Founding Head of Ecommerce – New Brand

Job description

We are building a new direct-to-consumer apparel brand launching in Spring 2027. Backed by a team that's done it before, we're entering a category we believe has been overlooked for far too long. Customers deserve better products, a stronger brand, and a world-class experience. We’re here to raise the bar. This is an opportunity to join as one of our founding employees. You'll be part of a small team making key decisions, solving meaningful problems, and building the foundation of the business from pre-launch. The pace will be fast, the challenges real, and your impact impossible to miss. Every decision you make will help shape how this business grows. We're looking for builders. People who embrace uncertainty, move with urgency, take ownership, and are driven by the opportunity to create something exceptional. If you're excited by big challenges, meaningful responsibility, and the chance to help build a brand from the ground up, this could be a game-changing opportunity for you. **The Role** As our founding Head of Ecommerce, you'll be responsible for defining how customers experience the website for our new Shopify brand, building the strategy, operating model, and roadmap that powers long-term digital growth. You'll be integral in establishing the vision for our ecommerce function, shaping the customer journey, identifying opportunities for commercial growth, and building the processes, governance, and technology needed to scale. From platform strategy and vendor partnerships to performance optimization and cross-functional alignment, you'll ensure site experience becomes one of the company's most important growth drivers. We're looking for someone who thrives in building from the ground up – someone equally comfortable thinking several years ahead while making smart, practical decisions that move the business forward today. As the ecommerce function grows, you'll play a key role in building and developing the team, fostering a culture of ownership, innovation, experimentation, and continuous improvement. ### Job Duties and Responsibilities **Shape the Website Strategy** - Develop and manage the long-term ecommerce vision, strategy, and operating roadmap. - Establish governance, priorities, and success metrics that align ecommerce initiatives with broader business objectives. - Identify opportunities to accelerate growth through customer experience improvements, technology, merchandising, and innovation. - Evaluate emerging trends, tools, and technologies that strengthen our digital capabilities and competitive advantage. **Drive Commercial Performance** - Own the overall performance of the website channel including revenue, conversion, average order value, customer retention, and profitability. - Continuously optimize the customer journey from acquisition through checkout and post-purchase. - Develop data-driven strategies that improve customer engagement and commercial outcomes. - Champion experimentation through A/B testing, personalization, and continuous optimization. **Build the Ecommerce Function** - Establish scalable ecommerce processes, governance, and best practices that support future growth. - Lead platform enhancements, technology initiatives, and website evolution. - Evaluate, negotiate, and manage relationships with external agencies, software vendors, and strategic partners. - Develop reporting frameworks and dashboards that provide actionable business insights. **Lead Cross-Functional Execution** - Partner closely with Product, Marketing, Creative, Technology, and Customer Experience teams to deliver exceptional digital experiences. - Align product launches, campaigns, and business initiatives across departments. - Remove organizational barriers and drive timely execution of strategic priorities. - Represent ecommerce as a key business function within leadership discussions. **Build & Develop the Team** - Recruit, coach, and develop a high-performing ecommerce team as the business scales. - Provide strategic leadership and direction to the Ecommerce Lead and future team members. - Foster a culture of accountability, innovation, collaboration, and continuous improvement. ### Experience, Education, & Designations - 7+ years of progressive ecommerce experience within a direct-to-consumer (DTC), retail, or consumer brand environment. - Demonstrated success developing and executing ecommerce strategies that drive measurable business growth on Shopify. - Experience launching, scaling, or transforming ecommerce businesses, digital channels, or emerging brands. - Proven experience leading cross-functional initiatives involving marketing, creative, product, technology, and operations. - Experience managing Shopify storefronts and the broader ecommerce technology ecosystem. - Experience evaluating and implementing ecommerce technologies, digital platforms, and third-party solutions. - Experience managing external agencies, technology partners, and vendor relationships. - Previous leadership experience building, mentoring, and developing high-performing teams is strongly preferred. - Experience working within a high-growth, entrepreneurial, or startup environment is considered a strong asset. ### Knowledge, Skills, & Attributes - Strategic thinker with the ability to translate long-term vision into practical execution. - Strong commercial and financial acumen, with the ability to balance customer experience and business performance. - Deep understanding of ecommerce operations, merchandising, digital customer journeys, and conversion optimization. - Advanced analytical capabilities with experience leveraging data to identify trends, measure performance, and inform business decisions. - Strong knowledge of Shopify, Google Analytics 4 (GA4), Google Tag Manager, Looker (or similar BI platforms), and the broader Shopify technology landscape. - Experience with A/B testing platforms, personalization tools, customer behavior analytics, and conversion rate optimization (CRO) methodologies. - Exceptional project management and organizational skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment. - Outstanding communication and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence and align cross-functional teams. - A builder's mindset – comfortable navigating ambiguity, creating structure, and establishing scalable processes from the ground up.