Designer - Color, Materials & Graphics

Global Sports Jobs Limited; Portland (OR); Hybrid; USD 85,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical benefits

401k with match

Parental leave

Annual bonus

Paid holidays

Job summary

Adidas is seeking a versatile footwear designer to drive market-right executions through colour, materials, graphics, and construction in collaboration with Marketing and Development. You will join the Design team and influence seasonal and long-term direction for footwear ranges, materials, silhouettes, and graphics across NAM iterations of the Global Range and Key Accounts.

The role requires strong knowledge of fashion/product design, a passion for design, and excellent storytelling through

Qualifications

• Strong knowledge of fashion design/industrial product or industrial design.
• Strong presentation and communication skills.
• Good knowledge of product development, material and trims for the assigned product range.
• Passion for design.
• High level of creativity and storytelling through design.
• Fluent in English (spoken and written).
• Understanding of brand history and current positioning.
• Understanding of marketplace (footwear/streetwear/urban) history, consumer, and current positioning.

Responsibilities

• Gather and monitor consumer and brand-relevant design information from trade fairs, cultural and sporting events, athlete insights, trade publications, general interest press, trend services, fashion and sportswear magazines and websites, store checks, market visits, team travel
• And Marketing forecast and sell-through data.
• Assist in seasonal and long-term design direction for the category across footwear, footwear materials, silhouettes, and graphics/print direction.
• Provide trend forecasting content relevant to the consumer and brand, and provide direction and assist in developing materials with the Material Team.
• Work with local and global counterparts to provide category-relative colour and material direction when required.
• Support the M3/M2 Senior Team Lead in building content for collaborative stakeholders across Marketing, Product Managers, Designers, and between Key Account and Inline, and proactively create product stories and concepts ahead of season, sharing and refining them with the wider team.
• Work closely with the category design team by providing colour and material content and direction, collaborating and critiquing, and understanding technical product details.
• Build top-line range strategy into the product range by supporting the Senior Team Lead with holistic category overviews, rollouts, and merchandising strategy, and by supporting communication content to Footwear, Apparel, and Graphics Teams to align strategy.
• Support and inform horizontal brand moments and category moments by leading products, colour and material narratives/executions, and tiered rollout plans in partnership with Design, Marketing, and CTC.
• Design footwear colour and material executions for NAM iterations of the Global Range and/or Key Account ranges with input from Design, Marketing, and Development, including seasonal prep and research, physical and digital product design presentations, exploratory processes, colour CADs, Material maps, and graphic maps.
• Visualise ideas for products and ranges with a high degree of expertise, consider the larger impact of creating a merchandised range, work closely with Development on the development process and costing, meet development timelines and seasonal milestone deadlines.
• Assist in communicating inspiration and storytelling to Marketing, and travel to Asia for development trips as required.

Skills

Fashion design

Presentation skills

Communication skills

Creative storytelling

Macintosh software

Fluent English

Brand awareness

Team collaboration

Tools

Photoshop

Illustrator

PowerPoint/Keynote

Job description

About the Role

This role designs market-right, industry-leading footwear executions through colour, material, graphics, and construction in cooperation with Marketing and Development. It sits within the Design team and works closely with the category’s design team, Marketing, Development, and cross-category design counterparts. The role contributes to seasonal and long-term design direction for the category, including footwear, footwear materials, silhouettes, and graphics/print direction. It supports product execution for NAM iterations of the Global Range and/or Key Account ranges.

Key Responsibilities

• Gather and monitor consumer and brand-relevant design information from trade fairs, cultural and sporting events, athlete insights, trade publications, general interest press, trend services, fashion and sportswear magazines and websites, store checks, market visits, team travel
• And Marketing forecast and sell-through data.
• Assist in seasonal and long-term design direction for the category across footwear, footwear materials, silhouettes, and graphics/print direction.
• Provide trend forecasting content relevant to the consumer and brand, and provide direction and assist in developing materials with the Material Team.
• Work with local and global counterparts to provide category-relative colour and material direction when required.
• Support the M3/M2 Senior Team Lead in building content for collaborative stakeholders across Marketing, Product Managers, Designers, and between Key Account and Inline, and proactively create product stories and concepts ahead of season, sharing and refining them with the wider team.
• Work closely with the category design team by providing colour and material content and direction, collaborating and critiquing, and understanding technical product details.
• Build top-line range strategy into the product range by supporting the Senior Team Lead with holistic category overviews, rollouts, and merchandising strategy, and by supporting communication content to Footwear, Apparel, and Graphics Teams to align strategy.
• Support and inform horizontal brand moments and category moments by leading products, colour and material narratives/executions, and tiered rollout plans in partnership with Design, Marketing, and CTC.
• Design footwear colour and material executions for NAM iterations of the Global Range and/or Key Account ranges with input from Design, Marketing, and Development, including seasonal prep and research, physical and digital product design presentations, exploratory processes, colour CADs, Material maps, and graphic maps.
• Visualise ideas for products and ranges with a high degree of expertise, consider the larger impact of creating a merchandised range, work closely with Development on the development process and costing, meet development timelines and seasonal milestone deadlines.
• Assist in communicating inspiration and storytelling to Marketing, and travel to Asia for development trips as required.

Required Experience & Qualifications

• Strong knowledge of fashion design/industrial product or industrial design.
• Strong presentation and communication skills.
• Good knowledge of product development, material and trims for the assigned product range.
• Passion for design.
• High level of creativity and storytelling through design.
• Knowledge and use of Macintosh computer design software/systems (Photoshop, Illustrator, PowerPoint/Keynote).
• Fluent in English (spoken and written).
• Understanding of brand history and current positioning.
• Understanding of marketplace (footwear/streetwear/urban) history, consumer, and current positioning.
• Strong understanding of colour and material trends, application, and cycles.
• Ability to understand design concepts and think conceptually.
• Ability to create designs that meet category needs and commercial opportunities.
• Ability to design for new initiatives and products with a fresh, innovative perspective.
• Ability to operate in a fast-paced, ever-changing work environment.
• Works well in a team environment, engaging with many stakeholders and managing various information and relationships.

Preferred Skills

• Footwear design work/experience is a plus (upper pattern work/concept ideation).

Workplace

• Hybrid work policy requires attendance in the office Monday through Thursday, with the flexibility to work remotely on Friday each week.
• For work requiring a high degree of collaboration or an in-person presentation, in-office attendance is required even on Friday.

Benefits & Perks

• Robust and progressive medical, including HSA with employer funding or FSA options, dental, vision, prescription drug coverage, adoption with surrogate and fertility support, short and long-term disability, and basic life and AD&D insurance.
• 401k plan and Stock Purchase Plan with employer match.
• Full-time employees are eligible for education assistance and generous leave policies, including 14 weeks of paid parental leave.
• Employees are eligible to earn an annual bonus based on company performance.
• Employees accrue prorated flexible time off at .4388 hours per day, increasing with years of service.
• Twelve paid holidays throughout the calendar year.
• Service Time Off during milestone years.

About the Company

adidas believes that embedding diversity, equity, and inclusion into its culture and talent processes gives employees a sense of belonging and the brand a competitive advantage.