Senior Eyewear Product Development & Sourcing Lead (China Manufacturing / DTC)

Senior Eyewear Product Development & Sourcing Lead (China Manufacturing / DTC) Summary We are a rapidly growing DTC eyewear brand looking for an experienced product development and sourcing expert to help us build a long-term competitive moat through superior products, proprietary designs, and optimized manufacturing. Our brand has already achieved strong product-market fit and significant scale through paid media and direct response marketing. We are now looking to evolve from a standard eCommerce brand into a true eyewear company with differentiated products, custom moulds, improved fit/comfort, and better overall product quality. We are specifically looking for someone with deep experience in: * Eyewear product development * Sunglasses / optical manufacturing * China sourcing and factory management * Custom mould development * Product optimization using customer data * Simplifying and refining product catalogs * Developing premium, defensible products This is not an entry-level sourcing role. We want someone who understands eyewear at a technical and commercial level and can confidently help us develop best-in-class products that outperform generic market alternatives. ⸻ Responsibilities * Analyze existing SKU performance, customer feedback, sizing issues, and return reasons * Identify our strongest products and help simplify/refine the catalog around winning styles * Improve existing best-selling products through: * Better frame quality * Better fit and comfort * Better hinges/materials * Improved lens quality * Better packaging and presentation * Develop proprietary frame designs and custom moulds * Source and negotiate with high-quality eyewear factories in China * Identify and manage OEM/ODM manufacturing partners * Oversee sampling, prototyping, revisions, and QC processes * Help develop new product categories * Safety eyewear * Blue light eyewear * Running/sport eyewear * Work closely with our internal team to create a long-term product roadmap * Reduce return rates and sizing-related customer complaints through better product engineering * Help position the brand closer to premium eyewear standards rather than generic dropship products ⸻ Requirements * Proven experience in eyewear product development and manufacturing * Strong understanding of sunglasses, optical frames, or performance eyewear * Experience working directly with factories in China * Experience developing custom moulds and proprietary products * Strong understanding of materials, frame construction, hinges, and lens quality * Ability to analyze customer feedback and performance data to improve products * Experience managing the sampling and QC process * Strong communication and project management skills * Ability to operate independently and proactively ⸻ Bonus Points * Experience working with established eyewear brands * Experience with eyewear products * Experience with safety eyewear certifications * Industrial design or CAD experience * Experience reducing return rates through product improvements * Understanding of DTC/eCommerce business models * Experience helping brands transition from generic products to proprietary product lines ⸻ What We Are Looking To Build We are not looking for someone to simply source products from Alibaba. We are looking for someone who can help us build: * Better products * Better fit * Better quality * Better manufacturing relationships * Proprietary moulds * Long-term product defensibility The goal is to create a true eyewear brand with differentiated products and a sustainable competitive advantage. ⸻ To Prove You’ve Read This Start your application with: 👉 “I understand this is a product development role, not just a sourcing role.” ⸻ *A LOOM INCLUDED IN YOUR APPLICATION IS PREFERRED AND I TAKE THESE MORE SERIOUS* If you have examples of products you’ve developed, factories you’ve worked with, brands you’ve helped improve, CAD renders, sampling workflows, or manufacturing case studies, please include them in your application.