Executive Search — DTC / E-Commerce

Placing the operators who scale direct-to-consumer brands.

Supremos Talent is a founder-led executive search firm built for one category. We place senior DTC leadership — COO, President, CMO, Head of Growth, Creative Director, and other executive roles — on contingency or retainer, with a written scope before any name is shared.

Every search is run personally, end to end — no junior recruiters, no outsourced sourcing, no candidate presented who hasn't been evaluated by hand.

Start a Search View Practice Areas
  • Shortlist within 10 days of the discovery call
  • Interviews within a week of the shortlist
  • Replacement terms agreed in writing
Current Search Focus
COO
Operations & scale
CMO
Full-funnel growth
Head of Growth
Acquisition & retention
Creative Director
Brand & DR creative
+ President, CGO, Head of Paid Media, Director of Product Development, Finance Leadership
Boutique & Founder-Led· Contingency or Retainer· DTC Specialist· Executive Search for DTC
Clients

A selection of brands we've worked with.

Most engagements run under confidentiality — these are the names we can share.

Uzzle
Hadley Designs
Hungry Minds
Avant Holdings
Rimo Health
Brandify
Remedy Science

See full track record with roles and comp ↓

The problem

Why senior DTC searches stall.

The same three things go wrong on most leadership searches.

The wrong profile arrives

You ask for a CMO and get a SaaS growth lead. You ask for a Head of Growth and get a channel specialist who has never owned the number. The titles match. The operating experience doesn’t.

The best people never see the role

The operators you want are performing well somewhere else. They aren’t scanning job posts or updating their CVs, so a posted role mostly reaches people who are already looking.

The slate adds work

A stack of résumés pushes the sorting back onto the founder. Weeks pass, and the decision gets harder instead of easier.

Supremos is built around the opposite: one category, direct outreach, and a short slate with a written read on every name. See how a search runs ↓

Not sure which practice area fits your opening?
Start a Confidential Search →
Practice Areas

Senior DTC leadership. One category, many seats.

Every search runs against the same standard: can this operator hold the number, not just discuss it.

LEADERSHIP

Chief Operating Officer

  • Focus Scale & systems
  • Evaluated on Margin, fulfillment, headcount
  • Requirement Has built, not only run
LEADERSHIP

President

  • Focus Strategic execution & scale
  • Evaluated on Cross-functional leadership track record
  • Requirement Has run point on strategy, not just reported on it
GROWTH

Chief Growth Officer

  • Focus Cross-functional growth ownership
  • Evaluated on Product, marketing, revenue alignment
  • Requirement Owns growth as a system, not a channel
GROWTH

Chief Marketing Officer

  • Focus CAC, LTV, ROAS, MER
  • Evaluated on Full-funnel ownership
  • Requirement Owns the P&L, not just spend
GROWTH

Head of Growth

  • Focus Acquisition & retention
  • Evaluated on CAC, LTV, channel mix
  • Requirement Owns growth end-to-end
GROWTH

Head of Paid Media

  • Focus Paid acquisition & media buying
  • Evaluated on ROAS, CAC, creative testing velocity
  • Requirement Runs media as a P&L, not just a budget
CREATIVE

Creative Director

  • Focus Brand system & output speed
  • Evaluated on Hook rate, UGC, VSL fluency
  • Requirement Brand- or DR-first, clearly named
PRODUCT

Director of Product Development

  • Focus Roadmap & execution
  • Evaluated on Launch velocity, cross-functional delivery
  • Requirement Ships product, not just plans it
FINANCE

Finance Leadership

  • Focus Margin, unit economics, planning
  • Evaluated on FP&A rigor, cash flow discipline
  • Requirement Understands DTC margin, not just GAAP
Not sure which practice area fits your opening?
Start a Confidential Search →
Our Method

Every creative candidate is read before they're slated.

Brand-building and direct-response are different disciplines under the same job title. We name which one a candidate actually is.

Candidate Read — Creative Director
Slate-Ready

Direct Response Signal

Ships and kills creative on hook rate, not instinct
Fluent in VSL structure and UGC briefing
Talks in test volume, not campaign concepts

Brand Signal

Protects the visual system across every channel
Optimizes for recall and repeat, not only CTR
Talks in positioning, not only performance
Is This a Fit

Built for a specific kind of search.

Being clear about fit upfront saves both sides time — this isn't a general-purpose search firm.

A good fit if you're

  • A DTC / e-commerce brand hiring senior leadership — from COO to Finance
  • Looking for a short, high-conviction slate over a wide one
  • Open to either a contingency or retainer engagement
  • Able to move through a structured process in weeks, not quarters

Not a fit if you're

  • Outside the DTC / consumer e-commerce category
  • Not ready to make a decision once a slate is presented
Process

Four stages, on a clear timeline.

A defined sequence with real deadlines — not an open-ended search that drags for months.

01
Day 0

Discovery Call

A call to align on the role, comp, and what "great" actually looks like for this hire.

02
By day 10

Shortlist Delivered

A scored, vetted shortlist delivered within 10 days of the discovery call.

03
Within a week of the shortlist

Interviews

Structured interviews run within a week of the shortlist — not spread across a month.

