Job DescriptionTitle: Director, Production - Special Projects, Licensing & Custom
Department: Production
Location: Detroit
Position SummaryThe Director, Production - Special Projects, Licensing & Custom is a highly adaptable, hands-on production leader responsible for overseeing the manufacturing of our non-mainline product categories, including special-project capsules, collaborations, licensed product for major professional sports organizations, and custom orders. Reporting to the Vice President of Production, this role will lead the team responsible for end-to-end production and decoration execution.
This is a highly dynamic, fast-paced area of the business with compressed timelines, evolving requirements, and multiple simultaneous priorities. The Director must be a calm, decisive operator who thrives in ambiguity, continuously reprioritizes, anticipates problems, and brings clarity, accountability, and disciplined follow-through without sacrificing speed or flexibility. Strong project management, communication, commercial judgment, and hands-on problem-solving skills are essential.
This position must be based in Detroit, Michigan and work on-site with the local team and production operation.
This is not a remote position. Candidates who are not currently located in the Detroit area must be willing to relocate.Key Responsibilities- Provide leadership and direction for the Special Projects, Licensing, and Custom production team, establishing clear ownership, priorities, operating rhythms, and performance expectations.
- Own end-to-end production execution for non-mainline product categories, from initial feasibility and raw-material commitment through manufacturing, decoration, and finished-goods delivery.
- Create structure and visibility across a complex, rapidly changing project pipeline by maintaining integrated development and production calendars, WIP reports, line sheets, and decision logs.
- Continuously assess and reset priorities as business needs change; communicate tradeoffs, resource constraints, risks, and delivery implications quickly and directly.
- Partner closely with Design, Merchandising, Sales, Marketing, Planning, Logistics, and Wholesale Fulfillment to translate launches, events, collaborations, and customer commitments into executable production plans.
- Evaluate project feasibility, lead times, minimums, capacity, cost, quality requirements, and operational risk before commitments are finalized.
- Develop clear development and production calendars covering raw materials, cut and sew, decoration, approvals, and finished-goods delivery.
- Secure and manage domestic and offshore factory and decoration capacity, balancing flexibility with quality, cost, and lead-time requirements.
- Build and optimize workflows for embroidery, DTF, heat press, screen printing, patch application, and other decoration methods, including development of specialized domestic vendor resources.
- Partner with Planning to ensure adequate supply of blank garments and components for customization needs while limiting excess inventory and obsolescence.
- Lead recurring cross-functional and vendor WIP meetings, drive decisions to closure, assign actions, and escalate risks early with recommended solutions.
- Own issue resolution when timelines, quality, materials, approvals, or capacity fall off plan; develop recovery options and drive the selected path through completion.
- Ensure licensed product complies with applicable league, team, brand, labeling, testing, quality, and approval requirements.
- Establish and monitor key performance indicators, including on-time delivery, schedule adherence, WIP aging, quality, capacity utilization, and cost performance.
- Mentor and develop team members while identifying practical process improvements that increase speed, accuracy, accountability, and scalability.
Qualifications- Must be based in Detroit and able to work on-site; relocation is required if not already local.
- 8+ years of progressive experience in apparel production, sourcing, operations, or supply chain, including at least 3 years leading teams or a complex production function.
- Strong technical knowledge of apparel manufacturing, including knit and woven cut-and-sew production and garment customization.
- Robust experience with embroidery, DTF, heat press, screen printing, patch application, or comparable decoration methods.
- Demonstrated success managing multiple concurrent, high-visibility projects with compressed timelines, incomplete information, and frequently changing priorities.
- Exceptional project-management and organizational skills, with rigorous attention to detail and follow-through.
- Sound judgment under pressure and the ability to make timely decisions, communicate tradeoffs, and escalate appropriately.
- Strong vendor-management, negotiation, communication, and problem-solving capabilities across domestic and offshore partners.
- Advanced Excel skills and experience with ERP and PLM systems; NetSuite experience is strongly preferred.
Education- Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain, Operations, Business, Apparel Production, or a related field, or equivalent relevant experience.
Benefits- Unlimited Paid Time Off
- Paid Sick Leave
- 13 annual paid company holidays
- Competitive employee discount
- Paid Family Leave Program (Maternity & Bonding)
- Company paid long-term and short-term disability
- Tax Advantage Accounts (FSA, HSA, FSA Dependent Care, 401(k) & 401(k) Roth
- Comprehensive Medical Coverage (medical, dental, vision) with company HSA contributions
