Quality Control Operations Manager, Azazie, Inc., US

About Us:

AZAZIE stands as the leading direct-to-consumer (DTC) e-tailer, providing an array of bridal gowns, bridesmaid dresses, evening wear, and accessories. Designed in Los Angeles, AZAZIE disrupts the traditional wedding industry by presenting made-to-order gowns at an affordable price point. The brand is dedicated to promoting body-positive fashion, ensuring that all dresses, available in sizes 0-30, are meticulously cut and sewn to order. Explore our website, where you'll find hundreds of bridal and bridesmaid gowns and dresses, spanning over 80+ enticing color options.

Job Overview:

We are seeking an Operations Manager – Quality Control (Returns) to design, implement, and manage Azazie’s returns quality control processes. This role is critical to solving one of our biggest operational challenges: handling the high volume of returned dresses (both purchased and sample dresses) while maintaining strict quality standards and maximizing recovery of returned inventory.

This leader will go beyond inspection—building scalable solutions to repair, clean, and restore dresses so they can be re-sold or re-rented. The role requires expertise in large-volume garment processing, automation opportunities, and vendor/outsourcing strategies.

This position can be structured as a full-time role or a consulting engagement for candidates with the right expertise.

Responsibilities and Duties:

Process Design & Optimization

• Build a robust and scalable returns QC process to handle both real and sample dresses.
• Standardize inspection criteria for defects including smell, pet hair, makeup, stains, fabric damage, and alterations.
• Implement tiered QC outcomes (re-stock, repair, recycle, donate).

Operational Efficiency & Automation

• Identify automation and pipeline solutions to reduce reliance on manual inspection (e.g., fabric scanners, stain-detection systems, cleaning robots).
• Evaluate outsourcing options (large-scale dry cleaning, specialized garment restoration vendors).
• Benchmark processes against high-volume rental or dry-clean businesses.

Execution & Team Leadership

• Train and oversee warehouse/operations staff to follow QC protocols consistently.
• Ensure throughput meets daily/weekly targets with minimal backlog.
• Partner with supply chain and inventory teams to reintegrate recovered dresses quickly.

Vendor & Partner Management

• Source and manage relationships with third-party cleaning/restoration providers.
• Negotiate service-level agreements and monitor vendor performance.
• Explore international or regional partners to optimize cost and speed.

Data, Reporting & Continuous Improvement

• Develop KPIs for QC performance (e.g., % of returns recovered, cost per processed return, turnaround time).
• Analyze defect trends and feed insights back into design, manufacturing, and customer service teams.
• Lead root cause analysis to prevent recurring quality issues.

Qualifications:

• 5–8 years of operations or QC leadership in large-volume garment processing (fashion rental, dry cleaning, apparel e-commerce, or logistics).
• Proven track record in building or scaling garment return/cleaning operations.
• Familiarity with automation technologies or process outsourcing is a plus.
• Ability to travel to U.S. warehouses, vendors, and potential outsourcing partners.

Skills:

• Strong problem-solving and process design skills.
• Excellent vendor management and negotiation ability.
• Data-driven mindset; able to build reports and optimize KPIs.
• Hands-on leadership style—comfortable rolling up sleeves in warehouses.
• Flexibility to adapt in a fast-paced, high-growth e-commerce environment.

Pay ranges will vary depending experience and type of hire.

Full-time: ~$110K - $120K

Consultant rate: ~$65-$100/hr

Physical Requirements:

While performing the functions of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit; frequently required to talk or hear; and occasionally required to stand, walk, use hands to finger, handle, or feel, reach with hands and arms, stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 20 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close, distance and color vision.

Azazie, Inc. provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability or genetics. In addition to federal law requirements. Azazie, Inc. complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every location in which the company has facilities. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.