Footwear Designer

Role Purpose:

The Footwear Designer leads the design and development process for the department, building a balanced, comprehensive product offer with the required pricing structure and margin. This role delivers constant newness combined with commerciality and a strong affinity for fast fashion, heavily influenced by the latest catwalk and trend predictions specific to the non-clothing and footwear sectors.

Role Responsibilities:

Design & Creative Leadership

• Take responsibility for the design, development, and delivery of relevant, trend-led products for a specific area.
• Produce overarching concepts, trends, and storyboards, including mood and trend boards seasonally with associated color palettes and print research.
• Manage and provide clear design direction to the Design Assistant, including planning their daily workload.
• Present new product ranges confidently to management and buying teams.
• Conduct research trips to key fashion hubs like NYC, Paris, and London to identify product opportunities for all areas of the business.
• Liaise directly with the sample room and brief designs to creative pattern cutters to ensure technical execution matches the creative vision.

Technical & Commercial Execution

• Maintain a deep understanding of pricing, margins, and the "design to price point" process.
• Plan the development trip calendar and travel to India and China to actively develop products and build the range.
• Collaborate with production teams on all order approvals and resolve any costing issues.
• Manage own time effectively to meet all deadlines and complete ad-hoc duties to ensure the continuous development of the business.
• Continually aim for self-development, actively seeking support and guidance from the Line Manager.

Technical Requirements:

• Previous design experience within a high street fashion retailer or supplier, specifically within non-clothing or footwear departments.
• Experience working with embellishment, embroidery, and materials relevant to footwear and accessories.
• Excellent free-hand fashion illustration and technical drawing skills specific to footwear and non-clothing products.
• Demonstrable awareness of the retail industry, including category-specific trends, potential threats, and opportunities.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to convey technical and creative information clearly.
• Ability to handle highly confidential information with absolute discretion.
• Exceptional attention to detail and a spirit that rises to challenges.