Vice President of Product Development
Glass Ratner’s Private Equity Practice partnered with a rapidly growing, design‑forward Canadian owned consumer goods company to hire a Vice President of Product Development.
What You Will Do
Upstream Strategy & Market Fit – Essential
- Partner with the CEO and leadership team to determine the product strategy and priority initiatives ("What shots are we going to take?").
- Lead ideation for new product categories, extensions, and improvements to existing items (sizes, textures, colours, materials).
- Build business cases including BOE assessments, size‑of‑prize analysis, and share targets.
- Conduct market, trend, and consumer insight work to determine brand fit and channel fit across e‑commerce and retail.
- Bring strong design intuition and trend awareness.
- Build and manage the full product development pipeline.
- Oversee design direction including form, function, and aesthetics.
- Work closely with Engineering to define specifications, validate feasibility, and ensure manufacturability.
- Collaborate with external partners to expand manufacturing capabilities.
- Lead costing, value engineering, sourcing assessments, and tariff considerations.
- Oversee QA, QC, and compliance.
Go‑to‑Market (GTM) Execution – would be of added value but not essential
Collaborate with all functional areas (Operations, Marketing / Creative, Finance, E‑commerce) to execute product launches.Lead forecasting and initial order planning.Manage production planning and vendor alignment.What You Bring
Experience
Experience developing products from concept through commercialization across multiple channels.Exposure to plastics, molded materials, or manufacturing processes (injection molding, blow molding, roto molding) is an asset.Strong project management capabilities.Leadership & Personal Attributes
Strong design sensibility, taste, and trend awareness.Enjoy working with people and solving complex problems.Excellent communication and presentation skills.Ability to influence internal teams and external buyers.Entrepreneurial mindset with comfort in a fast‑paced, founder‑led environment.Ability to balance creativity with technical feasibility and commercial discipline.Strength in introducing structure while maintaining speed and flexibility.Who You Are
A creative and strategic product thinker.A connector who thrives at the intersection of design, engineering, and market needs.A leader who can elevate the product function and coach cross‑functional partners.A hands‑on collaborator who drives clarity, prioritization, and execution.Why This Role
Lead the full product innovation engine at a high‑growth consumer brand.Work directly with the CEO to define long‑term product strategy.Shape products for both fast‑paced e‑commerce and large‑scale retail channels.Join a company with significant momentum and strong investor support.Competitive compensation, performance bonus, and long‑term incentive program.If this sounds interesting, please apply or reach out to Benish Khan (Bkhan@glassratner.com) or Marty O'Doherty (Modoherty@glassratner.com).
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