Retail Operations Manager/Sr. Manager

Create Wellness•New York, NY

19d

About The Position

Create is a creatine-focused company growing across digital and retail. The Retail Operations Manager will own operational truth for the retail business, translating retail opportunities, distribution, and commitments into execution so that buyer commitments match what the company ships. Working between Retail and Operations, this role provides visibility and proactive coordination as the business scales. The role owns end-to-end retail purchase order management, retailer onboarding and compliance, new product setup, coordination on retail distribution and logistics, and chargeback and deduction recovery. It monitors supply risks and works with Retail to adjust plans before issues reach buyers. It also facilitates retailer-by-SKU forecasts by translating Sales inputs into a usable forecast for inventory planning. Supplier PO placement and negotiations, freight booking, the supply plan, P&L, and selling remain with their respective teams; this role ensures those teams have what they need from retail. The position is suited to someone with national-retailer CPG operations experience who can build processes in a fast-moving environment.

Requirements

5–8 years of experience in sales operations, retail operations, or retail fulfillment, ideally at a CPG brand.
Hands-on experience with national retailers such as Target, Walmart, Kroger, Costco, GNC, Vitamin Shoppe, or Sprouts, including vendor portals and compliance programs.
Strong working knowledge of EDI (850, 855, 856, 810), ASNs, routing guides, and retailer labeling requirements.
Experience managing 3PL partners and holding them to SLAs.
A track record of improving OTIF and fill rate and recovering chargebacks and deductions.
Advanced Excel or Google Sheets skills, including the ability to build trackers when needed.
ERP experience, such as NetSuite, Fulfil, or similar.
Clear, proactive communication with Sales, Operations, Finance, and 3PL partners.
Ability to identify problems in purchase orders, inventory, or freight proactively and drive solutions.
Ability to translate sales plans into forecasts usable by inventory planners.
Persistence in investigating chargebacks and deductions and pursuing recovery.
Ability to thrive in a fast-moving environment where processes are built as the business develops.

Nice To Haves

Experience with Stord, SPS Commerce, or retailer platforms such as Walmart Retail Link or Target Partners Online.
Genuine passion for health, wellness, and performance categories.

Responsibilities

Own the retail purchase order process from intake through EDI, 3PL release, ASN, and delivery.
Track open and in-transit purchase orders and monitor retailer OTIF and fill-rate targets.
Flag at-risk orders early and drive root-cause fixes when orders miss targets.
Run a standard onboarding checklist for each new retailer, covering EDI, routing guides, labeling, case and pallet specifications, vendor portals, and freight terms.
Maintain compliance with retailer requirements during setup and as requirements change.
Align SKU assortment and retailer door counts with the Retail team.
Ensure item data is consistent across retailer portals, the ERP, and 3PLs, and is delivered on product setup timelines.
Coordinate with the Distribution & Logistics lead on retail shipments.
Ensure inventory is ready before pickup, 3PLs meet their SLAs, and freight costs are known before product ships.
Partner with Finance on chargebacks and deductions; identify root causes, lead disputes within retailer deadlines, and track recovery.
Monitor weeks of supply, inbound shipments, lead times, and testing holds, and work with Retail to adjust plans proactively.
Facilitate retailer-by-SKU forecasts by translating Sales inputs into a usable forecast for inventory planning.
Serve as the Sales team's go-to for forecast inputs and hand off a clean forecast to Supply Planning each cycle.
Provide retail-related information needed by teams responsible for supplier PO placement and negotiations, freight booking, the supply plan, P&L, and selling.