Apparel Designer

Aquent; New York (NY); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Aquent is seeking an experienced Senior Designer – Women’s Active for a temp-to-hire opportunity in New York. The role focuses on developing trend-right women’s active apparel with strong design and tech-pack capabilities, guiding products through design and development with cross-functional teams.

The ideal candidate brings experience across fleece, knits, sport, and swimwear, excellent sketching skills, and a portfolio demonstrating leadership in fittings and tech packs.

Qualifications

• Experience designing women’s active apparel across fleece, knits, sport, and swimwear.
• Ability to independently lead fittings and provide design direction.
• Proficiency in creating and maintaining detailed tech packs.
• Strong communication and cross-functional collaboration skills.
• Bachelor's degree in Fashion Design or related field.

Responsibilities

• Develop original concepts for women’s active apparel aligned to silhouette and trends.
• Design across fleece, knits, sport, and swimwear; translate direction to products.
• Lead fittings and evaluate fit, construction, and design during development.
• Produce and maintain detailed tech packs throughout development.
• Collaborate with technical design, sourcing, and materials teams.
• Manage multiple styles and deadlines with strong organization.

Skills

Sketching

Tech packs

Fittings leadership

Garment construction

Cross-functional collaboration

Time management

Activewear knowledge

Communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Fashion Design

Tools

Tech pack development tools

Job description

We are seeking an experienced Senior Designer – Women’s Active for a temp-to-hire opportunity. This role will support the development of compelling, trend-right women’s active apparel, combining strong creative design capabilities with the technical expertise needed to independently drive product through the design and development process.

The ideal candidate is a highly organized, collaborative designer with excellent communication skills, strong sketching ability, and demonstrated experience designing across fleece, knits, sport, and swimwear. This individual should be comfortable taking ownership of designs, independently leading fittings, developing detailed tech packs, and partnering closely with cross-functional teams to bring concepts to life.

All candidates must provide a portfolio or relevant samples of work to be considered.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop original concepts for women’s active apparel, incorporating silhouette, style, color, fabric, functionality, and seasonal trends.
• Design across fleece, knits, sport, and swimwear, translating seasonal direction into cohesive, commercially relevant product.
• Research and interpret fashion, activewear, lifestyle, and consumer trends to inform seasonal design direction.
• Produce strong sketches that clearly communicate design intent, proportion, construction, and product details.
• Independently create and maintain detailed tech packs throughout the development process.
• Lead fittings independently, evaluating fit, proportion, construction, and overall design execution and providing clear direction on necessary revisions.
• Apply knowledge of garment construction, body blocks, fabrication, and fit to ensure design intent is maintained through development.
• Partner closely with technical design, sourcing, materials/fabric development, product development, and other cross-functional teams.
• Participate in seasonal design reviews, fittings, presentations, and milestone meetings.
• Manage multiple styles, samples, revisions, and development deadlines while maintaining a high level of organization and attention to detail.
• Clearly communicate creative and technical direction to internal teams and external partners.
• Support the overall seasonal vision and ensure product is consistent with established design direction and consumer needs.

Qualifications

• Strong professional experience in women’s apparel design, ideally at the senior designer level or with comparable scope and ownership.
• Required hands-on design experience across fleece, knits, sport, and swimwear.
• Strong understanding of the women’s active/athleisure market and relevant consumer and fashion trends.
• Excellent hand and/or digital sketching skills.
• Demonstrated expertise independently creating and managing tech packs.
• Proven ability to independently lead fittings and provide actionable fit, construction, and design direction.
• Strong knowledge of garment construction, fit, fabrication, materials, color, proportion, and silhouette.
• Excellent communication and cross-functional collaboration skills.
• Strong organizational and time-management skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities and development timelines.
• Ability to work effectively in a fast-paced apparel design environment.
• Bachelor’s degree in Fashion Design, Apparel Design, or a related discipline, or equivalent professional experience.

Portfolio Requirement

Portfolio or relevant design samples are required for consideration.

Portfolios should demonstrate strong women’s apparel design capabilities, including sketching and product development work. Candidates should be able to demonstrate relevant experience across fleece, knits, sport, and swimwear.

Opportunity

This is a temp-to-hire position, providing the opportunity to initially join the team on a contract basis with potential for conversion to a permanent position.

About Aquent Talent:

• Our eligible talent get access to amazing benefits like subsidized health, vision, and dental plans, paid sick leave, and retirement plans with a match.
• We also offer free online training through Aquent Gymnasium.

Aquent is an equal-opportunity employer.

We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, and other legally protected characteristics.

We’re about creating an inclusive environment-one where different backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives are valued, and everyone can contribute, grow their careers, and thrive.