Head of Product Development

Austin preferred; remote or hybrid considered About Peachybbies Peachybbies is a leading premium slime and creative‑play brand with more than 20 million followers across social media. We manufacture in Austin, sell through our own site, and have a growing retail business with partners including Target, Claire's, Hot Topic, and Barnes & Noble. We are now expanding beyond slime into craft and activity kits, compounds, and lifestyle products. The Role We are hiring a Head of Product Development to turn approved product ideas into products that can be manufactured at the right quality, cost, and timeline. This is a hands‑on player‑coach role, not a management‑only position. In the beginning, you will personally review samples, pressure‑test specifications and BOMs, make cost and quality tradeoffs, manage testing and packaging work, and keep active projects moving. As the team grows, you will hire and manage product developers, but you will remain close to the actual products and the hard development decisions. How the Role Works with the Team The founder and Product Design Leads own the product concept, customer experience, and final creative direction. You own technical development from concept handoff through production release, including specs, BOMs, costing, sampling, testing, quality standards, packaging requirements, and development timelines. The Sourcing Manager owns vendor strategy, factory relationships, RFQs, negotiations, MOQs, terms, capacity, and purchase execution. You work directly with Sourcing and factories on technical questions and sample corrections. Operations and QC own ongoing production execution and receiving controls. You define the product requirements, approval standards, and production‑readiness package they work from. What You Will Own Develop products from concept handoff to production Translate approved concepts into clear product requirements, specifications, materials, dimensions, finishes, tolerances, assembly instructions, and pack‑out details. Build and maintain BOMs with component‑level cost visibility, approved alternates, and substitution rules. Identify technical risks early and recommend practical changes before the company spends months sampling the wrong product. Create a clear production‑readiness package for each SKU before it is released for purchase or mass production. Drive samples and factory correction Own the sample‑review process from first prototype through golden sample approval. Diagnose what is wrong with a sample, identify the likely cause, and give precise direction that a factory or specialist can act on. Keep creative intent intact while making the product manufacturable, safe, durable, and commercially realistic. Work directly with the Sourcing Manager and vendors to resolve technical issues without slowing decisions through unnecessary layers. Own costing and value engineering Turn MSRP and margin goals into target landed‑cost envelopes by product and channel. Review quotes against the BOM and specifications so the team is comparing like‑for‑like costs. Identify the real cost drivers and value‑engineer products without stripping out the parts that make the customer experience worth buying. Lay out tradeoffs clearly when cost, quality, timing, and customer experience are in tension. Manage compliance, quality, and packaging development Own the compliance plan for each product and manage external laboratories, consultants, and documentation as needed. Set age grading, warnings, traceability, testing, and documentation requirements for children's products and other regulated categories. Define quality standards, golden samples, defect criteria, inspection requirements, and corrective‑action expectations with Operations and external QC partners. Own packaging requirements and manage the structural and engineering work needed for protection, retail presentation, shipping, labeling, and pack‑out. Run the development calendar Maintain a clear development timeline and single source of truth for status, decisions, risks, owners, and next steps. Drive the product through practical stage gates without creating a slow or overly corporate process. Escalate cost, timing, quality, or capacity risks early enough for the company to make a real decision. Support first production runs and close out open issues before handing the product into normal Operations and QC ownership. Build the product‑development function Create lightweight templates, review standards, and operating rhythms that make development faster and more consistent. Hire and manage product developers as category volume grows, starting with the highest‑need areas. Set a high bar for hands‑on ownership and coach the team through difficult product, cost, and factory problems. Remain a working product‑development leader rather than becoming removed from the products as the team expands. What This Role Does Not Own Final product concepts, brand direction, or founder taste decisions. Final authority over category strategy, merchandising, or creative direction. The Head of Product Development will be an important contributor to these decisions, but owns the development and execution side rather than the final creative or assortment call. Graphic design, packaging artwork, or original character development. Vendor commercial negotiations, purchase orders, freight, warehousing, or fulfillment. Personally performing every lab test, inspection, packaging‑engineering task, or specialist function. You are accountable for managing the work and ensuring it is done correctly. What We Are Looking For Typically 5 to 10+ years of hands‑on physical consumer‑product development experience. We care more about what you personally shipped and fixed than the size of your previous title. Strong experience in one or more of the following: arts and crafts, activity kits, toys, kids' products, compounds or sensory products, art supplies, or adjacent creative‑play categories. Relevant adjacent experience in accessories, stationery, beauty, soft goods, drinkware, lunchware, gift, novelty, or licensed consumer products is also valuable. A track record of personally taking products from concept handoff through costing, sampling, testing, factory correction, and production release. Strong BOM, specification, target‑costing, and sample‑diagnosis skills. Experience working directly with overseas factories and sourcing teams, including the realities of MOQs, lead times, tooling, and repeated sample rounds. Working knowledge of children's product compliance and third‑party testing. You do not need to be a regulatory attorney or lab specialist. Experience managing a small PD team or building a product‑development process while remaining hands‑on. Comfort working in a founder‑led, fast‑moving company where decisions are made quickly and ownership is visible. Practical fluency with current AI tools for research, specifications, documentation, analysis, and workflow improvement. Especially Relevant Experience Craft kits, creative‑play systems, subscription kits, toys, collectibles, or sensory products. Compounds such as slime, dough, clay, sand, putty, cosmetics, or other material‑driven products. Products sold through Target, Walmart, specialty retail, and DTC. High‑velocity launches, seasonal lines, retailer exclusives, collaborations, or licensed products. A scrappy company where you personally did the work rather than handing every problem to a large specialist team. What Success Looks Like The first new product lines move from approved concept to production on time, on cost, and without losing what made the idea good. Samples improve quickly because feedback is precise, prioritized, and tied to real requirements. Compliance, packaging, and quality work are properly managed without becoming bottlenecks or surprise launch risks. Relevant parties have clear view of product status and the decisions needed from them. A small, high‑output PD team and repeatable development system are built without unnecessary bureaucracy. Location Austin is preferred because Peachybbies develops and manufactures products locally. We are open to remote or hybrid candidates with exceptional relevant experience who can travel to Austin for at least one week per month, particularly during major sample reviews, planning sessions, and first production runs. Equal Employment Opportunity. Peachybbies hires based on merit and welcomes qualified applicants of every background. We do not discriminate on the basis of any characteristic protected by applicable law. #J-18808-Ljbffr PeachyBbies Slime Shop