Design Associate, Footwear

Coach is a global fashion house founded in New York in 1941. Inspired by the vision of Creative Director Stuart Vevers and the inclusive and courageous spirit of our hometown, we make beautiful things, crafted to last—for you to be yourself in.

Coach is part of the Tapestry portfolio – a global house of brands committed to stretching what’s possible.

A member of the Tapestry family, we are part of a global house of brands that has unwavering optimism and is committed to being innovative and wholly inclusive. Visit Our People page to learn more about Tapestry’s commitment to equity, inclusion, and diversity.

ASSOCIATE DESIGNER – Women’s Footwear Work within team and assist senior team to design and develop footwear for women’s casual and dress shoes category that not only meet our customer’s needs but fit within the Coach aesthetic and the brand’s larger design goals. This role may grow to include independently managing areas of design and development or specific categories or relationships within the scope of the design team’s responsibilities.

The successful individual will leverage their proficiency to…

• Contribute seasonally appropriate concept development and trend research.
• Communicate designs through well executed hand or digital sketches.
• Work with team to thoughtfully present concepts and designs to cross functional partners and senior design team.
• Collaborate with cross functional partners to ensure footwear concepts and designs sit within the greater seasonal direction for the brand and address our customer’s needs.
• Assist senior team in being responsible for timeline adherence; ensure all design documentation are delivered to development partners on time and remain organized throughout the season.
• Utilize and develop technical knowledge of footwear construction to communicate specifications for designs and pattern layouts to partners.
• Partner with material team to identify trends and consider sustainability while sourcing seasonal materials. This may grow to include travel to leather fairs.
• Partner with technician in New York to correct prototypes. This may lead to accompanying senior team members on travel to Asia to review and correct samples.
• Efficiently CAD final designs for line opening presentations and specs.
• Work within design team and with cross functional partners to detail the line as a design forward but well merchandised collection. Along with team, responsible for insuring the design integrity is met throughout the entire product development process from concept through manufacturing.

Runway

• Contribute seasonally appropriate concept research with an understanding of vintage footwear.
• In addition to the design development of Runway footwear, assist team in partnering and coordinating with ready to wear at key styling points throughout the season.
• Must be available to work for all days during show styling; be on hand while looks are being assigned, keep track of footwear allocation, run errands and make last minute modifications to footwear as needed.

The accomplished individual will possess…

• 3+ years of equivalent or relative experience in footwear
• Ability to sketch both technical drawings and freeform sketches and renderings
• Experience in working with cross-functional teams.
• Exceptional proficiency in Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, and Microsoft Excel
• Ability to handle multiple priorities quickly and efficiently and with tight deadlines
• Team player with strong communication and organization skills
• Understanding of the Coach aesthetic.

**Our Competencies for All Employees

Courage** Doesn’t hold back anything that needs to be said; provides current, direct, complete, and “actionable” positive and corrective feedback to others; lets people know where they stand; faces up to people problems on any person or situation (not including direct reports) quickly and directly; is not afraid to take negative action when necessary. Creativity Comes up with a lot of new and unique ideas; easily makes connections among previously unrelated notions; tends to be seen as original and value-added in brainstorming settings. Customer Focus Is dedicated to meeting the expectations and requirements of internal and external customers; gets first-hand customer information and uses it for improvements in products and services; acts with customers in mind; establishes and maintains effective relations…