Fabric Sourcing & Innovation Lead (London)

The Foschini Group / TFG London; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 45,000 - 70,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Employee Discount up to 70%

Up to 28 days holiday entitlement per年

Financial and Wellbeing assistance

Enhanced Maternity package

Virtual GP service - unlimited access

Job summary

Whistles in London is seeking a commercially minded fabric specialist to influence the product journey from concept through to collection. You will build strong partnerships with global mills and suppliers, drive fabric innovation, and support sustainability initiatives to ensure our collections deliver quality and style.

Based at the London Head Office, you will join a collaborative team passionate about creating beautiful products and continually evolving the Whistles brand, with

Qualifications

• Experience in fabric sourcing, development or textile buying within a fashion retail environment.
• Strong eye for quality, detail and knowledge of fabrics, trends and product innovation.
• Commercially aware with experience negotiating costs and managing supplier relationships.
• Ability to collaborate across design, buying, technical and sourcing teams.
• Organised and proactive with ability to manage multiple developments and deadlines.
• Knowledge of fabric construction, testing and performance standards.
• Passion for sustainability and responsible sourcing initiatives.
• Excellent communication skills for working with internal teams and external partners globally.

Responsibilities

• Lead fabric sourcing initiatives for Whistles.
• Research and present seasonal fabric trends, identifying key innovations, colours, textures, and developments.
• Source and manage fabric qualities from Europe, India and the Far East, balancing cost, quality and trend relevance.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with global mills and suppliers, while identifying and onboarding new partners.
• Drive fabric development projects, briefing mills and managing developments through to approval.
• Negotiate fabric prices and minimum order quantities, identifying opportunities to maximise value and support commercial objectives.
• Manage sampling activity, budgets and fabric libraries.
• Work closely with the CSR team to champion sustainability initiatives.
• Work closely with Technical teams to review fabric performance, test reports and quality standards.
• Represent Whistles at industry trade shows and fabric fairs.
• Manage greige bookings, fabric liabilities and bulk fabric commitments.

Skills

Fabric sourcing

Trend analysis

Supplier relationship management

Negotiation

Sustainability

Cross-functional collaboration

Job description

Whistles in London is seeking a commercially minded fabric specialist to influence the product journey from concept through to collection. You will build strong partnerships with global mills and suppliers, drive fabric innovation, and support sustainability initiatives to ensure our collections deliver quality and style.

Based at the London Head Office, you will join a collaborative team passionate about creating beautiful products and continually evolving the Whistles brand, with