Supply Chain Manager
Birchtree Consulting · Kolkata, West Bengal, India
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The role will build and manage the vendor ecosystem, including international suppliers, align production with business projections and sales requirements, and ensure that products are available at the right time and in the right quantities. The role is highly execution-oriented and requires strong ownership of timelines, vendors, inventory, production schedules and cross-functional coordination.Key ResponsibilitiesDemand & Production PlanningTranslate business projections, collection plans and sales forecasts into production requirements.Develop production plans based on expected demand, launch calendars, channel requirements and supplier lead times.Work closely with sales and merchandising teams to understand current and anticipated demand.Anticipate production requirements well in advance based on long lead-time components and international sourcing dependencies.Maintain visibility on production pipeline, committed quantities, expected receipts and potential supply gaps.Identify risks to product availability and proactively develop mitigation plans.End-to-End Vendor ManagementOwn relationships with domestic and international vendors involved in the supply chain.Identify, evaluate and onboard vendors in collaboration with relevant internal stakeholders.Manage vendor negotiations around timelines, quantities, quality, costs and commercial terms.Establish vendor performance standards and review vendor performance regularly.Build strong relationships with international suppliers and manage communication across time zones and geographies.Ensure vendor adherence to agreed production and delivery timelines.Production & Component CoordinationCoordinate production of fragrance bottles, packaging components and other relevant product components.Track component-level production and identify dependencies that may affect finished-product timelines.Maintain detailed production trackers covering purchase orders, quantities, production status, quality approvals, dispatches and expected delivery dates.Coordinate with manufacturing/production partners to ensure timely completion of orders.Work with R&D and product teams during product development and transition from sampling to commercial production.Inventory & AvailabilityEstablish appropriate inventory norms based on demand, lead times and business requirements.Monitor inventory levels and identify potential overstock, understock and stock-out situations.Develop replenishment plans based on sales velocity and production lead times.Ensure alignment between inventory availability and planned launches across channels.Cross-Functional CoordinationWork closely with R&D, CPO, merchandising, retail, finance, HR and other relevant teams.Coordinate production plans with collection launch calendars.Align with sales teams on market requirements, upcoming demand and changes in projections.Work with Finance on purchase commitments, costing, working capital and vendor payments where required.Ensure supply-chain readiness for new launches and collection drops.Cost & Process OptimisationTrack product and component costs and identify opportunities for cost optimisation.Support costing exercises and vendor negotiations.Identify opportunities to reduce lead times, improve MOQ economics and optimise inventory.Build scalable supply-chain processes, trackers and SOPs for the new fragrance business.International Supply ChainManage international vendor relationships and associated production timelines.Coordinate international shipments and ensure visibility on expected arrival dates.Work with relevant internal teams on documentation, logistics and import-related dependencies.Build contingency plans for critical international suppliers and long-lead components.Key Deliverables / Success MetricsProduction readiness for all planned launchesOn-time-in-full delivery from vendorsProduction lead-time adherenceInventory availability and stock-out levelsVendor performanceInventory turns / working capital efficiencyProduction cost optimisationAccuracy of demand-to-production planningSuccessful execution of new product launchesIdeal Candidate5–8 years of experience in supply chain, sourcing, production planning or vendor management.Experience in fragrance, beauty, cosmetics, Alcohol, premium consumer goods or a highly design-led product environment preferred.Strong experience managing vendors, preferably including international suppliers.Experience working with long-lead-time components and production cycles.Strong understanding of demand planning, inventory management and production scheduling.Excellent stakeholder and vendor management skills.Strong analytical and Excel capabilities.Comfortable working in a start-up/0-to-1 environment where processes need to be built from scratch.Willingness to travel internationally/domestically for vendor management where required.Preferred BackgroundCandidates from fragrance, cosmetics, beauty, premium consumer goods, fashion accessories, jewellery, Alcohol or other businesses involving complex vendor and component ecosystems may be considered.