Global Business Development Manager

About OPUS Footwear

OPUS is a global footwear solutions partner, helping brands transform ideas into successful products. We bring every stage of footwear creation together—from creative direction, design and 3D visualization to virtual development, engineering, material development, sourcing, prototyping, tooling, manufacturing, quality assurance and supply chain management.

We partner with established international brands, emerging businesses and retailers seeking innovation, speed, quality and manufacturing excellence. Our strongest relationships are built through trust, technical understanding and long-term value—not transactional selling.

The Opportunity

We are looking for a commercially driven relationship builder who can open doors, understand a brand's ambitions and identify where OPUS can make a meaningful difference. You will lead the early stages of partnership development, shaping the right combination of OPUS capabilities around each client's needs and coordinating with our internal experts to convert opportunities into enduring business relationships.

This is consultative business development: listening before proposing, asking intelligent product and operational questions, and helping prospective clients see what becomes possible when design, development and manufacturing work as one connected system.

What you will do

• Identify and develop relationships with footwear brands, retailers, distributors and emerging companies in priority international markets.
• Understand each prospect's business model, product strategy, development process and commercial challenges to uncover where OPUS can create value.
• Present OPUS' integrated capabilities across design, 3D visualization, virtual development, engineering, material development, sourcing, prototyping, tooling, manufacturing, quality assurance and supply chain.
• Shape tailored commercial proposals and partnership strategies rather than offering a one-size-fits-all service.
• Coordinate closely with design, development, engineering, sourcing and manufacturing teams to ensure proposed solutions are technically sound and commercially viable.
• Build trusted relationships with founders, executives, sourcing leaders, product teams and designers, developing accounts beyond individual projects into long-term partnerships.
• Guide opportunities from initial conversation through scoping, proposal development and negotiation, then ensure a smooth handover into development and production.
• Maintain a disciplined pipeline, document commercial activity and provide clear, accurate forecasting.
• Represent OPUS at relevant trade shows, exhibitions, client meetings and industry events.
• Monitor market trends, sourcing shifts, emerging brand needs and manufacturing opportunities to inform business-development priorities.
• Remain engaged as a trusted commercial partner, supporting client satisfaction and identifying opportunities for continued collaboration.

What you will bring

• Relevant business-development, commercial, account-management or client-partnership experience within footwear, fashion, consumer products or a closely related industry.
• A practical understanding of how footwear moves from concept through development and production; experience with brands, factories, development centers or sourcing organizations is highly valued.
• A consultative approach: commercially ambitious, intellectually curious and confident discussing product development—not only price and capacity.
• The credibility and communication skills to build trust with senior decision-makers as well as technical and creative teams.
• Strong opportunity qualification, proposal development, negotiation, pipeline management and forecasting skills.
• An international mindset, cultural awareness and willingness to travel as business needs require.
• Professional fluency in English; additional languages relevant to OPUS' markets are an advantage.

How success will be measured

• A healthy, well-qualified pipeline aligned with OPUS' capabilities and strategic priorities.
• New client partnerships that progress from conversation to development and production.
• Growth in the depth, value and longevity of client relationships.
• Consistent collaboration across commercial, creative, technical and manufacturing teams.
• A high-quality client experience from first contact through handover and ongoing partnership.

Why join OPUS

At OPUS, you will represent far more than factory capacity. You will connect clients with an integrated team capable of taking footwear from a first idea to a finished product—and help build partnerships that shape the next chapter of their business and ours.