Product Development Specialist

Mokobara is building a global travel and lifestyle brand across luggage, backpacks, handbags, travel accessories and multiple emerging categories. As our product portfolio expands across categories and brands, we are looking for Product Development specialists to help us build and scale the function responsible for taking products from concept to production. You will work at the intersection of Design, Product Development, Sourcing, Quality, Manufacturing and Business, while leading a portfolio of products and potentially a team of Product Development Managers.
Role and Responsibilities -
1. Own product development across a portfolio
Lead development across multiple categories, product lines and/or Mokobara brands.
Partner with Design from the earliest stages of product ideation.
Understand product vision and translate it into development requirements.
Drive technical feasibility and manufacturing discussions.
Lead development with domestic and international vendors.
Ensure products meet design, quality, cost and timeline expectations.
Identify risks early and drive resolution.
Own the journey through production readiness.
You will be responsible not just for individual products, but for the health of the entire development portfolio.
2. Build the Design → Development → Production bridge
You will bring together:
Design
Materials
CMF
Construction
Components
Manufacturing
Cost
Quality
Lead time
3. Lead global manufacturing partners
Our vendors operate across different countries and time zones. You will build strong working relationships with factory development teams and lead discussions around:
Development feasibility
Sampling
Technical construction
Materials
Components
Manufacturing processes
Quality
Cost
Lead times
Production readiness
4. Build the Product Development operating system
This is one of the most important parts of the role.
As Mokobara scales, product development cannot depend on individual follow-ups and heroics.
You will help build scalable systems around:
Development stages and gates
Development briefs
Product specifications
Product files
BOM management
CMF standards
Sample approval
Development trackers
Change management
Vendor feedback
Pre-production approvals
Development-to-production handover
The goal is to make the development process: Faster | More predictable | More transparent | More repeatable
5. Improve development speed and first-time-right outcomes
You will identify systemic bottlenecks that cause:
Excessive sample iterations
Delayed feedback
Vendor misunderstandings
Design-development gaps
Material issues
Quality failures
Production surprises
Launch delays
You will work cross-functionally to remove these bottlenecks.
A key part of your role will be asking: Why does this keep happening, and how do we make sure it doesn't happen again?
6. Build and develop the team
Depending on the scope, you may lead Product Development Managers and other team members,
you will:
Build team capability.
Establish ownership structures.
Improve ways of working.
Mentor product developers.
Create development standards.
Allocate resources across projects.
Identify bandwidth and capability gaps.
Build a culture of ownership and accountability.
The goal is to create a team that can handle a rapidly growing product portfolio without compromising speed or quality.
7. Partner with Sourcing, Quality and Business
Product development doesn't operate in isolation.
You will work closely with:
Design – design intent, product architecture and CMF
Sourcing – vendor strategy, costing, commercial feasibility and capacity
Quality – standards, testing, quality risks and production readiness
Category/Growth – consumer proposition, launch timelines and commercial priorities
Leadership – portfolio priorities, investments and strategic decisions
They will help balance all of these inputs and drive decisions.
What we're looking for
We are looking for someone who has spent significant time developing physical consumer products and understands the complexity of taking them from concept to mass production.
Relevant backgrounds could include:
Product Development
Industrial Design
Product Design
Consumer Products
Bags / Luggage / Accessories
Footwear
Fashion Accessories
Hardgoods / Softgoods
Lifestyle Products
You should have strong understanding of:
Materials | CMF | Construction | Manufacturing | Components | Sampling | Quality | Cost |
Production and experience with international manufacturing partners is strongly preferred.
More importantly, we are looking for how you think
You should be someone who:
Can operate at both strategic and extremely detailed levels.
Doesn't accept what the factory says no to as the end of a conversation.
Can protect design intent while understanding commercial realities.
Can distinguish between a one-off problem and a systemic problem.
Uses data and structure without losing product intuition.
Is comfortable making decisions with imperfect information.
Builds processes rather than relying on individual heroics.
Can influence without always having direct authority.
Is comfortable challenging senior stakeholders and vendors.
Has a strong sense of ownership.
Can manage complexity without creating bureaucracy.
What success looks like
12 months into the role, we should see:
Better products: Stronger execution of design intent and fewer compromises during development.
Faster development: Reduced development timelines and unnecessary sample iterations.
Better predictability: Clear visibility into product development timelines and risks.
Better manufacturing readiness: Fewer surprises when products move from development into bulk production.
Better processes: Clear development gates, documentation and ownership across functions.
A stronger team: A Product Development team that can manage a significantly larger product portfolio without proportional increases in complexity.
Ultimately: Build the Product Development engine that allows Mokobara to move faster without
compromising the product.

Work arrangement
No