Fractional Product
Partnership.
Ongoing strategic product leadership for founder-led brands that need an experienced product partner in the room — without hiring a full-time executive.
This isn't a report or a workshop. It's a working relationship: a standing cadence, shared decisions and someone accountable alongside you across the season.
Sam Kraus · Product Partner
An experienced product function, without the headcount.
A weekly working cadence
Standing time with you and your team to make decisions, unblock production and keep the season moving.
Product & collection strategy
What to build, what to retire, how the line hangs together and where the margin actually lives.
Sourcing & manufacturing
Factory and mill relationships, sampling discipline, costing, quality standards and realistic timelines.
Merchandising & pricing
Assortment architecture, price laddering and the tradeoffs between creative ambition and commercial reality.
Team & process
Helping a small team run product properly — calendars, hand-offs, tech packs and clear ownership.
A steady second opinion
Someone who has seen the mistakes before, available between the meetings when the real decisions get made.
- Founder-led apparel, lifestyle or outdoor brands
- Doing real volume, but not ready for a full-time Head of Product
- Willing to make decisions and move on them
- Looking for a long-term partner, not a deck
I take on a small number of partnerships at a time, which is why this starts with an application rather than a booking link.
Application
You share the brand, the stage and where product is getting stuck.
Conversation
If it looks like a fit, we talk directly — no pitch, no pressure.
Scope
We agree a cadence, focus and monthly retainer that fits the season ahead.
Work
I step in alongside your team and we start making better product decisions.
Tell me about the brand.
The more context you give, the more useful our first conversation will be. I read every application myself and reply directly.
Prefer email? samkraus89@gmail.com