Associate Designer, SweatersAbout us: Vineyard vines is a highly successful, privately held, American clothing and accessory retailer founded in 1998 on Martha's Vineyard by brothers, Shep & Ian Murray. With Shep & Ian still at the helm today, vineyard vines has experienced exponential year over year growth and now operates over 100 retail locations including an outlet division, a successful e-commerce business, domestic distribution center, and expanding corporate headquarters. In addition, vineyard vines is also carried in major department stores such as Nordstrom and Bloomingdales as well as numerous specialty boutiques across the US. At vineyard vines we pride ourselves on Shep & Ian's philosophy that “every day should feel this good” and “if you're doing what you love, you'll be successful”. vineyard vines was founded on a state of mind that Every day should feel this good. You don't need to be on a beach, by the ocean or on vacation to have Every day should feel this good moments. It's a state of mind that we all experience, and one where everyone is invited. At vineyard vines, we don't just live an #EDSFTG life away from our desks- we bring it to work with us, too. In our stores, at our Harbor Drive headquarters or working remotely, our company culture is fun, encouraging and welcoming to all. We work hard and play harder, and we never take ourselves too seriously. And while we have many company goals, our number one priority is making vineyard vines a great place to work for all employees. Our team is our family, and we'd never have grown to where we are today without them. We're committed to building an inclusive team across all channels, departments and stores within our community. We hope you'll join us and see what the smiling pink whale is all about. Overview: We are looking to hire a well-organized, talented and enthusiastic sweaters designer to join our team. This individual will be responsible for assisting the Design Director with the designing and development of all categories of sweaters, including CWA. This position contributes to the overall success of vineyard vines. This candidate should be proactive in their approach, look for opportunities to improve upon existing structures and find creative ways to utilize best practices. Key Responsibilities:
- Create original and innovative designs each season in conjunction with the design director that are on concept, trend and brand appropriate
- Design and present key trends, yarn and silhouette direction delivering a balanced assortment of key items, fashion key items, and fashion must-haves
- Responsible for managing design process for sweaters including: market research, designing, sketching, selecting yarns, trying new gauges and stitches, trims as well as fit direction
- Assist in sourcing yarns and communications directly with Spinners
- Attend all proto and regular fittings; develop blocks in partnership with Design Directors and Tech Design
- Play a key role in executing initial development for each season through creation of original artwork and layouts
- Work closely with cross functional teams- Product Development, Merchandising, and Tech Design to ensure information flow is accurate throughout the development process
- Create detailed flats for presentation
- Assist in all aspects of daily follow-up with external and internal partners
- Participate in group meetings, fabric shows and trend shopping
What you bring:
- 2+ years of experience working in sweater design
- In-depth knowledge working with sweaters, sweater construction, including knit machinery, familiarity with mills, yarns, gauges and stiches, fit and finish
- Excellent creativity, a high taste level and a strong understanding of the vineyard vines aesthetic
- Innate knowledge of fashion and trends with the ability to focus into the new direction each season
- Knowledge of fabric and trim sourcing with strong relationships and resources
- Computer skills: Excellent Photoshop and Illustrator skills, Microsoft Excel, PLM, Pointcarre
- Excellent communication and presentation skills
- Strong time management skills and ability to thrive in a fast paced environment; excellent delegation skills
- Good interpersonal skills and ability to work with a team
- Upbeat, positive attitude
- Excitement to learn**
- Hand sketching experience a plus!
- Bachelor's Degree in Fashion Design
Every day will feel this good because:
- We have a fun-spirited entrepreneurial culture filled with truly good people
- We have flexible working hours and work from home days to accommodate your personal life
- We offer a generous employee discount so you can rep our lifestyle on-and-off the boat
- We offer a competitive salary package, 401-K, commuter benefits, and paid-family leave, health savings, flex spending accounts, life & disability insurance
- We have an onsite gym as well as health & financial wellness programs to keep you active
- We offer 2 summer Fridays to take off in addition to a competitive vacation policy & holiday calendar