Design Director

TN United Kingdom; Manchester; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

An established industry player seeks a dynamic Design Director to lead their creative vision and product strategy. This role is pivotal in shaping the brand's identity and ensuring that customer needs are at the forefront of all design decisions. You'll collaborate with various teams to drive innovative design solutions, ensuring that the brand stays ahead of trends while maintaining a commitment to sustainability. If you thrive in a fast-paced environment and are passionate about fashion, this opportunity offers a chance to make a significant impact in a vibrant and collaborative setting.

Benefits

Bonus

Pension

Share Schemes

Private Medical

Life Assurance

40% Discount on Brands

Health and Wellbeing Support

Qualifications

• Expertise in creating a strong brand identity and visual storytelling.
• Ability to lead design teams and inspire innovative thinking.

Responsibilities

• Oversee the creative vision and product strategy for the brand.
• Lead design and buying processes from concept to market.

Skills

Brand Identity Creation

Visual Storytelling

Design Thinking

Trend Forecasting

Sustainable Design Practices

Market Analysis

Team Leadership

Communication Skills

Education

Degree in Fashion Design

Business Management Knowledge

Tools

Digital Design Tools

Market Research Software

Job description

Social network you want to login/join with:

The role

is based in our Dale Street, Manchester HQ – relocation package negotiable.

YOUR TEAM

When people think of our department, it’s always about our creativity. Nothing compares to seeing customers purchase and wear our creations, or when our designs feature in campaigns and on the feed of our favourite influencer.

For us, it’s all about bringing trends to life and keeping our finger on the pulse of a design – from concept and specifications through to production. We design and influence everything boohoo buys, so we’re a solid part of our brands identity. We drive new fabrics, graphics, and print techniques, not forgetting highlighting and forecasting colours and styles. Behind the scenes, we’re busy creating mood boards and stories that will become our ranges. We don’t just design; we plan, develop and sample too, working closely with the wider team. We love teamwork and creating a buzz of activity and ideas wherever we go. We know there’s no limit to what we can achieve.

WHAT YOU'LL BE DOING

1. Working closely with CPO, wider Senior Leadership and Brand teams you oversee the creative vision, direction and handwriting of the brand.
2. By understanding our customers and the brand DNA you are able to define and execute the global product strategy, ensuring our customers are at the heart of all product decision making.
3. You constantly level up your industry knowledge, attending trips representing the brand and using market research to make data driven decisions in the design & buying process to ensure our collections are commercially successful and first to market.
4. Lead the design and buying process from concept development to market, overseeing the creation of all collaborations, signing off all product before production.
5. Working with the Brand teams ensuring that the vision of the product is reflected in the marketing, creative and ecommerce teams.
6. Collaborating with the Buying Director and RESPO team to have sustainability in mind and aligned to our agenda for change programme.
7. Working with the Merchandising Director, to ensure that our test and repeat model remains trend focused and is commercially successful.
8. Together with the Buying Director agree on product strategy and framework, ensuring we have the right product, fit, fabric and lead times to ensure we maximise profit and reduce returns.
9. Lead the Design and Buying teams, so they are able to react and trade at pace and work closely with other key departments across the business, Marketing, Studio, Ecommerce.

WORKING WITH US

To succeed here, you must love working at pace. It is relentless, but we love it. Change is a certainty – you need to adapt and be agile. We want you to challenge the status quo, innovate and be open to trying new things. We are always pushing boundaries. We want you to think big. Think creatively. Be bold. Be brave. Do not be afraid to make mistakes – that is how we learn! We empower our people, giving them freedom and autonomy to learn and grow in their roles. We are one team, one boohoo family. Bring your own style, experiences, and ideas – we want them all.

MORE ABOUT YOU

Key skills required:

• Ability to create and maintain a cohesive and distinctive brand identity.
• Expertise in visual storytelling and crafting compelling brand narratives.
• Innovative design thinking with the ability to generate and execute groundbreaking design ideas.
• Proficiency in incorporating emerging trends and technologies into fashion design.
• Capacity to think outside the box and push creative boundaries.
• Deep understanding of fashion aesthetics and artistic principles.
• Digital Savvy and familiarity with the latest digital tools and technologies in fashion design.
• Strong skills in trend forecasting and market analysis with the ability to interpret consumer behaviour and preferences to inform design decisions.
• Ability to inspire and lead creative teams, fostering a collaborative and innovative work environment.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills to effectively convey vision and direction.
• Experience in mentoring and developing design talent.
• Expertise in defining and evolving the brand's design language and positioning.
• Skills in aligning design strategies with overall business goals and market demands.
• Experience in building and maintaining a strong brand identity across all digital channels.
• Commitment to sustainable and ethical design practices with knowledge of sustainable materials and production methods.
• Ability to analyse market data and design performance metrics.
• Strategic mindset to align design initiatives with long-term business objectives.
• Proficiency in financial planning and resource management related to design projects.
• Ability to adapt to the rapidly changing digital and fashion landscapes.

Here are some of the Values & Competencies we would expect in this role:

Passion

• You lead the design team with genuine passion for retail, fashion, brand, and product.
• You can demonstrate deep understanding for your customers world and obsess about giving them the best product/ experience possible
• You have vast levels of drive, energy, and stamina; you use personal power to consistently deliver
• You are a strong and credible figurehead for the business who excites others around the vision

Agility

• You have strong insight into the external environment, wider functions, and stakeholders
• Knows how to invest to grow the Brand/business
• You adapt to the ever-changing multi-channel, global retail landscape
• You shape the operational plan that will deliver great results and can zoom in and out of the picture to see all perspectives
• You act decisively and are not afraid to change tactics if your strategy isn’t delivering results

Commercial

• Insatiable curiosity and interest in keeping up to date with every shift and trend in the industry
• You do the simple things to improve the business and takes considered risks that break new ground.
• Gets beneath the numbers to understand what is driving success for the business
• Highly intuitive about what’s right and able to think quickly on their feet

Creative

• You lead and inspire your teams to think bigger and harness upcoming industry trends before the competition
• You're recognised externally for being a key Industry player and are sought after to speak at events and seminars
• You create a culture of free-flowing ideas, big picture thinking and standing out from the crowd
• Your area of accountability has a reputation in the business for being leading edge and first to market

Teamwork

• A strong coach who develops future Functional leaders, recognising and rewarding performance
• Builds strong, aligned functional teams, recognising and rewarding great performance
• Spots leadership capability and actively contributes to succession planning
• Consistently provides and facilitates honest feedback and acts as a strong role model

WHY JOIN US

We’ve set our sights on dominating the global e-commerce fashion market, and because we are a collective of brands, there are plenty of opportunities to grow your career. Our mission is to create a workplace where everyone is respected, their individual differences are valued, and they can be themselves at work without exception.

Dependent upon level and eligibility, our benefits include:

• Bonus, Pension, Share Schemes, Private Medical, Life Assurance
• 40% discount across 4 brands, 20% discount on Debenhams
• You’ll get the opportunity to take part in our various share schemes- where your impact on the business will also impact you!
• Benefits that support your health and wellbeing

#LI-ER1 #design #Designdirector #creative #fashiondirector