Footwear Designer

Role Purpose: The Footwear Designer leads the design and development process for the department, building a balanced, comprehensive product offer with the required pricing structure and margin. This role delivers constant newness combined with commerciality and a strong affinity for fast fashion, heavily influenced by the latest catwalk and trend predictions specific to the non-clothing and footwear sectors. Role Responsibilities: Design & Creative Leadership Take responsibility for the design, development, and delivery of relevant, trend-led products for a specific area. Produce overarching concepts, trends, and storyboards, including mood and trend boards seasonally with associated color palettes and print research. Manage and provide clear design direction to the Design Assistant, including planning their daily workload. Present new product ranges confidently to management and buying teams. Conduct research trips to key fashion hubs like NYC, Paris, and London to identify product opportunities for all areas of the business. Liaise directly with the sample room and brief designs to creative pattern cutters to ensure technical execution matches the creative vision. Technical & Commercial Execution Maintain a deep understanding of pricing, margins, and the "design to price point" process. Plan the development trip calendar and travel to India and China to actively develop products and build the range. Collaborate with production teams on all order approvals and resolve any costing issues. Manage own time effectively to meet all deadlines and complete ad-hoc duties to ensure the continuous development of the business. Continually aim for self-development, actively seeking support and guidance from the Line Manager. Technical Requirements: Previous design experience within a high street fashion retailer or supplier, specifically within non-clothing or footwear departments. Experience working with embellishment, embroidery, and materials relevant to footwear and accessories. Excellent free-hand fashion illustration and technical drawing skills specific to footwear and non-clothing products. Demonstrable awareness of the retail industry, including category-specific trends, potential threats, and opportunities. Strong interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to convey technical and creative information clearly. Ability to handle highly confidential information with absolute discretion. Exceptional attention to detail and a spirit that rises to challenges.