Director of Commercial Operations

Job description

**About the Role** Lola Blankets is a fast-growing comfort and lifestyle brand on a mission to make the world a cozier place. We are seeking a Director of Commercial Operations to own the operational infrastructure powering Lola's wholesale, bulk/corporate, and retail sales channels as the business multiplies This is a player-coach role for an experienced and self-directed operator who can professionalize our wholesale foundation, build our bulk and corporate gifting channel from the ground up, and serve as the operational counterpart to our commercial leadership team across all off-DTC revenue. **Core Responsibilities** **Wholesale Operations — National & Specialty** - Oversee the end-to-end operational execution of Lola's wholesale accounts, ensuring orders are fulfilled accurately, on time, and according to each retailer's requirements. - Partner closely with Lola’s 3PLs to expand capabilities, forecast and plan demand, ensure compliance, and improve margins. - Build and codify wholesale processes and infrastructure to ensure consistent, cost-effective, and repeatable processes and workflows - Partner with the Head of Commercial and wholesale sales team to provide operational input on account growth timelines, impacts, costs, and commitments. - Provide the strategic direction and bandwidth for Channel Operations manager to continue executing and professionalizing day-to-day wholesale execution. **Wholesale Operations – Bulk & Custom** - Improve the operational infrastructure for Lola's bulk and corporate gifting channel — order types and flows, intake processes, customization and fulfillment workflows, and customer timelines and communication standards. - Define and document the operational handoff from Commercial to Ops once a bulk order is placed; own execution from that point through delivery and customer confirmation. - Identify and evaluate operational requirements for scaling this channel — custom packaging, kitting capabilities, 3PL value-added services — and build the business case for investments needed to support growth targets. **Retail Operations** - Oversee Lola's emerging retail channel — providing strategic direction, SOP governance, and escalation support to the Retail Operations Manager. - Partner with the Director of Retail (Commercial team) and Head of Commercial to understand retail operational needs and ensure the Lola Operations team has the resources and priorities to execute against them. - Set standards for retail operational performance — inventory accuracy, replenishment timeliness, store systems reliability — and hold the team accountable to them. - Identify and resolve operational issues that exceed the Retail Ops Manager's scope or require cross-functional coordination across supply chain, tech, or commercial teams. **Cross-Functional Leadership & Strategy** - Help maintain clear swimlanes and handoffs across Operations, Commercial, Finance, Product, and all other teams — ensuring every team knows what they own and where to escalate. - Provide operational input into commercial strategy decisions: channel prioritization, margin modeling, new partner or format evaluation, and seasonal planning. - Drive increased efficiency and higher margin across all channel operations — tracking and owning fulfillment performance, chargeback exposure, compliance rates, and unit economics across wholesale, bulk, and retail. - Partner with Finance on channel-level cost inputs, operational budgeting, and margin improvement initiatives. - Build a high-performing, self-directed team. *This role will report to the Head of Operations. Preference for candidates in New York or Utah who can be hybrid in our offices 3 days per week. Also open to remote candidates in Austin or Los Angeles.* **Qualifications** - 8+ years in channel operations, wholesale/retail operations, and/or commercial enablement operations at a DTC-first / digitally native brand - Deep familiarity with wholesale operational requirements: EDI systems, retailer compliance standards, routing guides, chargeback management, and major account operational workflows. - Demonstrated ability to build operational infrastructure in a fast-growth, resource-constrained environment — playbooks, processes, and systems that scale without requiring constant senior oversight. - Strong commercial instincts: able to partner credibly with sales and commercial leaders, provide operational input on strategic decisions, and translate business goals into executable operational plans. - Proven people leader - Financially literate: comfortable owning cost metrics and building operational business cases - Self-directed and highly organized - Expertise within Shopify, EDI platforms, and ERP/WMS systems a plus. **What We Offer** - Competitive base salary and annual bonus based on company and individual performance - 21 days paid vacation + all federal holidays - Full health benefits (health, dental, vision, mental) - 16 weeks paid birth parent leave; 8 weeks non-birth parent leave - 55% off Lola Blankets for friends and family - Opportunities for career growth within Lola Blankets