Head Materials & Fabric Sourcing (Performance Apparel/Functional Wear)

design, product development, manufacturing, quality, planning, finance, and channel teams to deliver fabrics

Key Responsibilities

1. Material Strategy and Fabric Platforming

• Translate brand functional priorities (cooling, moisture wicking, 4-way stretch, quick dry, wrinkle resistance, stain guard where relevant, anti-odour options) into a rolling fabric roadmap.
• Standardise base fabrics that can run across multiple styles and colours to gain scale and shorten lead times.
• Maintain a tiered library: Core fabrics in always-on colours, Seasonal colour drops, Innovation test lots.

2. Vendor and Mill Ecosystem Build

• Source, evaluate, and onboard mills, knitters, weavers, dye houses, and garment factories with proven ability in performance finishes and consistent lab results.
• Negotiate cost, lead time, payment terms, capacity blocks, and minimums that suit both small test runs and scale ups.
• Set clear technical packs and quality gates up front so partners know the expectation.
• Visit regularly. Audit, troubleshoot, and build trust.

3. Functional Fabric Development and Validation

• Work with design and product to brief mills on specific climate and comfort needs: Indian heat load, commuter sweat zones, colour crocking from backpacks, stretch at knee and elbow, collar roll.
• Run lab and wearer tests for air permeability, moisture management, stretch and recovery, shrinkage, colour fastness to wash and perspiration, pilling, and seam strength.
• Track performance over repeat washes so marketing claims stay honest.

4. Capacity, Costing, and Buy Planning

• Build seasonal and core buy plans tied to demand forecasts, launch calendars, and channel needs.
• Balance fabric booking lead times with cash flow and inventory risk.
• Lock fabric dye lots early for black, white, navy, olive and other perennial colours to avoid shade variation.
• Drive cost targets without trading away hand feel or function.

5. Inventory Visibility and Flow Control

• Track material from PO to mill to dye to cut to sew to DC.
• Flag early warnings on delays, shortages, or overages.
• Work with production and logistics to align shipment modes to launch windows.
• Create simple dashboards: yards booked, yards received, conversion yield, residuals.

6. Quality and Compliance

• Define material test protocols with QA.
• Trigger pre-production, inline, and final fabric checks.
• Approve lab dips and bulk shade bands.
• Ensure compliance with basic chemical and social standards required by brand and channel partners.
• Close the loop fast on claims: analyse root cause, correct at source, protect the next lot.

7. Cost Engineering and Margin Protection

• Model fabric cost drivers: yarn count, fibre mix, GSM, finish, duty, freight.
• Recommend fabric swaps or finish tweaks that preserve performance at a lower cost.
• Partner with finance on landed cost, variance, and margin tracking.

8. Cross-Functional Partnership

• Sit in-line, build meetings with design to flag feasibility and MOQ realities early.
• Give marketing clean, defensible language on fabric benefits that Indian customers care about: stays cool in traffic, does not cling in humidity, stretches on the move, and washes easily.
• Support digital and retail teams with accurate content, fabric stories, and care guidance.

9. Smart Sustainability

• We lead with longevity. Buy better, wear longer, waste less.
• Prioritise durable fibres and finishes that extend garment life and hold colour.
• Where viable, shift select programs to better cotton, lower water dye processes, or recycled inputs that do not compromise performance or price perception.
• Track and report realistic impact metrics that matter: washes survived, returns avoided, water saved per batch, compliance status. No green paint.

10. Team Leadership and Process Build

• Build a lean materials and sourcing squad as scale grows.
• Set standard operating procedures for sampling, approvals, buys, and vendor scorecards.
• Train internal teams on fabric care, claims language, and reading a test report.

Qualifications

Education:

Experience:

• 6 to 10 years in materials sourcing, fabric development, or merchandising within apparel. Functional or performance wear experience is a strong plus.
• Hands-on work with Indian mills and garment factories. Experience managing both domestic and imported sources is valuable.
• Demonstrated ability to scale programs from small pilot runs to bulk.

Technical Depth

• Strong grasp of knit and woven constructions, fibre blends, finishing techniques, and performance metrics.
• Comfortable reading lab reports and translating them into go or no-go calls. Working knowledge of costing, yield, duty structures, and inventory planning.
• Proficiency in Excel. Familiarity with PLM or ERP tools is an advantage.

Soft Skills

• Clear communicator across factory floors and boardrooms.
• Skilled negotiator who pushes for value while building long-term trust.
• Analytical, organised, steady under deadlines.
• Detail-focused without losing view of business goals.

Mindset Fit

• Builder attitude. You see gaps and create systems.
• Pragmatic innovator. You chase performance that the customer will feel, not novelty for its own sake.
• Curious about new fibres yet grounded in cost and scale realities.
• Values longevity, responsible sourcing, and transparency that is truthful and doable.

What We Offer

• Competitive pay and performance linked incentives.
• A front row seat in building one of Indias next menswear leaders in functional apparel.
• Ownership of strategic decisions that touch product, brand, and growth.
• A collaborative culture that respects hustle, clear thinking, and doing what we say we will do.
• Room to grow as we expand across categories and channels.