Job: Quality Control Compliance Manager (Arts & Crafts Products)

Company Description

Our client is a privately held designer and importer of arts, crafts and hobby products, sold through mass-market, specialty and online retailers in the United States, Europe, the United Kingdom, Asia and Latin America. Built through several recent acquisitions, the company has offices in Florida, Utah and Michigan, a sourcing team in China, and suppliers in China, India and Romania. It is now integrating its businesses into a single organization focused on its own brands and direct-import programs.

Objective of the Role

Reporting to the Senior Vice President of Global Sourcing, the Quality Control & Compliance Manager will own product quality and regulatory compliance, from development through shipment, for every market served. Growth has outpaced a quality function designed for a few categories, a small supplier base and the U.S. market. The objective is to build a mature, standardized quality organization across all entities, guided by a recognized maturity framework, while reducing defects and chargebacks and preventing recalls.

Ideal Profile

A hands-on manager who has built or restructured a quality function rather than inherited a stable one, ideally after acquisitions or rapid change. The candidate combines first-hand experience on Chinese production floors with command of U.S., EU and U.K. product-safety regulation, and operates comfortably with ambiguity across entities and cultures. Relevant backgrounds include craft and hobby brands (e.g., Cricut, Fiskars), toy and children’s products (e.g., Crayola, Spin Master), art materials (e.g., Newell Brands, Faber-Castell), and inspection firms (e.g., QIMA, Intertek, SGS). Experience managing Target quality programs in China is a significant advantage.

Responsibilities

• Establish the quality manual, SOPs, specifications and inspection checklists across all entities.
• Qualify and audit factories in China, India and Romania; maintain supplier scorecards; drive root-cause analysis and CAPA to closure.
• Set inspection standards (AQL, defect classification, golden samples) and direct third-party inspection agencies and accredited laboratories.
• Ensure compliance with CPSIA/CPSC, ASTM D4236/LHAMA, ASTM F963, Proposition 65 and state chemical laws, as well as EU/UK REACH, EN 71 and UKCA/CE.
• Manage test plans, certificates and test reports by SKU.
• Meet retailer compliance, quality and sustainability programs (e.g., Walmart, Target, Hobby Lobby), including material traceability data required by U.S. and European customers.
• Lead product investigations, stop-shipments and recalls.
• Supervise a quality manager and develop a dedicated QC function within the China team.
• Build quality data and management tools, including AI-enabled solutions in place of an ERP/PLM system, and report KPIs monthly.

Requirements

• 7+ years in product quality or compliance for imported consumer products, ideally craft, hobby, toy, stationery or other hardlines.
• Hands-on experience with inspections, audits and corrective action in Chinese factories; exposure to Indian suppliers is a plus.
• Working knowledge of U.S. and international product-safety regulations and third-party testing.
• Command of AQL sampling, root-cause tools (8D, 5-Why, fishbone) and CAPA.
• Proven record of building processes in a changing organization.
• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, quality, materials science, chemistry or a related field.
• Ability to travel to Asia approximately six times per year (25–35% travel).
• Based in, or willing to relocate to, Florida, Utah or Michigan; a China-based arrangement may be considered.
• Preferred: Mandarin; ASQ (CQE, CQA) or ISO 9001 Lead Auditor certification; comfort with data and AI tools.