Director of Product, Search

quince

Palo Alto, California, United States · Palo Alto · United States

Posted Oct 8, 2025

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Job description

ABOUT QUINCE

Founded in 2018, Quince was built to challenge the idea that nice things have to cost a lot. Our mission is simple: to make really high quality essentials for really low prices, produced fairly and sustainably. We believe everyone deserves exceptional craftsmanship and timeless design without the traditional markups. Quince is a direct-to-consumer (DTC) model that cuts out middlemen and leverages just-in-time manufacturing to minimize waste and maximize value.

Quince is a tech company disrupting the retail industry by putting AI, analytics and automation at the center of everything we do. Our unwavering commitment to excellence and company values guide our teams and actions:

Customer First: We prioritize customer satisfaction in every decision.
High Quality: True quality means premium materials and rigorous production standards you can feel good about.
Essential Design: We focus on timeless, functional essentials instead of chasing trends.
Always a Better Deal: Innovation and transparency ensure value for both customers and partners.
Social & Environmental Responsibility: We commit to sustainable materials, ethical production, and fair wages.

Quince partners with world-class manufacturers across the globe and serves millions of customers. With strong investor backing and a focus on sustainable growth, we are a company that is rapidly scaling while maintaining a commitment to quality, simplicity, and radical price transparency.

OUR TEAM AND SUCCESS

At Quince, you will be part of a high-performing team that is redefining what quality, value, and sustainability mean in modern retail. We are a destination for builders, innovators, and operators to come together and challenge the status quo. Our collective ambition is bold. We are creating an entirely new category and customer experience – one that democratizes luxury and provides high quality products at radically low prices. That mission demands a world-class team committed to excellence.

If you are motivated by impact, growth, and purpose, you will find a strong sense of belonging at Quince.

THE ROLE

Director of Product, Search

We're looking for a Product Lead to join our growing team. In this role, you will be responsible for transforming onsite search from a keyword-based utility into an intelligent, personalized discovery engine. In the near term, this role will focus on strengthening data platforms, experimentation, and incremental improvements on top of Algolia. Over time, this person will drive the evolution of search toward semantic, AI-powered, and personalized experiences that differentiate our brand and delight customers. This role plays a critical part in advancing both our team's goals and Quince's broader mission.

Responsibilities

Define and execute the search strategy balancing immediate platform improvements with long-term innovation
Lead data platform and experimentation efforts (data pipelines, dashboards, A/B testing) to enable rapid iteration and insight-driven decision making
Manage and improve current Algolia-based search, focusing on relevance tuning, query handling, and performance optimization
Build roadmap for AI/semantic search evolution (vector-based retrieval, personalized ranking, LLM-assisted discovery)
Partner cross-functionally with data science, data engineering, and ML engineering to deliver next-gen search models and pipelines
Oversee QA, UAT, and signoff for new algorithms, features, and experimentation frameworks before production launch
Champion voice of the customer by translating insights into actionable improvements across search relevance, usability, and speed
Act as an internal thought leader on how AI and semantic technologies can reshape product discovery

Qualifications

Required:

10+ years of product management experience, with at least 7 years working closely with data science, ML, or search/information retrieval teams
Proven track record of shipping and scaling customer-facing data science or search products with measurable business impact
Strong foundation in experimentation (A/B testing, statistical methods, KPI definition) and ability to translate insights into product decisions
Knowledge of machine learning productization: feature stores, inference platforms, model monitoring, and A/B testing of ML-driven systems
Familiarity with search platforms and technologies (e.g., Algolia, Elasticsearch, Solr, OpenSearch) and understanding of their strengths/limitations
Excellent written and verbal communication skills; able to influence cross-functional teams and executive stakeholders without formal authority
Strong analytical mindset; comfortable digging into data and collaborating with engineers/data scientists to answer product questions with evidence
Demonstrated success in defining roadmaps, prioritizing tradeoffs, and delivering high-quality product experiences

Preferred:

Hands-on experience implementing or product managing semantic search, LLM agent-powered features
Track record of personalization initiatives (customer-specific ranking, context-aware search, lifecycle-based recommendations)
Excited by a super-IC role with broad scope and impact, acting as the connective tissue between engineering, data, and business

All posted ranges are reflective of base salary and may vary depending upon experience level and location. Bonus and equity may also be provided for eligible roles.

Pay Range

$200,000—$280,000 USD

WHY QUINCE?

Joining Quince means being part of a mission-driven team reshaping retail. You will work alongside talented colleagues, tackle meaningful challenges, and contribute to building a more sustainable, accessible future for customers and partners alike.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY & HIRING INTEGRITY

Quince provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applications for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran or military status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws.

Quince is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation to complete your application or to perform the essential functions of a role at Quince, please let us know by completing this accommodation form. We review all requests individually and will work with you to determine appropriate accommodations on a case-by-case basis.

Employment is contingent upon successful completion of a background check. Quince will conduct background checks in compliance with applicable federal, state, and local laws.

Security Advisory: Beware of Frauds

At Quince, we're dedicated to recruiting top talent who share our drive for innovation. To safeguard candidates, Quince emphasizes legitimate recruitment practices. Initial communication is primarily via official Quince email addresses and LinkedIn; beware of deviations. Personal data and sensitive information will not be solicited during the application phase. Interviews are conducted via phone, in person, or through the approved platforms Google Meets or Zoom—never via messaging apps or other calling services. Offers are merit-based, communicated verbally, and followed up in writing. If personal information is requested to initiate the hiring process, rest assured it will be through secure and protected means.