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VP, Product Development – Furniture Division

Role Overview

Surya Inc. is seeking a proven product leader to help drive the next phase of growth for our furniture division. This role will lead product development across case goods and upholstery (indoor and outdoor), with responsibility for turning ideas into commercially successful products that reflect our brand, meet market demand, and support long-term category expansion.

This leader must bring strong product instincts, deep furniture expertise, and the ability to move decisively from concept to execution. They should be highly entrepreneurial, comfortable making decisions, and excited to build. The ideal candidate knows how to balance design, quality, speed, and cost while creating products that win in the market.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the product development strategy for the furniture division across case goods and upholstery, aligning product direction with company goals, customer insights, market opportunities, and financial targets.
• Own the full product life cycle from concept through launch, including design intent, materials, construction, engineering, specifications, testing, costing, sample review, and final execution.
• Help define and strengthen the product point of view for the furniture business, ensuring assortments feel relevant, differentiated, and aligned with the brand.
• Drive line development and long-term category planning, balancing core business, newness, innovation, and white-space opportunities.
• Partner closely with merchandising, sourcing, and sales to identify opportunities, sharpen product direction, and bring strong ideas to market efficiently.
• Translate trend, competitive, and customer insights into actionable product strategies that lead to commercially successful launches.
• Continuously refine the product development process to improve speed to market, sample quality, execution, and cross-functional alignment.
• Work directly with sourcing teams and factory partners to evaluate capabilities, solve challenges, strengthen execution, and align resources with business needs.
• Ensure products are developed with the right balance of design, quality, manufacturability, margin, and price point.
• Collaborate with marketing, creative, and digital teams to support strong launches, product storytelling, and readiness of all product data and assets for sales and web presentation.
• Track key performance indicators across development, costing, quality, timing, and launch success, acting quickly when improvements are needed.
• Travel domestically and internationally to review development, evaluate factories and suppliers, attend market, identify new opportunities, and stay closely connected to the product.

Leadership Responsibilities

• Build and lead a strong, high-accountability product development team that thrives in a fast-moving, growth-oriented environment.
• Set a high standard for speed, quality, ownership, and follow-through.
• Coach and develop team members, strengthen technical expertise, decision-making, and leadership capability.
• Create clarity around priorities, timelines, and expected outcomes, ensuring focus on the highest-impact opportunities.
• Foster strong cross-functional collaboration while maintaining high momentum and accountability.
• Lead with an entrepreneurial mindset — willing to challenge old ways, solve problems quickly, and build better processes as the business scales.
• Manage company resources responsibly with a disciplined approach to investment and return.

Ideal Candidate Profile

• 12+ years of experience in furniture product development, with strong experience in both case goods and upholstery.
• Proven success building and developing high-performing teams.
• Deep knowledge of furniture construction, materials, finishes, comfort, engineering, and quality standards.
• Strong understanding of global sourcing, factory capabilities, raw materials, and supplier development.
• Excellent commercial instincts with a track record of developing product that is not only well designed but also sells.
• Experience balancing design, innovation, speed, cost, margin, and operational execution.
• Highly organized and decisive, with the ability to manage multiple priorities and keep teams moving.
• Strong communicator who works effectively across functions, cultures, and international partnerships.
• Thrives in a hands-on environment where building, improving, and scaling are all part of the job.

What Success Looks Like

• Stronger and more differentiated furniture assortments
• Faster, more disciplined product development execution
• Improved product quality and higher sample approval rates
• Better alignment between design, sourcing, merchandising, and sales
• Product launches that drive growth, margin, and brand elevation
• A team and process built to scale with the business

Surya, Inc. includes an exquisite portfolio of high-quality home furnishing brands, including Surya, Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams, Global Views, and Livabliss. We are known for our commitment to quality, sustainability, and timeless design, providing our clients with stylish solutions that elevate interiors across the globe. Surya Inc. has been named to the Inc. 5000 annual list of America's fastest growing privately held companies ten times.