04
Through signature

Offer & Close

Compensation and start date negotiated founder to founder, through signature.

Run under strict confidentiality. No name, brief, or compensation detail is shared outside the search without consent — from the first call through signed offer.
How Supremos compares

What changes when the search is run by one operator.

A plain comparison with the two usual routes to a senior hire.

Supremos compared with a typical generalist recruiter and with hiring in-house
SupremosTypical generalist recruiterHiring in-house
FocusDTC and consumer e-commerce leadership onlyOften several industries and functionsDepends on your own network
Who runs the searchThe founder, from brief to closeVaries by firmA hiring manager with a full-time job already
Where candidates come fromDirect outreach to people performing well in roleA mix of applicants and databaseMostly applicants
What you reviewA short slate with a written read on each nameVariesEvery applicant yourself
Timeline targetShortlist within 10 days of the discovery callVariesOpen-ended
TermsContingency or retainer, with fee and replacement terms agreed in writing firstVariesSalary, tools and the cost of a miss
Book a Call →
Have a senior leadership role open at a DTC brand?
Discuss Your Hiring Brief →
Why Supremos

Six reasons founders run their search here.

Founder-Led

One person runs your search from brief to close — not a team you never meet.

DTC Only

Every framework, every candidate network, built around one category.

Senior Leadership Only

COO to finance leadership — depth in DTC executive hiring, not headcount recruiting.

Flexible Engagement

Contingency or retainer, structured to fit how you want to run the search.

Written Candidate Reads

Every name on a slate comes with a structured, written evaluation.

Small, High-Conviction Slates

A short list to decide on — not a stack of resumes to sort through.

Why DTC-Only

One category, one operator, one search at a time.

Sachin Kumar, founder of Supremos Talent
"

Generalist search firms treat a CMO hire the same whether the brand sells SaaS seats or skincare. That's how the wrong operator ends up in the seat — someone fluent in enterprise sales cycles, sitting in a chair that needs someone fluent in CAC and creative testing velocity.

Supremos Talent exists because DTC operators are a distinct species. A CMO who can't read a hook rate isn't a fit, no matter how strong their resume looks on paper. A Creative Director who's never shipped a UGC brief at volume will slow a brand down, not scale it.

Every search runs on that same conviction: depth in one category beats breadth across ten. That's also why every engagement is run by me directly — no bench of junior recruiters, no sourcing handed off to a subcontractor. I write the brief, source the candidates, run the evaluation, and stay in the room through the close.

100+
Placements Closed
5+
Years Running Supremos Talent
Sachin Kumar Founder, Supremos Talent · LinkedIn ↗
By the Numbers

5+ years, one category.

Figures update as each search closes.

100+
Placements
5+
Years in Executive Search
20+
Clients Served
10 Days
Shortlist Delivery Target
Track Record

Recent search activity.

Real outcomes from a recent engagement — not a case study with the details rounded off.

Uzzle
Multi-Role Search — 3 Roles Recently Closed
Chief Operating Officer Recently Closed
Sourced and closed the COO hire for Uzzle's operations team.
$270K Base salary
Head of Growth Recently Closed
Sourced and closed the Head of Growth hire for Uzzle's growth team.
$220K Base salary
Graphic Designer Recently Closed
Sourced and closed the Graphic Designer hire for Uzzle's creative team.
$20K Base salary
Hungry Minds
Multi-Role Search — 2 Roles Recently Closed
Head of Paid Media Recently Closed
Sourced and closed the Head of Paid Media hire for Hungry Minds' growth team.
$140K Base salary
Director of Product Development Recently Closed
Sourced and closed the Director of Product Development hire for Hungry Minds.
$140K Base salary
Want to see how this looks for your next hire?
Speak With the Founder →
Open Searches

Currently sourcing for these roles.

Client names stay confidential during an active search — described here by category instead.

Actively Sourcing

Creative Strategist

Direct response creative for a telehealth brand. Fluent in hook rate, VSL structure, and UGC briefing at volume.

View Full Job Description

Role Summary

Own direct-response creative strategy end to end for a fast-growing telehealth brand — from concept through testing to iteration, at volume.

Responsibilities

  • Develop and test DR creative concepts (VSLs, UGC, static ads) at high volume
  • Analyze hook rate, CTR, and conversion data to drive iteration
  • Brief and manage freelance or agency creative execution
  • Run a tight feedback loop with the paid media team on what's working

Requirements

  • 3+ years in direct-response or performance creative strategy
  • Fluent in hook rate, VSL structure, and UGC briefing
  • Track record of shipping creative tests at volume, not one-off campaigns
Compensation: Competitive, commensurate with experience · Remote (US-based preferred)
Actively Sourcing

Head of Creative

Same telehealth brand — owning the creative system across direct response and brand output.

View Full Job Description

Role Summary

Own the full creative system for a telehealth brand — balancing brand equity with the volume and speed direct response demands.

