Wholesale and Operations Manager

Hire Overseas

7d•Remote

About The Position

We're looking for a Wholesale and Operations Lead to own the entire wholesale function end to end for a fast-moving, design-led greeting cards and gifting brand. This is the single most important operational hire in the business. You will manage existing retail accounts across the UK, EU, USA, Canada, and Australia, open new ones, develop product with the design team, source and negotiate with suppliers, process orders, book freight, invoice buyers, and forecast revenue — all while using AI tools daily to work faster and to a higher standard. This is a rare blend of commercial sales, product development, and operational execution. You need to be equally comfortable charming a buyer, negotiating a quote with an overseas supplier, and getting a tax code right on an invoice. Attention to detail is non-negotiable. A single wrong SKU, currency, or missed booking deadline can bounce an invoice or delay a shipment. If you are commercially sharp, operationally precise, highly responsive, and genuinely enthusiastic about using AI in your daily workflow, this role is a strong fit.

Requirements

Very strong, fast, and reliable internet connection — a consistent high-bandwidth connection is essential for video calls, large file transfers, and multiple live portals
High energy and very fast email and message response rates — buyers and suppliers must feel they receive near-immediate, on-the-ball responses
Excellent Excel and Google Sheets skills including margin models, projections, trackers, and formulas
Strong commercial numeracy with the ability to calculate unit economics, true landed cost, and margin and present the numbers clearly
Exceptional attention to detail — SKUs, prices, currencies, tax codes, dates, invoice numbers, and deadlines must be right every time
Strong written English and confident communication style able to engage retail buyers professionally and brief suppliers and designers clearly
Highly organised and deadline-driven with the ability to manage many orders, portals, and moving parts simultaneously without dropping anything
Genuine enthusiasm for using AI tools including Claude in day-to-day work
Self-starter who can own a function end to end with minimal hand-holding

Nice To Haves

Experience in wholesale, retail buying, merchandising, account management, or B2B sales, ideally in gifting, greeting cards, stationery, homeware, or a related consumer products category
Experience sourcing or managing suppliers in China and the UK and working with freight forwarders and import logistics
Familiarity with cloud accounting and inventory and order management software and retailer EDI and supplier portals
Experience selling into large retailers including department stores, off-price chains, and book and gift chains
Understanding of retail compliance including ethical audit certification and product specification and labelling requirements

Responsibilities

Consistently reach out to new retail buyers and wholesale contacts by email week in and week out, working to a target of dozens of fresh contacts per week
Build and maintain a structured prospect pipeline and outreach tracker across Hot, Warm, Cold, Stalled, and Won stages
Share product catalogues tailored to each buyer's vertical and encourage sample requests, coordinating production, labelling, and delivery through to buyer feedback
Follow up relentlessly so no warm lead ever goes cold
Target and open at least two significant new retail accounts per year across the UK, EU, and USA
Own day-to-day relationships across a portfolio of established retail accounts spanning major off-price chains, department stores, book and gift retailers, specialty retailers, and online wholesale marketplaces across multiple regions
Present card, gift bag, gift wrap, puzzle, notebook, and colouring book ranges to buyers proactively and in response to buyer briefs
Adapt communication and range strategy to each buyer's calendar, price architecture, and ordering patterns
Manage multi-country and multi-banner accounts with separate order streams, specs, and requirements per retailer
Take buyer requests and market opportunities and brief the design team with clear specs, sizing, mock-ups, and references
Build catalogue and range presentations, mark up mock-ups, and approve production templates and physical samples before bulk production
Drive new product development into the wholesale range and spot new category opportunities
Manage seasonal design pipelines to strict timelines so samples are ready for buyer review well ahead of each buying season
Work with and get quotes from suppliers in China and the UK and source new suppliers when needed
Negotiate and confirm pricing on each order accounting for quantity, special finishes, and exchange rates
Manage supplier deposits and balance payments and maintain responsive communication across time zones
Source new factories against quality and ethical standards including valid ethical audit certification such as BSCI, SMETA, or WRAP
Calculate the true landed cost and margin of every product and order, layering in logistics, freight, forwarder charges, duties, labels, and packaging
Validate every supplier quote against the margin model before confirming an order
Present numbers, margin, and recommendations to the CEO clearly so commercial decisions can be made quickly
Review purchase orders from buyers the moment they arrive, checking SKU codes, agreed prices, currency, quantities, and delivery and cancel dates before processing
Handle multi-part and multi-destination purchase orders and sequence order flow correctly when multiple POs land together
Complete sales orders and reconcile linked purchase orders in the order and inventory system
Ensure every shipment is correctly invoiced and nothing ships un-invoiced
Book freight to strict, KPI-tracked deadlines across multiple freight forwarder and retailer portals
Manage export documentation and proof of delivery, matching shipping documents to the correct orders before invoicing
Own retailer compliance including submitting supplier and factory documentation, tracking certificate expiries, and meeting each retailer's packing, labelling, and specification requirements
Run the end-to-end invoicing process including completing sales orders, pushing through to the accounting system, and submitting via retailer portals with required documentation
Handle account-specific nuances including correct tax treatment, currency, self-billing customers, and portal submissions
Carry out month-end reconciliation to ensure every completed order is invoiced in the correct accounting month
Reconcile supplier and forwarder invoices, convert currencies where needed, and avoid double-payments
Run projections throughout the year to forecast revenue by account and by product against the annual wholesale goal
Maintain a live forecast versus actual view, flag gaps and opportunities early, and project what will ship and invoice the following month
Feed clear, numbers-led updates to the CEO and weekly wholesale reporting
Use Claude and other AI tools daily for drafting and personalising buyer outreach at scale, extracting data from purchase orders, generating purchase orders and import-ready files, researching competitors and new product opportunities, and drafting buyer communications
Always double-check AI output for accuracy before use
Continuously identify ways to simplify and automate admin so more time goes to selling and growing accounts