Sr Designer - Men's Fleece, Tees and Polos

American Eagle Outfitters Inc.; New York (NY); Hybrid; USD 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Generous employee discount

Summer Fridays

Hybrid schedule

Casual dress code

FOMO events

Job summary

American Eagle Outfitters Inc. is hiring a Senior Designer for Men's Fleece, Tees & Polos in New York. This role requires 8+ years of experience in apparel design, overseeing design operations and mentorship of junior designers while aligning seasonal designs with market trends.

Ideal candidates should possess a bachelor's degree in Fashion or Art, be skilled in Adobe Suite and CAD drawing, and have a keen eye for detail. A hybrid schedule and generous employee benefits are included.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of related experience required.
• Keen eye for detail and construction necessary.
• Experience in Knits is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Identify and assess market trends relevant to AE brand.
• Collaborate on seasonal key ideas and presentations.
• Supervise Assistant and Associate Designers.

Skills

Apparel experience

Sketching and CAD skills

Color and trend analysis

Communication skills

Multi-tasking

Education

Bachelor's Degree in Fashion or Art

Tools

Adobe Suite (Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign)

Excel

PLM

Job description

Senior Designer, Men's Fleece, Tees & Polos

Position Title: Senior Designer, Men's Fleece, Tees & Polos

Reports To: Associate Design Director

What You’ll Do:

• Continuously identify and assess domestic and international market trends, ensuring their relevance to the AE brand identity.
• Collaborate with the Associate Design Director to define seasonal key ideas, prints, wash and color direction, ensuring alignment with leadership's overarching seasonal concepts.
• Maintain thorough knowledge of raw materials, partnering with the material team for seasonal fabric sourcing, managing requests and approvals in weekly meetings, and supporting the Design Director with fabrication needs.
• Partner with the Associate Design Director on seasonal presentations and key milestones, confidently addressing questions from executive leadership.
• Utilize excellent sketching and CAD skills to communicate proper proportion, details, and construction for presentation decks and tech packs.
• Ensure seasonal decks contain up-to-date information on details, wash, and color.
• Oversee tech pack creation, ensuring the design team accurately assembles information in PLM, proofing work, and providing an extra set of eyes across all styles, escalating questions to the Associate Design Director as needed.
• Partner with the production team to schedule hand‑offs according to calendar deadlines.
• Collaborate with the production team to achieve the highest quality product within the required cost structure.
• Oversee communication of spec and design intent to the technical design team. Attend and support all style fittings, guiding teams through fit comments, and supporting and proofing follow‑up. Oversee trim, color, print, Gold tag, and shade band approvals with the design team.
• Partner with merchants to ensure design alignment on seasonal needs and changes throughout the season.
• Supervise and develop Assistant and Associate Designers, providing essential training and mentorship for their career advancement.
• Oversee the design team's daily operations and workload, prioritizing tasks across multiple, often overlapping seasons, and supporting daily vendor communications via email and mail.
• Partner with the Associate Design Director on seasonal calendar and category‑specific deadlines to ensure their achievability.
• In person/in‑office collaboration is required, the frequency of such in‑person/in‑office collaboration (e.g., portion of week, entire week) is dictated by business needs. Such collaboration includes work centralized around product development, milestone meetings, fittings, and approvals.

What You Bring:

• Bachelor's Degree in Fashion or Art (or equivalent experience and education).
• Experience working in Apparel. Knits experience is a plus.
• 8+ years related experience.
• Keen eye for color, trend, detail and construction.
• Able to multi‑task and prioritize based on business objectives.
• Working knowledge of Adobe Suite (Illustrator/Photoshop/Indesign) and Excel. PLM experience is a plus.
• Ability to act as liaison between many departments, excellent communication, and analytic skills.
• Must be detail oriented, computer literate and able to handle multiple tasks at once.

Why You’ll Love It Here:

• Generous employee discount
• Summer Fridays
• Casual dress code
• Hybrid schedule
• FOMO events (Exciting company‑wide events)

Pay & Benefits Information:

• Actual starting pay is determined by various factors, including but not limited to relevant experience and location.
• Subject to eligibility requirements, associates may receive health care benefits (including medical, vision, and dental); wellness benefits; 401(k) retirement benefits; life and disability insurance; employee stock purchase program; paid time off; paid sick leave; and parental leave and benefits.
• Paid Time Off, paid sick leave, and holiday pay vary by job level and type, job location, employment classification (part‑time or full‑time / exempt or non‑exempt), and years of service. For additional information, please click here.
• AEO may also provide discretionary bonuses and other incentives at its discretion.

About AEO:

American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE: AEO) is a leading global specialty retailer with a portfolio of beloved apparel brands including American Eagle, Aerie, OFFL/NE by Aerie, Todd Snyder and Unsubscribed. Rooted in optimism, inclusivity and authenticity, AEO’s brands empower every customer to celebrate their unique personal style by offering casual, comfortable, timeless outfitting and high‑quality products that are made to last. In addition to a robust e‑commerce business, we operate stores in the United States, Canada and Mexico, with merchandise available in more than 30 countries through a global network of license partners.

At AEO, we believe in the power of our people and our brands. Our Better Together culture creates a mutual desire to succeed–inspiring our community to excel, while driving future growth for the business and associates. Through experience, exposure and education we empower associates to build their unique career journey.

Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Access at AEO:

AEO is an Equal Opportunity Employer and is committed to complying with all federal, state and local equal employment opportunity (“EEO”) laws. AEO prohibits discrimination against associates and applicants for employment because of the individual's race or color, religion or creed, alienage or citizenship status, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity or expression, marital or partnership status, domestic violence or stalking victim status, genetic information or predisposing genetic characteristics, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. This applies to all AEO activities, including, but not limited to, recruitment, hiring, compensation, assignment, training, promotion, performance evaluation, discipline and discharge. AEO also provides reasonable accommodation of religion and disability in accordance with applicable law.

Applications will be accepted until the Apply Before date (if applicable), but may be extended based on applicant volume.