Staff Machine Learning Scientist (Recommendations)

Team: Engineering & Data

Location: Depop - London

Company Description

Depop is the community-powered circular fashion marketplace where anyone can buy, sell and discover desirable secondhand fashion. With a community of over 35 million users, Depop is on a mission to make fashion circular, redefining fashion consumption. Founded in 2011, the company is headquartered in London, with offices in New York and Manchester, and in 2021 became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Etsy. Find out more at www.depop.com Our mission is to make fashion circular and to create an inclusive environment where everyone is welcome, no matter who they are or where they’re from. Just as our platform connects people globally, we believe our workplace should reflect the diversity of the communities we serve. We thrive on the power of different perspectives and experiences, knowing they drive innovation and bring us closer to our users. We’re proud to be an equal opportunity employer, providing employment opportunities without regard to age, ethnicity, religion or belief, gender identity, sex, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy or maternity, marriage and civil partnership, or any other protected status. We’re continuously evolving our recruitment processes to ensure fairness and are open to accommodating any needs you might have. If, due to a disability, you need adjustments to complete the application, please let us know by sending an email with your name, the role to which you would like to apply, and the type of support you need to complete the application to [email protected]. For any other non-disability related questions, please reach out to our Talent Partners.

Life is about creating. That's why we're home to over 30 million artists, stylists, designers, sneakerheads — and you? We're the community-powered, circular-minded marketplace changing the world of online fashion. Now it's time to get inspired at Depop.

Responsibilities

Job description

The Recommendations team builds models that power discovery at Depop, helping millions of users find items that they will love. As a Staff Machine Learning Scientist, you’ll set the technical vision for our next-generation recommendation models, lead high-impact initiatives, and mentor others to drive innovation at scale.

Responsibilities

You will:

  • Lead the design and deployment of advanced recommendation systems, encompassing encoder-based architectures, vector representations and large-scale retrieval.

  • Mentor, coach, and set technical direction within the Recommendations team, helping others grow and innovate.

  • Collaborate closely with cross-functional partners (product, engineering, data) to define problems, translate them into scalable solutions, and deliver measurable business outcomes.

  • Lead the end-to-end lifecycle of ML projects: from ideation, data acquisition, feature engineering, training, and evaluation to deployment and ongoing iteration.

  • Drive innovation in recommendation systems by researching and integrating emerging ML techniques, frameworks, and tooling, while contributing technical expertise to long-term product and data strategy.

  • Act as a thought leader in the recommendations space, sharing learnings internally, engaging with the wider ML community, and showcasing our work externally.

Qualifications

  • Proven track record in designing, deploying, and optimizing large-scale recommendation systems, including candidate retrieval and ranking models, with measurable impact in production environments.

  • Deep understanding of machine learning fundamentals and applied experience with architectures including collaborative filtering, deep learning, and hybrid recommendation approaches.

  • Proven ability to productionize ML models and pipelines: from prototyping to de

  • ployment, with strong experience in monitoring, iteration, and troubleshooting.

  • Advanced programming skills in Python and familiarity with ML frameworks such as PyTorch, TensorFlow, or similar.

  • Solid foundation in stats, experimental design, and working with offline/online evaluations in real-world settings.

  • Experience leading projects and mentoring engineers or scientists, with a track record of fostering team growth and technical excellence.

  • Excellent communication skills: able to bridge technical and non-technical stakeholders and influence decision making.

  • Committed to responsible AI practices, including attention to ethics, fairness, and inclusivity.

Additional information
Health + Mental Wellbeing PMI and cash plan healthcare access with Bupa Subsidised counselling and coaching with Self Space Cycle to Work scheme with options from Evans or the Green Commute Initiative Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) for 24/7 confidential support Mental Health First Aiders across the business for support and signposting Work/Life Balance: 25 days annual leave with option to carry over up to 5 days 1 company-wide day off per quarter Impact hours: Up to 2 days additional paid leave per year for volunteering Fully paid 4 week sabbatical after completion of 5 years of consecutive service with Depop, to give you a chance to recharge or do something you love. Flexible Working: MyMode hybrid-working model with Flex, Office Based, and Remote options *role dependant All offices are dog-friendly Ability to work abroad for 4 weeks per year in UK tax treaty countries Family Life: 18 weeks of paid parental leave for full-time regular employees IVF leave, shared parental leave, and paid emergency parent/carer leave Learn + Grow: Budgets for conferences, learning subscriptions, and more Mentorship and programmes to upskill employees Your Future: Life Insurance (financial compensation of 3x your salary) Pension matching up to 6% of qualifying earnings Depop Extras: Employees enjoy free shipping on their Depop sales within the UK. Special milestones are celebrated with gifts and rewards!

How we work

MyMode is our new hybrid-working model, designed to empower our employees to choose a working mode that works for them.

MyMode is composed of 3 working modes: Flex, Office Based and Remote.

Flex (Default)

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Flex is our default working mode, meaning all employees will automatically enrol in this mode and there is no application required to enter this mode. Flex employees will be expected to work from the office at least 4 days per month. Teams will determine whether there are set weekly or monthly in-office days based on their operating rhythms and practices. You will need to work with your manager to determine your in-office schedule for your team.

