Sourcing & Production Specialist FTW
Axel Arigato AB · Göteborg · Tills vidare
Axel Arigato is hiring a **Sourcing & Production Specialist FTW** for a full-time, on-site position based in Gothenburg. Positioned between Product Development and Production, the role oversees the entire footwear lifecycle to ensure timely, high-quality manufacturing and industrialization from prototype stage through bulk delivery. Core duties include managing tier one and tier two supplier relationships, forecasting and negotiating material sourcing to improve margins and sustainability, and handling packing materials and special projects. Responsibilities also cover analyzing cost breakdown sheets (CBDs), tracking approval gates, managing tooling budgets, and **traveling to production markets** to assist with supplier onboarding, launches, and training local sourcing teams. Candidates should have **over five years of experience** in footwear sourcing and production—covering costing, materials, fit, wear, quality, and testing—including at least two years working within a brand. The role expects strong negotiation, forecasting, and analytical skills, paired with technical organization and the capacity to balance multiple competing priorities. A willingness to travel to global production locations is required, and applications must be submitted in English.
We're looking for our next Sourcing & Production Specialist in Footwear. The role sits between Product Development and Production, ensuring high-quality, timely, and well-planned footwear production from start to finish. You'll manage tier one and two supplier relations and development in close collaboration with our local sourcing teams, facilitating seamless industrialization, prioritizing supplier coordination, and ensuring material excellence throughout every stage of the footwear lifecycle.
WHAT YOU WILL DO
- Serve as the production specialist for footwear during the entire product development lifecycle
- Work with the Product Development & Sourcing office to ensure smooth industrialization from prototypes to production
- Manage tier two suppliers by forecasting, negotiating, and sourcing materials to enhance quality, sustainability, availability, and margins
- Manage packing materials and other special projects
- Travel to production markets to assist with supplier onboarding and launches and to train local sourcing teams during industrialization and initial orders
- Review bulk materials and samples with sourcing teams
- Maintain product trackers and ensure completion of all critical production gates
- Analyze CBDs and negotiate prices for core styles
- Project-lead the quick-strike critical path and different approval gates
- Manage our tooling budget, tooling ordering, amortizations, and follow-up
ARE YOU THE ONE?
We're looking for someone with most of the following:
- 5+ years of experience in footwear production/sourcing, including costing, materials, fit, wear, quality, and testing
- At least 2 years of that experience within a brand
- Strong analytical and negotiation skills
- Organized and technical, with solid planning and forecasting ability
- Able to balance several complex priorities running at once
- Solution-oriented, with an uncompromising eye for product quality
- Willing to travel to our production markets
HERE'S HOW TO APPLY
Apply by submitting your CV in English. We also welcome a short cover letter telling us why you think you would be a great fit for this role. Please do not include a photo or date of birth with your application; our recruitment process is competency-based.
We review applications continuously, and we may fill the position before the closing date.
DETAILS
Contract type: Full-time
Reports to: Head of Development & Production Footwear
Location: Gothenburg, travel required
Work mode: On-site
ABOUT AXEL ARIGATO
Founded in Sweden in 2014 by Albin Johansson and Max Svärdh, Axel Arigato was born with a disruptive mindset, modernising and democratising the sneaker landscape through a blend of style, quality, community and a digital-first approach.
Grounded in Scandinavian minimalism and elevated with playful, intentional details, every piece is designed with care: crafted to move globally, worn with individuality.
What began online expanded into physical spaces built for energetic cultural exchange: stores and experiences where conversations, performances and unexpected activations dissolve the boundaries between brand and culture.
Today, Axel Arigato continues to evolve with purpose via a people-powered approach. It shows up where culture happens: on streets, at events and across cities.
Built on curiosity. Driven by connection.
OUR VALUES: DROP Diversity, Respect, Openness, and Passion are our values that we live and breathe. They are the foundation for our current state and what we will always bring with us to the future.