Wholesale Director

nuuds•Dallas, TX

About The Position

The Wholesale Director will lead nuuds’ wholesale growth, developing the established Nordstrom relationship and building a pipeline of premium boutiques and additional major or digital retail partners. This is a high-ownership role that begins as a hands-on, department-of-one position and is expected to grow into a team lead role as the wholesale business scales. A Wholesale Operations Specialist is expected to join later to take on day-to-day compliance and fulfillment execution, allowing the Director to focus more on strategy, relationships, and expansion. The Director will lead the Nordstrom account, own wholesale forecasting and profitability in collaboration with Planning and Merchandising, and oversee operational processes including EDI, retailer compliance, and fulfillment. The role partners closely with the VP of Merchandising on milestone management, assortment and line planning, and translating merchandising strategy into a scalable wholesale channel. The position also develops new accounts and provides leadership with recurring performance reporting and recommendations.

Requirements

At least 7 years of wholesale sales and/or account management experience within apparel.
Direct experience with department stores or major retailers.
Hands-on experience with EDI and retailer portals, including personally owning data entry and compliance work for at least the first 6–12 months.
Full-cycle sales experience owning a relationship from cold outreach through closing and onboarding an account.
Ability to operate without a team initially and escalate appropriately as the scope grows.
Confident, credible presence with retail buyers and senior stakeholders.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to translate account performance into clear leadership recommendations.
Ability to travel as needed.
Demonstrated inclusive leadership, customer-centricity, integrity, pursuit of excellence, action orientation, and data-driven decision-making.

Nice To Haves

Nordstrom experience is strongly preferred.
Existing relationships with department-store or premium-boutique buyers.
Experience in fashion, apparel, or consumer brands, particularly in wholesale or department-store channels.
Familiarity with EDI systems such as SPS Commerce or similar.

Responsibilities

Serve as nuuds’ primary point of contact for the Nordstrom buying team and deepen the existing relationship.
Own the wholesale revenue P&L, volume forecasting, and margin targets for current and future accounts in collaboration with Planning and Merchandising.
Negotiate allowances, markdowns, and financial terms with buyers to maximize profitability and protect brand margin.
Partner with retail partners on visual merchandising, product training, and in-store presentation strategies.
Represent nuuds at market weeks and buyer appointments, presenting seasonal lines and negotiating placement.
Build nuuds’ brand equity with the Nordstrom buying team as an in-house advocate.
Build and execute a pipeline of new wholesale accounts, including premium boutiques and major or digital retailers.
Own prospecting, pitching, and onboarding for new accounts from start to finish.
Evaluate prospective accounts for brand fit, margin, and operational feasibility before presenting them to leadership.
Own end-to-end EDI transmissions, including 850 POs, 856 ASNs, and 810 invoices, as well as item setup, imagery, and attribute matching in retailer portals.
Track purchase-order lifecycles against production and shipping windows to avoid routing-guide violations and resulting chargebacks.
Review and escalate chargeback and deduction disputes, and develop a process for handling them.
Work cross-functionally to adapt the DTC pipeline calendar and align design, merchandising, sampling, and production milestones with wholesale needs.
Partner with the VP of Merchandising on assortment and line planning, incorporating account-specific performance and opportunity.
Coordinate with production and operations to confirm capacity, lead times, and shipping compliance ahead of key retail windows.
Identify account or compliance risks early and recommend a path forward.
Own recurring wholesale performance reporting, including sell-through, reorder health, and chargeback trends.
Translate account and portal data into recommendations on reorder candidates, at-risk styles, and new-door opportunities.
Travel as needed.