Senior Materials Innovator, Accessories

ALO; Los Angeles (CA); On-site; USD 110,000 - 145,000; Full time

Job summary

ALO is seeking a Senior Raw Material Developer, Accessories, to lead material development for bags, hats, socks, belts, and other soft goods. You will work with Design, Product Development, Sourcing, Quality, and suppliers to bring innovative materials to market on time, balancing aesthetics, cost, and manufacturability.

The role requires 4+ years in accessories materials, strong technical judgment, and the ability to drive standards.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Textile Engineering, Materials Science, Industrial Design, Product Development, Fashion Merchandising, or related field.
• 4+ years of raw material development experience in accessories, handbags, soft goods, trims, or related product categories.
• Strong understanding of soft materials, trims, and hardware used in accessories construction.
• Experience managing suppliers and commercialization across multiple vendors and regions.
• Proficiency in PLM, Excel, and development tracking tools.
• Clear and effective communication across technical and non-technical teams.

Responsibilities

• Lead raw material development from concept through commercialization for accessories categories.
• Source and evaluate new materials including wovens, knits, leather, synthetic leather, coated fabrics, webbings, mesh, foams, linings, fillings, labels, trims, hardware, and specialty components.
• Translate design intent into technical material requirements including handfeel, appearance, structure, durability, weight, functionality, and finish.
• Establish material specifications and validate against performance requirements such as abrasion, colorfastness, tensile and tear strength, pilling, crocking, coating adhesion, dimensional stability, wash durability, and corrosion resistance for hardware where applicable.
• Partner with Quality and Product Integrity teams to ensure materials meet testing, safety, and regulatory requirements.
• Troubleshoot raw material issues such as delamination, cracking, peeling, color migration, tarnishing, shrinkage, distortion, coating failure, odor, or inconsistency in finish.
• Support color approval and bulk consistency across soft materials, trims, and hardware finishes.
• Own raw material cost targets and partner with suppliers to negotiate pricing, MOQs, and feasible alternatives without compromising brand intent.
• Support should-cost thinking across material and trim packages, identifying cost drivers and optimization opportunities.
• Ensure on-time raw material readiness against seasonal calendars and development milestones.
• Build and maintain relationships with mills, tanneries, trim suppliers, hardware vendors, coating and finish suppliers, and finished goods manufacturers.
• Assess supplier capability and align on standards for quality, compliance, traceability, and execution.
• Communicate material options, risks, and trade-offs clearly to internal teams, balancing aesthetic, cost, speed, and performance.
• Maintain development trackers, approval logs, and issue-resolution follow-up with suppliers and cross-functional teams.
• Create and maintain complete documentation including material specifications, BOM details, test reports, compliance certificates, TDS and MSDS where needed, finish references, and approval history.
• Ensure PLM or equivalent systems are accurate for material codes, attributes, supplier information, lead times, pricing, and approval status.
• Support creation of material standards and playbooks for core accessory platforms and carry-over materials.

Skills

Material science

Supplier management

Project coordination

Education

Bachelor's degree in Textile Eng./Materials Sci.

Tools

PLM

Excel

Development tracking tools

Job description

ALO is seeking a Senior Raw Material Developer, Accessories, to lead material development for bags, hats, socks, belts, and other soft goods. You will work with Design, Product Development, Sourcing, Quality, and suppliers to bring innovative materials to market on time, balancing aesthetics, cost, and manufacturability.

The role requires 4+ years in accessories materials, strong technical judgment, and the ability to drive standards.