Responsibilities

  • Set creative strategy and standards across brand and direct response
  • Manage the creative team and freelance network, including creative ops
  • Balance long-term brand-building with short-term DR performance needs
  • Report on creative performance and roadmap to leadership

Requirements

  • 5+ years in creative leadership, DTC or consumer health preferred
  • Proven ability to run brand-building and DR testing at the same time
  • Strong portfolio of shipped campaigns across channels
Compensation: Competitive, commensurate with experience · Remote (US-based preferred)
Actively Sourcing

Director of Finance

For a family-founded, 8-figure U.S. consumer brand.

View Full Job Description

Role Summary

Lead financial operations and planning for a family-founded, 8-figure consumer brand entering its next stage of growth.

Responsibilities

  • Own FP&A, cash flow management, and forecasting
  • Partner directly with the founders on margin and unit-economics decisions
  • Build the financial infrastructure needed to support scale
  • Manage banking, audit, and compliance relationships

Requirements

  • 7+ years in finance leadership, DTC or consumer products preferred
  • Deep fluency in DTC unit economics — not just GAAP reporting
  • Experience building out a finance function at a growth-stage company
Compensation: Competitive, commensurate with experience · Location to be discussed
Actively Sourcing

Head of Talent Acquisition

For Hadley Designs — building and owning the hiring function as the company scales.

View Full Job Description

Role Summary

Own talent acquisition end to end for Hadley Designs, building the hiring function needed to support the company's next stage of growth.

Responsibilities

  • Build and run the full-cycle hiring process across departments
  • Partner with leadership to plan headcount against growth targets
  • Stand up scalable sourcing, interviewing, and offer processes
  • Own employer branding and candidate experience

Requirements

  • 5+ years in talent acquisition, ideally in-house at a scaling DTC or consumer brand
  • Experience building a hiring function from the ground up, not just running req's
  • Comfortable operating without a large internal recruiting team yet
Compensation: Competitive, commensurate with experience · Location to be discussed
Actively Sourcing

Director of Growth Marketing

For Remedy Science — Meta-first paid social and DTC acquisition, reporting to the Head of Marketing.

View Full Job Description

Role Summary

Own Meta-first paid social and DTC acquisition strategy for Remedy Science, reporting to the Head of Marketing with a Creative Strategist as a direct report.

Responsibilities

  • Own Meta P&L and scaling strategy (media buyer/agency handle execution)
  • Direct a Creative Strategist on a creative analytics engine feeding testing
  • Own CRO and landing page strategy
  • Manage incrementality and attribution measurement

Requirements

  • 3-7 years of growth or performance marketing experience
  • Meta-first DTC acquisition background
  • Comfortable staying hands-on (ad account, briefs, landing pages) while directing a report
Compensation: Competitive salary + bonus + equity · Benefits: 50% covered health/vision/dental, 401k match, unlimited PTO · In-office, Culver City, CA
Engagement Terms

Contingency or retainer — structured per search.

Terms are set to fit the engagement — reach out to confirm what applies to your search.

MODEL 01

Contingency

  • Fee tied to first-year base salary
  • Nothing due until an offer is signed
MODEL 02

Retainer

  • A good fit for multi-role or priority searches
  • Fee and payment schedule set per engagement
EITHER WAY

Confirmed Before Work Begins

  • Fee and scope agreed in writing before any profile is shared
  • Replacement terms documented for a guarantee period
Explore Supremos

See the searches, thinking, and market perspective behind the work.

Case studies show the work. Insights explain how we evaluate operators and run senior searches.

Proof

Case Studies

Recent search activity across DTC leadership, including COO, Growth and Creative searches.

View case studies →
Services

Executive Search

Explore the leadership functions Supremos searches for and the standards used to evaluate operators.

Explore the practice →
Thinking

DTC Talent Insights

Practical perspectives on executive hiring, candidate quality, operating context, and DTC leadership.

Read the insights →
Common Questions

Before you reach out.

How is this different from a general recruiter?

Supremos Talent only works one category: DTC and consumer e-commerce. That narrowness is the point. Every search draws on the same DTC-specific frameworks and terminology instead of starting from scratch each time.

How long does a typical search take?

A shortlist is delivered within 10 days of the discovery call, with interviews run in the week after. Total time to offer depends on how quickly you move through interviews.

Where do your candidates come from?

Mostly direct outreach. The strongest operators are performing well in their current role and are not applying to job posts, so Supremos approaches them directly rather than building slates from applicants.

What does an executive search cost?

Supremos works on contingency or retainer, depending on the search. Fee, scope and replacement terms are agreed in writing before any candidate profile is shared.

What if the hire doesn’t work out?

Replacement terms are agreed in writing before a search starts, alongside the fee schedule. Ask for the specifics for your search.

Can you search outside the US?

Yes, when the role doesn’t require physical presence. Supremos searches internationally when location isn’t part of what the job actually needs.

Will candidates or my team know about the search?

Searches run under strict confidentiality. No name, brief or compensation detail is shared outside the search without consent.

Do you work outside senior leadership roles?

Not currently. Staying focused on senior leadership within DTC and consumer e-commerce is what keeps the candidate networks and evaluation frameworks sharp.

The DTC Leadership Brief

Notes from live senior searches.

  • What we’re seeing in senior DTC hiring
  • Open searches and the profile each one needs
  • Lessons from real placements