Design Director, Speciality Accessories and Technical Design

Tapestry, Inc.; United States; On-site; USD 155,000 - 175,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

401(K)

Paid Paternity and Maternity leave

Commuter Benefits

Disability insurance

Tuition assistance

Job summary

Tapestry, Inc. is looking for a Design Director for Specialty Accessories to lead the design vision across varied collections. This role will oversee a team and ensure high-quality execution from concept to commercialization.

Ideal candidates should have over 10 years of experience in accessories design, showcasing the ability to manage teams and bridge creative visions with commercial realities. A Bachelor’s degree in Fashion Design or a related field is required.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of experience in accessories design and technical design preferred.
• Experience managing and mentoring design teams.
• Ability to connect creative vision with product execution.

Responsibilities

• Shape and drive design vision for specialty accessory categories.
• Lead Specialty Accessories and Technical Design teams.
• Collaborate across departments during the design process.
• Provide constructive feedback during line reviews.

Skills

Team leadership

Technical design

Creative vision

Communication skills

Project management

Attention to detail

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Fashion Design

Job description

Coach is a global fashion house founded in New York in 1941. Inspired by the vision of Creative Director Stuart Vevers and the inclusive and courageous spirit of our hometown, we make beautiful things, crafted to last—for you to be yourself in. Coach is part of the Tapestry portfolio – a global house of brands committed to stretching what’s possible. A member of the Tapestry family, we are part of a global house of brands that has unwavering optimism and is committed to being innovative and wholly inclusive. Visit Our People page to learn more about Tapestry's commitment to equity, inclusion, and diversity.

Reports To: Vice President, Design

Position Overview

The Design Director, Specialty Accessories is a key creative leader within the Accessories Design organization, responsible for shaping and driving the design vision for specialty accessory categories across Women's, Men's, Runway, and Outlet collections. In addition to leading the design team, this role oversees the Technical Design function for Specialty Accessories and Special Projects, ensuring seamless execution from concept through commercialization while maintaining the highest standards of craftsmanship, fit, construction, and quality. The role contributes to a wide range of categories—such as bag charms, belts, gifting, Coffee Shop merchandise, Coach Create, and runway specialty accessories—balancing creativity, craftsmanship, and commercial relevance while maintaining a consistent and modern Coach point of view.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide strategic oversight across both design and technical development, ensuring alignment between creative vision and product execution.
• Lead and develop the Specialty Accessories Design team and Technical Design team, fostering a culture that reflects Coach values of craftsmanship, authenticity, optimism, and modern luxury.
• Interpret brand narratives and runway concepts into expressive, well‑considered accessories.
• Collaborate with Product Development, Merchandising, and Materials partners throughout the design process to support quality, functionality, cost, and timing.
• Participate in line reviews, proto and sample evaluations, providing clear and constructive design feedback.
• Mentor and support team, encouraging strong execution, curiosity, and professional growth.
• Communicate design intent clearly in cross‑functional and leadership presentations.

Qualifications and Experience

• 10+ years of experience in accessories design and technical design with exposure to specialty, novelty, or small leather goods categories preferred.
• Demonstrated ability to lead and align both creative and technical teams, bridging design vision with product execution to deliver innovative, high quality product.
• Experience working within an established global brand, balancing creative expression with commercial considerations.
• Previous experience mentoring or managing junior designers.
• Runway or elevated collection experience is a plus.
• Bachelor’s degree in Fashion Design, Accessories Design, or a related work experience

Key Competencies

• Strong design sensibility with a passion for accessories and product storytelling.
• Collaborative mindset and ability to work effectively across creative and cross‑functional teams.
• High attention to detail and appreciation for craft, materials, and finish.
• Clear visual and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to manage multiple categories and timelines in a dynamic environment.
• Adaptable, optimistic, and solutions‑oriented approach to design challenges.

Our Competencies for All Employees

Courage: Doesn’t hold back anything that needs to be said; provides current, direct, complete, and “actionable” positive and corrective feedback to others; lets people know where they stand; faces up to people problems on any person or situation (not including direct reports) quickly and directly; is not afraid to take negative action when necessary.

Creativity: Comes up with a lot of new and unique ideas; easily makes connections among previously unrelated notions; tends to be seen as original and value‑added in brainstorming settings.

