VP of Product

VP OF PRODUCT - CAKES BODY

REMOTE. FULL TIME.

The Role

CAKES Body is looking for a world-class product operator to own everything from consumer insight to shelf and help build a clean, high-performing assortment that drives value across the business. This is a seat at a small leadership table where your decisions move the business immediately.

Key KPIs You'll Own

• Gross margin and contribution margin by SKU
• Assortment sell-through rates by channel
• On-time launch rate vs. product calendar
• New product revenue as % of total
• Post-launch return rates and review scores
• Vendor cost performance vs. target
• Innovation pipeline coverage

What You'll Do

Roadmap & Strategy

• Own development of the 3-year product roadmap end-to-end
• Monitor consumer trends, competitive launches, white space opportunities, and customer feedback (reviews, returns, social) to continuously sharpen the roadmap
• Own the innovation pipeline; identify adjacent category opportunities (new formats, new categories) that extend the brand
• Lead SKU rationalization and lifecycle management - not just launches, but disciplined exits and assortment pruning with a P&L lens

Brand & Product Alignment

• Ensure new product decisions ladder up to brand positioning and reinforce what CAKES stands for, not just fill whitespace opportunistically
• Partner with creative and marketing to align product stories with campaign and channel strategy
• Own packaging architecture, copy, and claims in partnership with creative and legal; ensure claims are defensible for retail partners and acquisition diligence

Merchandising & Channel Assortment

• Lead seasonal merchandise planning: assortment architecture, launch calendar, and channel-specific assortment strategy (DTC, Amazon, Wholesale - big box + specialty)
• Own retail partner product strategy such as what goes to which partner, why, and what's built specifically for that channel vs. protected for DTC
• Define Amazon assortment strategy: exclusives, DTC protection, and cannibalization guardrails
• Own pricing strategy across all channels with margin accountability
• Partner with finance on product-level and full assortment P&L, costing targets, and contribution margin by SKU and Channel

Product Development & Execution

• Own the full development lifecycle including consumer brief through launch: concepting, sampling, costing, fit, specs, and on-time delivery
• Manage the product tech designer day-to-day (construction, fit, tech packs, PRDs)
• Write and maintain PRDs for all new launches and product updates
• Own vendor relationships: sourcing, performance management, compliance, and cost negotiation

Packaging & Compliance

• Own packaging architecture, copy, and claims in partnership with creative and legal
• Maintain material and ingredient standards documentation; ensure claims are defensible for retail partners and diligence
• Ensure all products maintain current testing certifications and compliance documentation (safety, performance, materials), proactively managing renewal timelines and retailer-specific requirements.

Go-to-Market & Launch Readiness

• Run the cross-functional launch gate process including owning go/no-go decisions and launch readiness across ops, finance, marketing, and creative
• Maintain the master launch calendar and hold teams accountable to milestone dates

Post-Launch & Performance

• Own post-launch performance reviews: sell-through, return rates, review scores, cannibalization, and margin actuals vs. plan
• Feed performance data back into future briefs and roadmap prioritization on a defined cadence

Sustainability & Sourcing Standards

• Develop and maintain a lightweight material and sourcing standards framework that supports wholesale partner requirements and positions the brand favorably for acquisition diligence

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What We're Looking For

• 8-12 years in product development or merchandising, ideally in intimates, apparel, or adjacent beauty/body categories
• You build the process, then run it and are comfortable owning ambiguity at a lean company
• Strong commercial instincts: you couple thinking in margin, sell-through, and value with aesthetics
• Experience managing overseas vendors and retail partner requirements
• Proven ability to own a product roadmap and make independent prioritization decisions
• Collaborative with finance and ops; you treat P&L accountability as a core part of the job
• Track record of running cross-functional launch processes with clear gate milestones
• Comfortable writing PRDs and managing a tech designer without heavy oversight
• Bonus: experience with Amazon product lifecycle and DTC launch dynamics
• Builder's mentality - you can set strategy and execute; startup or high-growth brand experience is a strong plus

Interested? Email your resume and cover letter to [email protected]