Job Description: OPERATIONS & PRODUCT MANAGER at Sister by Studio Ashby

WE ARE LOOKING FOR:

• Someone who is passionate about the inner-workings of a retail business and excited about everything that goes on behind the scenes.   
• Someone who is curious and loves to learn.  
• A confident and enthusiastic individual who takes initiative and thinks creatively.  
• Someone who is adaptable and proactive, who thrives in a multi-faceted role and entrepreneurial/start-up environment. 
• An organised person who believes automation, strategies and frameworks make the world go round, and can easily communicate their thinking to varied stakeholders.  

THE IDEAL CANDIDATE MUST HAVE:

• Previous online retail experience, preferably in an operations or product management role. 
• Experience with the ins and outs of defining and launching product lines.  
• An interest in antiques, home interiors and the homeware space.  
• Excellent analytical skills and experience setting out and managing budgets. 

• A digital native – you know your way around a Mac, love Microsoft Excel and could learn Adobe suite if necessary.  
• A car and valid UK driving license is preferred.  
• Fluent in spoken and written English with concise communication skills.  

THE ROLE:

Think of yourself as the Wizard of Oz: You are the go-to for all things ‘behind the curtain’ at Sister.  You use your strategic way of thinking, budgets and stock trackers to identify what we should be creating in order to meet targets. You are someone who never settles for good-enough, so you work closely with our Head of Marketing to consistently think outside the box and make the business thrive. On any given day, you may be… 
 

• Working directly with Sister’s founder Sophie Ashby to create/curate new product our customers will love (ensuring the price point is in line with targets). 
• Managing customer orders and queries, making sure we provide best-in-class customer support. 
• Liaising with and managing our storage and packaging company. 

• Working side-by-side with Studio Ashby & Sister’s Head of Marketing to think big and maximise profitability. 
• Keep and eye on current market trends and forming collaborations with up-and-coming makers, artists or designers. 
• Visiting antiques markets and fairs across the UK (you thrive off the excitement of finding an antique gem to polish and update to create new products – despite the very early start times!) 
• Help with the organisation and smooth-running of photoshoots. 
• Liaising with makers, art framers, upholsterers and transport companies/couriers to ensure products are 1) exquisitely crafted and 2) arrive at their forever homes safe and sound.  

WHO WE ARE

We define Sister as part shop, part playground, creating and curating future heirlooms. We are the little sister of Studio Ashby, the London-based interior design studio, founded by Sophie Ashby.  
 
Over the years, Studio Ashby has developed a strong and loyal social following and reputation amongst the design crowd for our beautiful, intentional and off-beat interiors. However, due to the nature of the highly bespoke interior design service provided, the Studio Ashby aesthetic has only been available to the few who have the means to commission a full interior renovation.  
 
In parallel, the global pandemic has forced us all to spend far more time in our homes. Given this new importance our interiors have, Sophie Ashby and the team felt this was the perfect moment to create a sister brand that would appeal to a wider audience, not limited by the restrictions of its older sibling. Selling beautifully curated and crafted household products with meaning and soul, the brand has a pep in its step and promises (pinkie swears, actually) to never take itself too seriously.  

Sister is a chance to have fun and be playful with interiors, and an opportunity for fans of Studio Ashby to buy into the brand’s aesthetic in a more affordable way. 

THE PRODUCT & OUR ONLINE SHOP

Sister’s interior and lifestyle products uphold the values of conscious consumption, playful eccentricity, craftsmanship and high-low upcycling. Products range from refurbished antique treasures to quirky, re-imagined homeware staples and bespoke designs.  

The line will develop, evolve and expand over time, starting with small-scale and artisanal production. 

Sister has recently launched online with two small launch collections in in late 2020. This has been extremely well received by the press and public in its first month and we are developing more product and stock. The brand lives digitally under the @sisterbystudioashby handle on Instagram, and at www.studioashby.com/sister  

THE FUTURE

Sister will be opening an in-real-life shopfront in Spring 2021 in Central London (yet to be disclosed). The store will be a physical representation of the brand, inviting customers into its own little world; a reimagined furniture and antiques shop full of colour and play. 

HOW TO APPLY

To apply, please send your CV and Cover Letter to careers@studioashby.com citing ‘Operations & Product Manager at Sister’ in the subject line.