Strategy & Operations (Logistics)

Global expansion is broken. Without a local entity conversion rates fall costs rise and compliance gets messy. Outpost fixes it.

Selling internationally is a maze of tax payments and operational friction. Most brands avoid it or expand slowly and expensively.

Outpost is your modular back office for global commerce.

We started with digital goods: tax compliance merchant of record liability transfer. Now were building the infrastructure for physical goods cross-border commerce including customs duties landed cost calculation DDP/DAP routing import VAT and clearance operations.

Sell anything anywhere. Without compromise.

This is an Operations role for someone who deeply understands what happens when physical goods cross borders.

You know the difference between customs duties tariffs and import VAT. You understand why HS classification is hard at scale. Youve seen what actually goes wrong at clearance. You know when DDP beats DAP on unit economics.

Youll work directly with the CEO to scale Outposts physical goods capability. Weve built the foundation; now we need someone to take it further. That means solving the hard problems: landed cost accuracy at checkout HS classification at scale DDP routing logic carrier/broker orchestration and merchant onboarding. Youll also work across the business (GTM product partnerships) because thats how early-stage companies work.

We want someone whos lived this problem ideally at a cross-border platform e-commerce merchant or logistics company.

Yes the work is intense. But in return youll get the chance to build category-defining infrastructure from scratch.

Cross-border e-commerce is a massive market with broken tooling. Youll shape how physical goods infrastructure gets built at Outpost not just operate someone elses system.

Landed Cost & Checkout

• Build the systems that calculate duties tariffs and import taxes accurately at checkout

• Solve HS classification at scale and get the right codes for merchant product catalogs

• Ensure landed cost accuracy so DDP doesnt bleed margin or surprise customers

DDP/DAP Strategy

• Build the routing logic that decides when to absorb duties (DDP) vs pass through (DAP)

• Optimize by order value margin product category and destination market

• Understand de minimis thresholds and when simplifications apply (IOSS UK low-value)

Customs & Clearance Operations

• Own carrier and broker relationships with DHL FedEx UPS and postal services

• Ensure goods clear customs reliably without delays or customer friction

• Handle clearance failures documentation issues and stuck shipments

• Build the documentation infrastructure including commercial invoices and certificates of origin

Returns & Recovery

• Build duty drawback processes to recover duties when goods return

• Handle import VAT recovery on returns

• Manage refused deliveries abandoned parcels and partial refunds

Merchant Onboarding & Platform Integration

• Onboard merchants from Shopify WooCommerce and BigCommerce

• Get product data structured for classification

• Configure checkout flows for DDP presentation

• Integrate with merchant fulfillment and order systems

Cross-Functional Work

• Work with product to shape the roadmap based on merchant pain

• Support GTM by helping close deals and build merchant playbooks

• Build processes and documentation that scale

• Build an HS classification framework for a merchants 10000-SKU catalog

• Design the landed cost calculation logic for UK and EU markets above de minimis

• Negotiate carrier account configurations that align with our liability model

• Create DDP vs DAP routing rules based on margin thresholds by market

• Onboard a Shopify Plus merchant onto Outposts cross-border infrastructure

• Build a duty drawback process for high-return categories (apparel footwear)

• Debug why shipments are getting stuck at German customs and fix the root cause

• Develop pre-checkout duty estimation thats accurate within 2%

Ideal background:

• Cross-border e-commerce platforms (Global-e eShopWorld Flow Commerce Passport)

• Landed cost / duty calculation (Zonos Avalara Cross-Border)

• E-commerce platforms (Shopify Markets BigCommerce WooCommerce ecosystem)

• Logistics with customs exposure (Flexport DHL Trade UPS Customs Brokerage)

• Retailers running cross-border at scale (ASOS Farfetch Zalando Nike)

Signals we care about:

• You can explain the difference between customs duties tariffs and import VAT without hesitation

• You know why HS classification is hard and how to approach it at scale

• Youve dealt with customs clearance failures and know what actually goes wrong

• You understand when DDP beats DAP on unit economics

• Youve worked with Shopify/WooCommerce merchants or integrated with those platforms

• You know how cross-border platforms structure their model

• Bias for action: you solve not observe

• Comfortable with ambiguity because startups are not neat

What this role is not:

• Not a pure logistics/warehouse role

• Not customs brokerage paperwork

• Not strategy without operational depth

• Not someone who needs defined processes to be effective

Cross-border physical goods is one of the hardest operational problems in e-commerce. Most platforms are enterprise-only slow to implement and built on legacy architecture. Were building something different: API-first self-serve programmable.

This isnt joining a mature team to run existing processes. This is scaling the infrastructure that lets any e-commerce merchant sell globally with duties and taxes handled.

Our team were leaders at Revolut Airwallex Adyen and Wayflyer and were backed by top-tier investors who have built or backed some of the worlds leading fintechs.

• Equity and salary in a well-funded startup

• Ability to own your work and move fast

• World-class training from operators whove scaled globally

• A global mission with real impact

• Low politics high output

• Chance to grow into a senior leadership role

• A culture of builders not talkers

We work together in person in London or Amsterdam. We believe the hardest problems especially ones involving customs edge cases and merchant onboarding are solved in the room.

Learn more

1. Outpost Culture

2. Outpost founder

Outpost is where the hard problems are. If you want to build the infrastructure behind global e-commerce wed love to hear from you.