Quality Assurance Manager - Women’s Apparel (QA Import)

Quality Assurance Manager - Women's Apparel (QA Import)

The Manager of Quality Assurance is responsible for driving product compliance and quality consistency across core QA processes — care label approvals, third-party inspection report review, fabric and garment testing, and high-return investigations for internationally produced product. This is a report-driven role: you are managing quality outcomes mainly through analysis and vendor communication, not physical warehouse inspection. You are the key communication link between overseas vendors, third-party inspection partners, internal QC, and the Production, Tech Services, Fabric, and Merchandising teams.

What You'll Do:

• Overseas Inspection & Audit Management (~65%): Review 3rd-party reports (QIMA, Intertek, Baak, etc.). You will release passing shipments, troubleshoot workmanship/measurement issues for failures, and hold shipments missing approved TOP samples. This is a report-based function — you are managing quality outcomes through analysis and vendor communication. You'll also manage the 3-week audit plan and follow up on unscheduled vendor audits.
• Care Label Compliance (~12%): Verify vendor-submitted labels against BOM, PIM, and Tech Packs. You'll identify discrepancies, request vendor corrections, and update PIM layouts to ensure total accuracy.
• Fabric & Garment Testing (~11%): Manage the end-to-end testing process. This includes reviewing overseas fabric reports, processing internal test requests (preparing yardage/forms), managing retests, and communicating rejection or replacement instructions to suppliers.
• Planning & QC Capacity (~2%): Track TOP/Tech sample arrivals and build weekly QC capacity vs. demand charts to ensure the team stays ahead of incoming volume.
• Returns & Escalation Analysis (~4%): Partner with Merch/Production to investigate high-return items. You'll coordinate inventory pulls, conduct measurement checks against original inspection results, and prepare samples/findings for executive review.
• Special Call-Outs (~2%): Investigate escalated issues from Import Production, coordinate re-audits, and ensure vendors implement corrective actions to close out quality gaps.

What You'll Need:

• Experience: 4–6 years in Apparel Quality Control, QA, or Production. Experience must include managing offshore vendor quality through third-party inspection and testing programs. Candidates with warehouse or distribution QC backgrounds alone will not be considered.
• Technical Mastery: Strong knowledge of garment construction, fabric behavior, and inspection standards (AQL, inline vs. final audits). Candidates must demonstrate both garment and fabric expertise — fabric performance knowledge (colorfastness, shrinkage, seam strength) is required, not a plus.
• Documentation Savvy: Ability to cross-reference complex data across BOMs, PIMs, Tech Packs, and lab reports.
• System Skills: Intermediate Excel proficiency (vlookups, pivot tables). Experience with NetSuite or PIM systems is a major plus.
• Testing Knowledge: Familiarity with fabric performance standards (colorfastness, shrinkage, seam strength) and lab testing methods.
• Education: Bachelor's degree (Textiles, Apparel Manufacturing, or Supply Chain) or equivalent professional experience.

Who You Are:

• Detail-Obsessed: You notice the small discrepancies in a care label or a lab report that others might miss.
• A Clear Communicator: You can provide concise, actionable feedback to overseas vendors and internal cross-functional partners.
• Data-Driven Decision Maker: You use standards and evidence to decide when to approve a marginal improvement or reject a lot. You make sound judgment calls independently, balancing quality and timelines — and you own those decisions.
• High-Volume Pro: You thrive in fast-paced environments and can manage multiple deadlines and hundreds of reports without breaking a sweat.
• Self-Directed: You manage your workload proactively, anticipate what's coming, and act before things become problems.

Compensation:

At Reformation, we believe in transparency and equity when it comes to compensation. For this role, the anticipated base salary range is $70,000 to $77,000 annually + 10% bonus eligibility, depending on a variety of factors, including but not limited to relevant experience, skills, qualifications, and internal compensation equity.

This role may also be eligible for an annual discretionary bonus based on a range of factors, including company performance, department goals, and individual contributions. Bonus amounts and eligibility are not guaranteed and are determined at the company's discretion.

Please note that compensation decisions are made thoughtfully and may vary from the listed range to reflect individual circumstances and evolving business needs. Our total rewards package also includes benefits, perks, and opportunities for growth that contribute to overall compensation.

Benefits & Perks:

• Eligible employees get employer-sponsored private medical, dental, and vision insurance, as well as commuter benefits to help support your travel to and from work.
• We offer competitive paid time off policies including vacation, sick leave, and company holidays for eligible employees.
• We offer retirement planning support for eligible employees, including the option to invest in Environmental Social Governance-aligned (fancy way to say sustainable) funds.
• We're a mission-based company with offices in LA, NYC and London, as well as a global retail team, which means you'll get to collaborate with people all around the world.
• You'll get access to fertility care support through Carrot, and up to a $5,000 USD reimbursement for related fertility expenses after 1 year of employment.
• We care about the causes our employees care about so we donate to community efforts on a yearly basis.
• We offer a clothing discount, culture events (like our annual Ref Values week and Volunteer Time Off), you know, all the meaningful and fun stuff!

Reformation is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We're committed to building a diverse and inclusive team that reflects the world we want to live in. All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, age, or veteran status—in accordance with applicable international, federal, state, and local laws.

If you require accommodations during the application or interview process, please let us know. We're here to ensure you have what you need to show up as your best self.

Still don't know if you should apply? We get it— studies show that many women and individuals from historically underrepresented communities hold back from applying unless they meet every single requirement. At Reformation, we're all about growth, not gatekeeping. If you're passionate about the role and excited about making fashion more sustainable, we'd love to hear from you. If this role doesn't totally excite you, consider applying to our general application.