Director, Concept Design - Hollister

Abercrombie & Fitch Co.; Columbus (OH); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Incentive bonus program

401(K) savings plan

Flexible spending accounts

Medical, dental and vision insurance

Paid time off

Work from anywhere options

Job summary

Abercrombie & Fitch Co. is seeking a Director/Sr Director of Hollister Concept Design in Columbus, Ohio. This role involves defining the creative vision for Hollister, leading trend identification, and influencing design teams. Candidates should have 10-15 years of relevant experience, a Bachelor’s degree in a related field, and strong storytelling and leadership skills. Benefits include a flexible work environment and a comprehensive incentive program.

Qualifications

• 10–15+ years of experience in trend forecasting or creative leadership.
• Deep understanding of global youth culture and fashion trends.
• Comfort in early-stage ideation with emerging trends.

Responsibilities

• Lead the global trend and concept vision for Hollister apparel.
• Develop seasonal creative direction guiding apparel design.
• Identify and translate fashion trends into actionable insights.

Skills

Trend forecasting

Creative leadership

Visual storytelling

Ambiguity navigation

Executive-level communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Fashion Design or related field

Job description

Director/Sr Director, Hollister Concept Design

Location: Global Home Office, Columbus, Ohio

Role Overview

The Director / Senior Director of Concept Design will define and evolve the creative and trend vision that fuels Hollister’s design strategy. This role exists to inspire and inform product design by translating cultural insight, global trends, and brand DNA into clear creative direction for print, pattern and apparel teams.

As a senior creative partner, this role helps designers stay ahead of teen culture shaping seasonal concepts, long range trend narratives, and creative guardrails that inform silhouettes, fabrications, color, graphics, and overall product expression. The ideal candidate is highly creative, culturally fluent, and forward thinking, with a proven ability to influence product teams without owning day to day design execution.

What Will You Be Doing?

• Lead the global trend and concept vision for Hollister apparel, print and pattern, ensuring the brand remains forward, culturally relevant, and differentiated
• Develop and present seasonal creative direction that guides apparel design across categories, genders, and regions
• Identify emerging and macro trends in fashion, youth culture, music, art, social platforms, and lifestyle, translating into actionable insights for design teams
• Partner closely with Apparel Design leaders to inspire newness while maintaining brand consistency and point of view
• Create and deliver compelling concept materials (trend decks, mood boards, narratives, visual storytelling) that inform design direction
• Help designers interpret trends through a Hollister lens balancing aspiration, accessibility, and commercial relevance
• Influence color, material, silhouette, graphic, and styling direction through concept leadership, not direct design ownership
• Gain inspiration through deep customer immersion, spending time in the environments, communities, and cultural moments that influence how our customer dresses and expresses themselves, and translate findings into clear trend insights & recaps for design
• Collaborate with Visual partners as needed to ensure product concepts translate clearly at point of presentation

What Do You Need To Bring?

• Bachelor’s degree in Fashion Design, Fashion Merchandising, or a related creative field (or equivalent experience)
• 10–15+ years of experience in trend forecasting, concept development, or creative leadership within apparel or fashion brands
• Deep understanding of global youth culture and fashion trends, with a strong instinct for what’s next
• Strong visual storytelling skills, with the ability to turn cultural insight into clear, actionable creative direction
• Comfort operating in ambiguity and early‑stage ideation, where trends are still forming
• Executive‑level communication skills with experience presenting to senior leadership
• A clear, confident creative point of view grounded in brand and consumer understanding
• Ability to meet deadlines in fast paced retail environment

Benefits & Perks

• Incentive bonus program
• 401(K) savings plan with company match
• Annual companywide review process
• Flexible spending accounts
• Medical, dental and vision insurance
• Life and disability insurance
• Associate assistance program
• Paid parental and adoption leave
• Access to fertility and adoption benefits through Carrot
• Access to mental health and wellness app, Headspace
• Paid Caregiver Leave
• Mobile Stipend
• Paid time off and one paid volunteer day per year, allowing you to give back to your community
• Work from anywhere (Mondays and Fridays are “work from anywhere” days for most roles and six work from anywhere weeks per year)
• Seven associate wellness half days per year
• Merchandise discount on all of our brands
• Opportunities for career advancement, we believe in promoting from within
• Access to multiple Associate Resource Groups
• Global team of people who will celebrate you for being YOU!