Part-Time Packaging Operations Associate

Job Description

Job Description

Part-Time Packaging Operations Associate

Description:
The Packaging Operations Associate ensures that every part of HART (HQ/Ecommerce, Retail Stores, and Wholesale & Trunk Show teams) has sufficient packaging materials at all times. The role supports the Fulfillment Manager on day-to-day packaging operations, including the procurement calendar, storage-unit stewardship, consumption tracking, and network-wide allocation. It also supports the Planning & Allocation Manager tactically during retail allocation runs by handling packaging allocation to stores in parallel with product allocation.

Packaging strategy (vendor selection, brand consistency across channels, budget, and capex decisions on storage-unit changes) sits with the Head of CX & Fulfillment. Packaging operations sit with the Fulfillment Manager. This role executes.

Cross-trained with the Inventory Operations Associate so that either role can step into the other during absence, following the same coverage-first pattern used by the Floor Leads. The right candidate is organized, dependable, comfortable with hands-on inventory work across two physical locations (HQ and the Packaging Storage Unit), and disciplined about maintaining stock levels across a network of consumption points.

Packaging Operations & Storage-Unit Stewardship

• Maintain the Packaging Storage Unit as a well-organized, well-stocked, and accurately counted inventory space, the single source of truth for HART's packaging materials.

• Execute the packaging procurement calendar under the Fulfillment Manager's direction: place orders on schedule, receive and reconcile inbound packaging shipments, flag lead-time risks.

• Track packaging consumption across HQ/Ecommerce, Retail Stores, and Wholesale & Trunk Show teams. Surface stock risks (low inventory of any material) to the Fulfillment Manager before they impact fulfillment operations.

• Support network-wide packaging allocation planning by anticipating consumption spikes tied to seasonal launches, holiday volume, new store openings, or wholesale orders.

Packaging Allocation to Retail Stores

• During retail allocation runs, handle packaging allocation to each store in parallel with the Planning & Allocation Manager's product allocation, ensuring stores receive both product and the packaging needed to fulfill it in a single, coordinated shipment.

• Confirm packaging levels at each retail store on a recurring cadence; replenish before shortages disrupt customer service.

• Coordinate special-order packaging needs for Wholesale, Trunk Show, and Darling-account collaboration shipments.

Cross-Functional Coordination

• Serve as the day-to-day operational partner to the Fulfillment Manager on all packaging matters, reporting stock levels, consumption trends, and vendor issues.

• Escalate strategic decisions (vendor changes, packaging design updates, budget-impacting changes, storage-unit capacity issues) to the Fulfillment Manager, who escalates to the Head of CX & Fulfillment as needed.

Secondary Support to Planning & Allocations Manager

• Provide as-needed capacity to the Planning & Allocation Manager beyond the standard packaging-allocation workflow.

• Secondary support is coordinated through the primary working partner (Fulfillment Manager), not scheduled directly by the Planning & Allocation Manager, protecting primary packaging commitments.

Secondary Support to QA & Inventory Coordinator

• Provide as-needed capacity to the QA & Inventory Coordinator during high-volume inbound intake windows (new product launches, seasonal drops, major vendor shipments) — handling packaging materials that arrive alongside major inbound shipments and staging packaging for the QC reference library.

• Secondary support is coordinated through the primary working partner (Fulfillment Manager), not scheduled directly by the Coordinator, protecting primary packaging commitments.

Coverage & Cross-Training

• Cross-trained on the Inventory Operations Associate's core workflows to enable coverage during that role's PTO or absence. Minimum monthly rotation or shadowing to maintain proficiency.

• If both the Packaging Operations Associate and the Inventory Operations Associate are out simultaneously, packaging responsibilities revert to the Fulfillment Manager, who escalates to the Head of CX & Fulfillment as needed.

Qualifications:

• 1–3+ years in warehouse, inventory, packaging operations, retail stockroom, or comparable hands-on operational roles.

• Organized and dependable, comfortable owning stock levels across multiple consumption points and multiple physical locations.

• Numerate, able to track consumption trends, forecast simple replenishment needs, and reconcile inbound shipments accurately.

• Reliable communicator, proactive about surfacing stock risks and vendor issues before they impact fulfillment.

• Team-oriented; willing to cross-train and cover for a partner role.

Physical requirements: Frequent moving of boxes and packaging materials weighing up to 50 pounds across HQ and the Packaging Storage Unit. Reliable transportation between HQ and the off-site Packaging Storage Unit on a regular cadence. Standing, bending, and reaching for extended periods during packaging intake, staging, and allocation work.