China Supply Chain Coordinator

Role

This is a hands-on, high-ownership role with an 8-figure DTC brand scaling aggressively into Q4 2026. Reports to our Supply Chain Lead (based in Europe). This person is our on-the-ground representative in China — the bridge between our business and our factories.

This is not a full-time QC inspector role (we outsource routine inspection through agencies as volume requires), but you'll go onto the factory floor yourself whenever it matters. This role is about supply chain coordination, factory relationship management, production oversight, and quality standard enforcement — not daily inspection of every drum.

About the Company

We are a fast-growing consumer hardware brand selling musical instruments globally, operating primarily through DTC (Shopify) and Amazon. Q4 represents the majority of our annual revenue. We're a 4 year old company, the biggest seller in the world of steel tongue drums, growing at a 3-5x year-over-year pace.

Current production scale:

• 4 active factories in China producing steel tongue drums in 3 sizes (6", 10", 14")

• Year-round production cycle with heavy ramp April–October for Q4 holiday

Factory network:

• Factory 1 (Guangdong) — main factory, best quality, only factory approved for Amazon

• Factory 2 (Wenzhou) — secondary factory, operational, expanding allocation

• Factory 3 (Guangdong) — newer factory, quality ramp-up in progress

• Factory 4 (Shandong) — newest factory, molds completed, ramping

What This Person Actually Does

1. Factory relationship management

• Primary point of contact for all factories on day-to-day execution

• Conducts regular factory visits (physical presence on factory floors), often at a short notice

• Builds direct relationships with factory production leads and owners

• Translates operational requirements between our Supply Chain Lead and Chinese factories

2. Production oversight and quality standard enforcement

• Monitors production progress against agreed timelines

• Enforces our quality standards — doesn't do inspection themselves (that's outsourced to QC agencies when needed), but defines what QC agencies should check for, reviews their reports, and escalates issues

• Investigates quality incidents, identifies root causes, drives corrective action plans with factories

• Maintains and evolves our quality acceptance criteria across sound quality, paint/finish, packaging, and accessories

3. Supply chain coordination

• Tracks PO status from factories through shipping to intermediary warehouse

• Coordinates container loading and inbound logistics

• Manages accessory sourcing logistics (drum bags, mallets, music books, etc.)

• Flags delays, capacity constraints, or supply issues before they become crises

4. Commercial discipline and cost validation

• Validates pricing on POs against contracted rates

• Supports negotiation of new pricing, payment terms, MOQs with factory owners

• Flags anomalies in invoicing proactively — not reactively

5. New product development support

• Coordinates sample requests, prototype iterations, and new SKU launches across factories

• Works with our product team on packaging, accessory specifications, and product improvements

6. Whatever else the business needs: urgent sample runs, last-minute shipment problems, helping the product or logistics team, new projects or factories as we scale. We're a small team and everyone pitches in.

Talent Profile We're Looking For

Industry background:

• Consumer hardware or consumer goods manufacturing experience (ideally brand-side, can also be factory-side or sourcing agency). Products along the line: Anker, DJI, JBL, Sonos, Bose, Harman, Xiaomi hardware ecosystem, Yamaha/Roland/similar musical instrument brands. Big-brand names are not a must-have, but experience in similar consumer goods with physical product QC depth is required.

Experience level:

• 3–5 years in factory-facing roles: supply chain, vendor management, supplier quality, sourcing, or procurement

• Has personally spent significant time on factory floors (not exclusively office-based)

• Has worked with multiple factories, or is eager to quickly take on a multi-factory role

• Has been exposed to production ramps or quality escalations, and learns fast

Location:

• Guangdong province preferred (Shenzhen, Dongguan, Guangzhou), or living in major hub with direct flights and high-speed rail.

• Must be able to travel at short notice (sometimes within 24–48 hours) to any of our factories in Guangdong, Zhejiang and Shandong. During the April–October peak, expect to be on the road frequently, including some weekends when an issue demands it. This is non-negotiable.

• Not based outside China

Language:

• Native Mandarin

• Working professional English (written and spoken) — can handle email, Slack, and video calls with our international team independently

• English proficiency is non-negotiable — this role is the communication bridge between our factories and our HQ

Skills and mindset:

• Commercial awareness — understands that our factories have profit motives that don't always align with ours, and can spot it. Advocates for our brand’s interests with factories

• Systems thinking — can see the end-to-end supply chain, not just task-level execution

• Logical problem-solving — can trace issues to root cause, not just report symptoms

• Direct communicator — comfortable pushing back on factories when needed, but diplomatic

• Pattern recognition — spots anomalies in data, pricing, or communication that others miss

• Execution orientation — moves fast on factory issues, doesn't wait for permission on routine problems

Cultural/fit signals we prioritize:

• Proactive rather than reactive — flags problems before being asked

• Quick to act when the company needs it

• Writes and communicates with clarity and brevity

• Strong professional reputation (we'll verify references)

Significant factory travel, fully paid (flights + hotels). You'll be on the road regularly during peak

• You'll also organize and host visits for our team in China, 2-4 times a year

• Autonomy over your schedule between trips. In return, we expect you to be available and responsive when the business needs you

Who you'll work with:

• A young, fast-moving and ambitious team building the category leader

• Colleagues from all over the world — you'll meet and work with people across the globe

Honest check: Is this role for you?

This role is for you if...

• You get energy from solving problems fast, you’d rather act and update us than wait for instructions.

• You see "that's not in my job description" as a reason to ask "how can I help?"

• You're happy to jump on a flight at short notice when a factory issue needs attention.

• You want to grow with a company scaling 3-5x per year and take on more responsibility as it does.

This role is NOT for you if...

• You want a stable, predictable 9-to-6 routine.

• You can't or don't want to travel at short notice.

• You prefer clearly bounded responsibilities and a fixed scope of work.

• You're looking for a quiet role in a mature, slow-moving company.