About Proton

Proton is a privacy-first ecosystem serving over 100 million users globally. Our mission is to build an ethical alternative to Big Tech with focus on privacy, end-to-end encryption, open-source. We are a profitable and self-sufficient scale-up with 600+ employees across multiple international offices. Our culture emphasizes impact, innovation, and creating a new equitable internet.

The Role

Proton’s community loves swag, and we need you to help us take it to the next level! In this role, you’ll build and scale Proton’s custom merch shop for fans, supporters, ambassadors, partners, creators, and conferences. You’ll own the end-to-end strategy—from product and collection planning to production, storefront performance, and customer experience. You’ll lead our merchandising roadmap: defining always-on staple items, seasonal collections, and limited-edition collectibles with clear launch mechanics, upsell paths, and inventory plans. You’ll manage inventory across multiple internal use cases (gifting, events, partnerships) while ensuring production, supply chain, and fulfillment meet the highest standards—balancing quality, timelines, and cost efficiency through strong vendor management and negotiation. The ideal candidate combines strong taste and creativity with crisp communication, operational excellence, and a data-informed mindset.

The Team

This role is part of the Social & Community team at Proton - a small high-impact group of 5 people that builds Proton’s brand the way modern cult brands do it: with a human voice and sharp timely creative that people actually want to share. We move fast take principled stances when it matters pair rigorous performance thinking with internet instincts earning the kind of audience feedback most brands never get (“genius level trolling,” “10/10 Proton marketing team,” “great marketing,” “social media masterclass,” “best repost I’ve seen in a while” “deserves a raise”) or getting compared to Wendy’s. You’ll help us break out of online-only marketing and build community relationships in the real world. Through thoughtful drops high-quality staples strategic gifting you’ll strengthen brand perception spark word-of-mouth create shareable IRL experiences that fuel UGC community storytelling online. If you want to do career-defining work with a team that’s trusted to experiment backed by a mission people care about measured on real impact you’ll fit right in.

What you’ll do

Merchandising strategy and production

• Define & execute merch e-commerce strategy: positioning target audiences pricing approach channel mix growth plan.
• Build annual merchandising plan balancing limited-edition drops seasonal collections staples.
• Lead merch development: concept briefs design direction sampling approvals.
• Run experiments: pre-orders waitlists personalization tiers/perks limited-access drops bundles collaborations.

Brand consistency and awareness

• Maintain quality standards for materials/packaging/unboxing focusing on sustainability brand consistency.
• Drive brand awareness through merch moments creator seeding fan engagement.
• Develop UGC programs: campaign prompts/incentives/repost flows/ambassador collaborations.
• Partner with Social & Community team to translate cultural moments into merch that travels organically.

Gifting platform & multi-stakeholder inventory

• Own gifting platform operations stock planning for employees/partners/influencers/ambassadors/VIPs/press.
• Build workflows for requests/approvals/fulfillment/tracking/reporting including cost attribution.
• Ensure fast turnaround premium experience for high-profile gifting moments.

Communications & go-to-market

• Build communication plans for launches ongoing shop promotion via email/social/community/partners/PR hooks.
• Align creative/messaging/timing across teams ensure launch readiness clear operational runbooks.

Shop performance & operations

• Own e-commerce KPIs: conversion rate average order value (AOV) revenue returning customer rate/email performance/retention.
• Manage day-to-day shop operations: product setup/inventory hygiene/fulfillment coordination/returns/refunds/customer support SLAs/escalations.
• Onboard/train customer support agents for after-sale operations like refunds/exchanges/feedback/complaints.
• Ensure compliance on tax/VAT/shipping/data handling/vendor contracts.

Job Requirements:

• 4+ years in e-commerce/merchandising/DTC operations; community-led growth experience is a bonus.
• Proven track record owning e-commerce channel end-to-end including strategy/launched products/inventory/performance optimization.
• Hands-on experience with merch production workflows: sourcing/sampling/minimum order quantities (MOQs)/lead times/quality control (QC).
• Experience with Shopify or similar platforms; fulfillment logistics; customer support tools.
• Basic design software knowledge (Adobe Illustrator/Figma/InDesign or similar).
• Strong communication/copywriting skills for e-commerce content.
• Professional English proficiency; additional European language is a plus.

Bonus Points For:

• Experience in fast-scaling tech or SaaS company e-commerce/gifting roles
• Passion for privacy tech / mission-driven brands / internet culture / community-first marketing

Why Proton:

• Work with highly talented small teams from top universities/orgs focused on impact
• Rapid career advancement opportunities; preference to promote internally
• Meaningful work defending freedom/democracy globally supporting journalists & activists
• Collaboration-first flexible work culture with multiple international offices including Barcelona
• Be part of a socially responsible business movement advancing privacy as default online
• Benefits include flexible hours/team-building events/gym allowances/free meals/supportive office culture
• Stock options available making all team members shareholders

Diversity & Inclusion Commitment:

• Inclusive environment valuing diversity across race/gender/orientation/disability/socio-economic background
• Equal opportunities/open dialogue/support for continuous learning