The posting
For A Better You
At iHerb, we believe that living a healthy and balanced life should be easy and accessible to everyone. As a team member, we’ll empower you to live this promise each day as you make a truly global impact in your career.
We constantly strive for innovation, while transforming and improving the online shopping experience for our customers. We believe that individually we are incredible, but when we come together, our growth is infinite. In an industry that is constantly evolving, we are on a mission to make an impact on the global market, and the individual and collaborative efforts of our people are paramount to helping us succeed.
Whether you work in one of our logistics centers, technology hubs, corporate offices or even from home, your role at iHerb will take you beyond what’s expected, turning challenge into change. If you're ready for it, we want you to join our team. Get started now.
Job Summary:
The Sr. Manager, MENA Supply Chain is the single-threaded owner of end-to-end logistics performance and build-out across the Middle East and North Africa region, with initial focus on the GCC (UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman). This role designs, launches, and scales the regional logistics network, ensuring best-in-class cost, service, and delivery speed.
Operating as a core member of the regional leadership team, this role is the primary partner to the COO in-region. It translates global logistics strategy into scalable, high-performing operations and shapes key decisions based on regional realities, including cross-border customs flows, Arabic labeling, cash on delivery, and seasonal demand peaks such as Ramadan, Eid, and White Friday.
This is a hands-on leadership role combining strategy, execution, and team building during a critical scale-up phase.
Job Expectations:
Build and Own the MENA Supply Chain Setup
- Lead the end-to-end setup of the MENA logistics network, including selection of the regional hub (for example a free zone warehouse in Dubai) and the set-up of an Arabic and bilingual labeling solution in the MENA warehouse.
- Define the flow model for the region: import and consolidation at the hub, in-country distribution, and cross-border linehaul to the other GCC markets and, over time, the wider MENA region.
- Ensure the initial setup is scalable, cost-efficient, and operationally robust.
- Ensure logistics is a proactive enabler of growth, not a constraint.
End-to-End Performance Ownership
- Own regional logistics KPIs across (i) cost (transport, warehousing, handling, customs duties and fees), (ii) service levels (OTIF, delivery promise accuracy, first-attempt delivery, cash on delivery remittance accuracy), and (iii) speed (lead times, delivery SLAs by country and city tier).
- Drive trade-off decisions across transportation, warehousing, and inventory, including air versus sea inbound and hub versus in-country stock placement.
- Plan capacity and inventory for regional demand peaks (Ramadan, Eid, White Friday) and for summer heat constraints on temperature-sensitive products.
- Establish full visibility and control over performance drivers.
Strategic Partner to COO (Regional Translation and Feedback Loop)
- Act as the go-to logistics counterpart to the COO in MENA.
- Translate global strategy into executable regional plans.
- Provide structured feedback to global teams on (i) market constraints, (ii) performance gaps, and (iii) optimization opportunities.
- Proactively challenge and refine global assumptions based on MENA realities, such as address quality, last-mile variability, and payment preferences.
Customs, Compliance and Regulatory Coordination
- Drive cross-functional coordination to ensure MENA regulatory requirements are met across logistics operations, including product registration and import approvals with the relevant authorities in each market (for example SFDA in Saudi Arabia and the competent health and standards authorities in the UAE), GCC and country-level customs procedures, and halal and conformity requirements where applicable.
- Partner with Compliance, Legal, Marketing, customs brokers, and external partners on Arabic labeling, documentation (certificates of origin, attestations, import permits), and market-specific requirements.
- Translate compliance needs into operational execution across warehouses, 3PLs, customs brokers, and distribution flows, including free zone and mainland transfers and the GCC customs transit process.
- Identify risks and dependencies, such as shipment holds, registration delays, and duty classification disputes, and drive resolution across stakeholders.
Team Build and Leadership
- Act as logistics representative within the regional leadership team.
- Lead a lean, high-performing regional logistics team, including a 3PL /Warehouse Manager, a Transportation and Customs Manager, and an Inventory Planner, with the ability to build a multi-cultural team across the region.
- Coach the team on carrier, 3PL, and customs broker strategy and execution, and collaborate with global to ensure global strategy and guardrails are followed.
Continuous Optimization and Scale
- Identify and execute cost and efficiency improvements early.
- Optimize network design (warehouse footprint, in-country versus hub stock, routing, inventory placement), including the timing of a second node, for example in Saudi Arabia, as volumes grow.
- Optimize last-mile and cash on delivery operations, including carrier mix, delivery success rates, and returns handling.
- Lead regional logistics projects (process improvements, system enhancements).
Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:
Required:
- Proven experience building or scaling logistics operations (warehouse, transport, and inventory) in the region.
- Strong hands-on experience with 3PLs, carrier networks, customs brokers, and multi-country GCC distribution, including cross-border trucking and free zone operations.
- Working knowledge of GCC customs procedures and import requirements for regulated consumer products (health, food, personal care).
- Experience with e-commerce last-mile, including cash on delivery and returns, is strongly preferred.
- Proven ability to influence and align cross-functional stakeholders without direct authority.
- Experience operating in ambiguous, fast-scaling environments.
- Ability to operate at both strategic and deeply operational levels.
- Strong stakeholder management across global and regional teams, and the cultural fluency to work with partners across different MENA markets.
- Data-driven, execution-focused, and comfortable making trade-offs.
- Fluent English is required. Arabic is a strong advantage.
Equipment Knowledge:
- Experience with Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
- Experience with Google Business Suite (Gmail, Drive, Docs, Sheets, Forms) preferred
Experience Requirements:
Generally requires a minimum 10 years in logistics / supply chain, with strong MENA or GCC exposure.
Travel Requirements:
The role is based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, with frequent travel to the hub warehouse and port areas (for example Jebel Ali) and regular travel to other markets in the region, in particular Saudi Arabia (Riyadh, Jeddah, and Dammam).
Education Requirements:
Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, a related discipline or equivalent additional experience required
If you like wild growth and working with happy, enthusiastic over-achievers, you'll enjoy your career with us!
Staffing Agency Submission Notice iHerb does not accept unsolicited 3rd party ("Agency") candidates. If you are an Agency, please send any requests to be considered as a supplier in our Vendor Management System to [email protected]. Do not contact iHerb employees directly. If requested to work on a role, any Agency candidates would be presented through the internal recruiting organization.
iHerb is an Equal Opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or veteran status. iHerb provides equal employment opportunities to all applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment.
