Senior Account Manager
14 hours ago
New York
Senior Account Manager – Private Label Sweaters (with Product Development Oversight) Location: New York, New York Employment Type: Full-Time RDG Global is seeking an experienced, highly motivated Senior Account Manager to lead one of our major Private Label Sweaters businesses. This role is responsible for managing the full customer relationship, driving business growth, and overseeing the product development process in partnership with Design, Technical Design, and Production teams. The ideal candidate brings deep sweaters product knowledge, strong customer-facing experience, and the ability to manage costing, sourcing, and the entire development lifecycle. You will be the strategic partner to the customer and the internal lead who ensures the right product is delivered on-time, at target cost, and with best-in-class quality. What You’ll Do Account Management & Customer Leadership • Act as the primary point of contact for assigned private label sweaters account(s), building and maintaining strong customer partnerships., • Represent the business in all customer-facing conversations including line reviews, milestone meetings, fit reviews, and executive-level presentations., • Understand the customer’s brand aesthetic, assortment strategy, calendar, and financial goals to drive accurate execution and new opportunities., • Partner with VP/Executive leadership on sales performance, IMU planning, projections, and seasonal margin strategy., • Communicate proactively with customers and internal teams to ensure transparency, alignment, and timely issue resolution. Product Development Oversight (Concept → Shipment) • Manage the full product lifecycle in partnership with Design, Tech Design, and Pre-Production—from design handoff through sampling, approvals, production, and shipment., • Oversee development calendars (TNA) to ensure all deadlines and milestones are met., • Drive sample development, including proto, AR/AD, PP/TOP approvals, and work with teams to address fit, construction, and yarn comments., • Provide clear, accurate communication between customer and internal teams regarding fit feedback, quality standards, yarn choices, and compliance requirements., • Ensure all products meet customer expectations for quality, fit consistency, yarn performance, and brand positioning. Costing, Price Negotiation & Financial Management • Partner with Costing, Pre-Production, and factories to support price negotiations, target costing, and margin achievement., • Analyze cost drivers and maintain awareness of historical costing benchmarks and competitive pricing., • Support leadership with forecasting, margin reporting, seasonal projections, and account financial planning., • Identify opportunities to improve profitability through sourcing strategy, yarn selection, stitch design, or factory allocation. Sourcing & Production Coordination • Work closely with Pre-Production and factory partners to ensure timely sample delivery, accurate execution, and production feasibility., • Monitor weekly WIP reports to stay ahead of potential issues and ensure on-time delivery., • Support internal teams in resolving quality, fit, construction, and compliance issues originating from sourcing or production., • Maintain understanding of yarn capabilities, sweater construction techniques, and vendor strengths to support effective sourcing decisions. Cross-Functional Leadership • Lead weekly internal cross-functional team (CFT) meetings with Design, Tech Design, Costing, Production, and Sourcing., • Act as the central communication hub, ensuring everyone is aligned with customer expectations and development priorities., • Maintain up-to-date knowledge of customer manuals, PLM systems, processes, and seasonal calendar updates., • Collaborate with Design and PD teams to deliver customer-right assortments each season. Travel • Travel 4–5 times per year for customer meetings, store visits, line reviews, and product presentations. What You Bring • 8–10+ years of experience in wholesale, private label, manufacturing/vendor environments, or consumer-facing apparel businesses., • Strong sweaters experience is required — including understanding of yarns, gauges, sweater construction, stitch techniques, and category nuances., • Proven experience managing customer relationships in a private label or vendor environment., • Background partnering with sourcing, production, or PD teams on costing, development, and product execution., • Demonstrated ability to negotiate prices, manage margins, and support IMU and seasonal financial targets., • Excellent communication, presentation, and relationship-building skills., • Highly organized with strong follow-through and ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment., • Proficiency in Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint; PLM experience (Bamboo Rose a plus). Why Join Us • Opportunity to own and grow a key private label sweaters business., • Work cross-functionally with talented teams across design, product development, sourcing, and executive leadership., • Be a key driver of product, financial, and customer success in a category-critical business., • Fast-paced environment where your expertise in sweaters and account leadership truly makes an impact.