Senior Raw Materials Developer, Accessories

<div class="content-intro"><p><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><strong>WHY JOIN ALO?</strong></span></p> <p>Mindful movement. It’s at the core of why we do what we do at ALO—it’s our calling. Because mindful movement in the studio leads to better living. It changes who yogis are off the mat, making their lives and their communities better. That’s the real meaning of studio-to-street: taking the consciousness from practice on the mat and putting it into practice in life.</p></div><p><strong>OVERVIEW</strong></p> <p>The Senior Raw Material Developer, Accessories is responsible for developing, engineering, and commercializing raw materials for accessories categories such as bags, hats, socks, belts, soft accessories, packaging-related trims, and small goods. This role ensures materials meet brand design intent, quality, performance, cost, sustainability, and manufacturability standards. The position partners closely with Design, Product Development, Sourcing, Quality, and suppliers to bring innovative and scalable materials to market on time.</p> <p><strong>RESPONSIBILITIES </strong><em> </em></p> <p><em>Material Development </em></p> <ul> <li>Lead raw material development from concept through commercialization for accessories categories.</li> <li>Source and evaluate new materials including wovens, knits, leather, synthetic leather, coated fabrics, webbings, mesh, foams, linings, fillings, labels, trims, hardware, and specialty components.</li> <li>Translate design intent into technical material requirements including handfeel, appearance, structure, durability, weight, functionality, and finish.</li> </ul> <p><em>Technical Development and Testing</em></p> <ul> <li>Establish material specifications and validate against performance requirements such as abrasion, colorfastness, tensile and tear strength, pilling, crocking, coating adhesion, dimensional stability, wash durability, and corrosion resistance for hardware where applicable.</li> <li>Partner with Quality and Product Integrity teams to ensure materials meet testing, safety, and regulatory requirements.</li> <li>Troubleshoot raw material issues such as delamination, cracking, peeling, color migration, tarnishing, shrinkage, distortion, coating failure, odor, or inconsistency in finish.</li> <li>Support color approval and bulk consistency across soft materials, trims, and hardware finishes.</li> </ul> <p><em>Cost Management</em></p> <ul> <li>Own raw material cost targets and partner with suppliers to negotiate pricing, MOQs, and feasible alternatives without compromising brand intent.</li> <li>Support should-cost thinking across material and trim packages, identifying cost drivers and optimization opportunities.</li> <li>Ensure on-time raw material readiness against seasonal calendars and development milestones.</li> </ul> <p><em>Supplier and Cross-Functional Management</em></p> <ul> <li>Build and maintain relationships with mills, tanneries, trim suppliers, hardware vendors, coating and finish suppliers, and finished goods manufacturers.</li> <li>Assess supplier capability and align on standards for quality, compliance, traceability, and execution.</li> <li>Communicate material options, risks, and trade-offs clearly to internal teams, balancing aesthetic, cost, speed, and performance.</li> <li>Maintain development trackers, approval logs, and issue-resolution follow-up with suppliers and cross-functional teams.</li> </ul> <p><em>Systems and Documentation</em></p> <ul> <li>Create and maintain com