Office Based

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This option is for employees who are committing to work from the office for a minimum of 4 days per week. As part of taking on the Office Based working mode you will be able to apply for a permanent desk in the office if you need one, but you won’t need to apply to become an Office Based employee.

Remote

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Under the Remote working mode you are able to work anywhere within the country you are employed in. This mode requires around 2- 4 days per year in the office, depending on organisational guidance. You will be able to expense travel if you are asked to attend the office, but not for office attendance by your choice.

*Remote working is not applicable for all roles at Depop, please check with our Talent Team.

How We Care

  • Your health
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    • Enhanced Maternity + Paternity Leave, plus adoption leave, IVF leave, shared parental leave + paid emergency parent/carer leave
    • Private Healthcare (UK and US) - choice of a healthcare plan that best suits you
    • Subsidised counselling through Selfspace
    • Employee Assistance Programme (EAP)
    • Mental Health First Aiders across the business
    • Life Insurance
    • Pension
  • Your balance
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    • 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays
    • 1 company-wide day off per quarter, for you to take some time for yourself and decompress
    • Impact hours to be used for volunteering, demonstrations or internal initiatives
    • Apply to work abroad 4 weeks of the year (in UK tax treaty countries)
    • Fully paid 4 week sabbatical after completion of 5 years of consecutive service with Depop, to give you a chance to recharge or do something you love.
  • Your growth
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    • Budgets for conferences, learning subscriptions and more
    • Learn new perspectives from other people in the company with our mentoring programme
    • Promoting inclusion and diverse viewpoints with DEI training
    • Upskilling our employees with year-long programming like manager training, workshops, conferences and meetups

Location

20 Farringdon Rd

EC1M 3HE

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Application Process

  • Stage 1: Talent Partner Call

    This initial stage is a general conversation about your background, skills and what you’re looking for in your next role. You’ll gain further insight into life at Depop and the opportunity at hand.

  • Stage 2: Hiring Manager Call

    The Hiring Manager is most likely the person you’d report into at Depop, so they’ll be delving deeper into your experience. This is another opportunity to learn more about the team’s mission and goals.

  • Stage 3: 1st Stage Interview

    This interview is centred around assessing your role-specific skills, usually in the form of a paired-programming sesion, whiteboard session or presentation (depending on the role). You’ll meet with peers at Depop who can guide you through your day-to-day responsibilities in the role and answer any of your more technical questions.

  • Stage 4: Final Interview

    Our final interviews are usually made up of an executive interview with a senior stakeholder. In this session, we'll dive even deeper into your working styles and the type of culture you thrive in, as well as provide you with more information around our mission as a company and how your role would contribute to this.

    *Please note that the order of this process may be subject to change, based upon certain requirements or circumstances. If this is the case, you will be notified at the beginning of your process.

Our DNA encompasses the central reasons that people are proud to work at Depop and unites us with a shared language and sense of community.

It guides our daily interactions and empowers individuals, teams, departments and our company as a whole to have a greater impact and achieve our mission.

Show up for the community

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We go above and beyond. When they succeed, we succeed.

We’re changing how millions of people buy, sell and explore their style, so we do everything we can to create a safe space in a community where you can learn, grow and succeed on your own terms.

Have each other's backs

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We empower each other with kindness and respect our differences.

Everyone at Depop is seen, heard, valued and encouraged. Our genius is born from our diversity of thought, so we celebrate our wins together and hold each other up when things get tough.

Act with purpose

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We take conscious risks, deliver efficiently and learn from our mistakes.

Our mission is to be the world’s most diverse and progressive home of fashion. We have the conviction to succeed, the patience to learn and the confidence to fail and try again - being open all the way.

Think thrift

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We’re resourceful, seek out opportunities and we hustle.

We’re powering a future that is more thoughtful, circular and better for people and planet. To do it, we stay curious, savvy, resourceful and empowered to get the job done – effectively and responsibly.

At the heart of our mission...

Winking gif

INCLUSION

Fashion is global. It’s for everyone. So, we’re building a diverse ecosystem at Depop where everyone is seen, heard, valued and empowered to succeed. We’re working towards a future where DEI is at the heart of everything that we do. When you succeed, we succeed.

COMMUNITY

We know culture is felt, rather than told. But at Depop, you'll find a place where everyone can bring their own style to everything they do. We keep it circular as we recognise our impact on our community of sellers, our users, on the planet and on the future of fashion.

SUSTAINABILITY

Together, we’re shaping a new circular fashion system. One that’s kinder to people and to the planet. It’s simple. But it’s massive, too. It helps the environment, builds new connections and creates new ways to experience clothing.

At the heart of our mission...

Winking gif

INCLUSION

Fashion is global. It’s for everyone. So, we’re building a diverse ecosystem at Depop where everyone is seen, heard, valued and empowered to succeed. We’re working towards a future where DEI is at the heart of everything that we do. When you succeed, we succeed.

COMMUNITY

We know culture is felt, rather than told. But at Depop, you'll find a place where everyone can bring their own style to everything they do. We keep it circular as we recognise our impact on our community of sellers, our users, on the planet and on the future of fashion.

SUSTAINABILITY

Together, we’re shaping a new circular fashion system. One that’s kinder to people and to the planet. It’s simple. But it’s massive, too. It helps the environment, builds new connections and creates new ways to experience clothing.