teams
  • Proficient with retailer compliance portals and customer requirements
  • Solid understanding of garment construction, trims, labeling, and packaging
  • Excellent organizational skills to manage multiple seasons and accounts simultaneously
  • Strong communication skills for effective vendor and cross-functional collaboration

Responsibilities

  • Manage the complete production process from costing through to shipping; ensure daily tracking of all open orders
  • Conduct weekly vendor calls to troubleshoot issues and maintain on-time delivery
  • Send cost inquiries and facilitate discussions with the sourcing team to meet IMU requirements
  • Present production status updates at senior leadership meetings
  • Manage purchase orders creation and adjustment in AMT; oversee distribution to factories
  • Oversee timelines for inline and final inspections and review inspection reports
  • Coordinate shipping logistics including vessel bookings and container tracking

Benefits

  • Discretionary annual bonus in December
  • 401(K) with $1,000 company match and profit-sharing after 1 year
  • 5 PSST days and 10 vacation days
  • Company holidays including closure between Christmas and New Year's
  • Hybrid schedule with flexible work-from-home policy on Fridays
  • Business casual work environment
Full Job Description
We are seeking an experienced and detail-oriented Production Manager to own the full production lifecycle from costing through shipping. You will work cross-functionally with design, sourcing, product development, sales, and operations while serving as the primary contact with overseas vendors, factories, and QC partners. The ideal candidate is a hands-on problem solver who thrives in a deadline-driven environment and takes ownership of their book of business.

Key Responsibilities

Production Management and Vendor Relations
  • Manage end-to-end production from costing through shipping; maintain daily tracking and follow-up on all open orders
  • Manage WIP and CAP reports; conduct weekly vendor calls via Zoom/Teams to troubleshoot issues and ensure on-time delivery
  • Send cost inquiries to vendors; review allocations with Director of Sourcing/Production to align with IMU requirements
  • Present open order status at weekly production meetings with senior leadership

Purchase Orders, Costing, and Systems
  • Complete style setup, PO creation, and Costing Sheet submission in AMT; issue POs to factories and internal teams for tech pack distribution
  • Review and update shortage/overage charts; adjust POs accordingly
  • Assist Director of Production with costing projects

Quality Control and Compliance
  • Oversee T&A calendars for all open production; work with tech and design on garment callouts and issues
  • Monitor Inline and Final Inspection timelines; review and comment on inspection reports to assess shipping readiness
  • Review test reports from third-party labs (Intertek, Bureau Veritas, SGS) for fiber content, care instructions, and attribute testing
  • Work with overseas QC teams and factories to resolve quality issues before shipment

Shipping and Logistics
  • Follow up on ship requests for FOB and DDP shipments; communicate delivery issues to Sales and Operations
  • Approve vessel bookings; monitor container bookings with steamship lines and freight forwarders; update shipping charts
  • Send monthly open shipment reports to the Hong Kong sourcing team

Trims, Samples, and Packaging
  • Submit comments for UPC stickers, carton stickers, ticket layouts, care labels, polybag stickers, hangtag placements, and packing/folding instructions
  • Review TOP and AD samples for labeling/trim accuracy; track and process production samples (FIT, PP, AD, TOP) per order timelines
  • Order trims for domestic orders and price tickets via Fineline/PaxTag; send production packages to customers as required

Customer, Portals, and Financial
  • Communicate with private label and non-private label customers on approvals, status updates, and portal submissions
  • Upload customer attributes and tracking information on retailer portals (Kohl's, BJ's, Marks, licensed brand accounts, and others)
  • Review customer compliance manuals and create internal cheat sheets for each account
  • Process commercial invoices and chargebacks; maintain master invoice and chargeback tracking charts by season
  • Follow up on all invoice payments for import and domestic factories

Requirements
  • Minimum 5 years of hands-on apparel production management experience, preferably in men's or young men's categories
  • Demonstrated experience managing the full production cycle from costing through shipping
  • Strong knowledge of import/export processes, FOB and DDP terms, and freight logistics
  • Experience working directly with overseas factories, vendors, and QC teams
  • Proficiency with retailer compliance portals and customer requirements
  • Strong understanding of garment construction, trims, labeling, and packaging
  • Excellent organizational skills; ability to manage multiple seasons and accounts simultaneously
  • Strong communication skills for vendor, customer, and cross-functional coordination
  • Proficiency in Microsoft Office, especially Excel for tracking and reporting

Preferred
  • Experience with AMT (Apparel Management Technology) system
  • Experience managing production for major national retailers (e.g., Kohl's, BJ's, Burlington)
  • Familiarity with third-party testing labs and testing protocols


Compensation & Benefits
  • Salary range: $90,000 to $120,000, commensurate with experience
  • Discretionary annual bonus in December
  • 401(K) with $1,000 company match & profit sharing (eligible after 1 year)
  • 5 PSST days, 10 Vacation Days
  • Company holidays including closure between Christmans and New Year's
  • Hybrid schedule: 8:30 am - 5:00 pm (on-site Monday through Thursday, remote Friday)
  • Business casual work environment

Work Location: NYC

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