Customer Focus: Is dedicated to meeting the expectations and requirements of internal and external customers; gets first‑hand customer information and uses it for improvements in products and services; acts with customers in mind; establishes and maintains effective relationships with customers and gains their trust and respect.

Dealing with Ambiguity: Can effectively cope with change; can shift gears comfortably; can decide and act without having the total picture; isn’t upset when things are up in the air; doesn’t have to finish things before moving on; can comfortably handle risk and uncertainty.

Drive for Results: Can be counted on to exceed goals successfully; is constantly and consistently one of the top performers; very bottom‑line oriented; steadfastly pushes self and others for results.

Interpersonal Savvy: Relates well to all kinds of people, up, down, and sideways, inside and outside the organization; builds appropriate rapport; builds constructive and effective relationships; uses diplomacy and tact; can diffuse even high‑tension situations comfortably.

Learning on the Fly: Learns quickly when facing new problems; a relentless and versatile learner; open to change; analyzes both successes and failures for clues to improvement; experiments and will try anything to find solutions; enjoys the challenge of unfamiliar tasks; quickly grasps the essence and the underlying structure of anything.

Our Competencies for All People Managers

Strategic Agility: Sees ahead clearly; can anticipate future consequences and trends accurately; has broad knowledge and perspective; is future oriented; can articulately paint credible pictures and visions of possibilities and likelihoods; can create competitive and breakthrough strategies and plans.

Developing Direct Reports and Others: Provides challenging and stretching tasks and assignments; holds frequent development discussions; is aware of each person’s career goals; constructs compelling development plans and executes them; pushes people to accept developmental moves; will take on those who need help and further development; cooperates with the developmental system in the organization; is a people builder.

Building Effective Teams: Blends people into teams when needed; creates strong morale and spirit in their team; shares wins and successes; fosters open dialogue; lets people finish and be responsible for their work; defines success in terms of the whole team; creates a feeling of belonging in the team.

Coach. is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer and we pride ourselves on hiring and developing the best people.

All employment decisions (including recruitment, hiring, promotion, compensation, transfer, training, discipline and termination) are based on the applicant’s or employee’s qualifications as they relate to the requirements of the position under consideration.

These decisions are made without regard to age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic characteristics, race, color, creed, religion, ethnicity, national origin, alienage, citizenship, disability, marital status, military status, pregnancy, or any other legally‑recognized protected basis prohibited by applicable law.

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Tapestry, Inc. will provide applicants and employees with reasonable accommodation for disabilities or religious beliefs.

If you require reasonable accommodation to complete the application process, please contact Tapestry People Services at 1-855-566-9264 or [e-mail]

Visit Tapestry, Inc.

Base Pay Range $155,000.00-$175,000.00

• Medical insurance
• Dental insurance
• Vision insurance
• 401 (K)
• Paid Paternity and Maternity leave
• Commuter Benefits
• Disability insurance and Tuition assistance

Our growth is creating great opportunities! Our team is expanding, and we want to hire the most talented people we can. Continued success depends on it!

Our Work Experience is the combination of everything that’s unique about us: our culture, our core values, our company meetings, our commitment to sustainability, our recognition programs, but most importantly, it’s our people.

Our employees are self‑disciplined, hard working, curious, trustworthy, humble, and truthful. They make choices according to what is best for the team, they live for opportunities to collaborate and make a difference, and they make us the #1 Top Workplace in the area.

At Tapestry, we bring together the iconic brands of Coach and Kate Spade New York—uniting bold ideas, diverse voices, and boundless creativity to stretch what’s possible. Driven by dreamers and makers, we turn passion into progress. By embracing differences and pushing boundaries, we create with purpose, uplift one another, and shape a more inclusive, sustainable future—together.

Our Brands Spark Personal and Emotional Connections. Our brands go beyond products—they inspire confidence, encourage self‑expression, and build lasting emotional connections with consumers. Through constant innovation and deep customer insight, we anticipate where shoppers are headed and adapt to meet them with personalized, seamless experiences. Our digitally powered, unified shopping journey allows our brands to become part of people’s lives—meeting them when, where, and how they choose to shop.