Women’s Sportwear Designer (O'Neill Clothing)

Company Introduction

The La Jolla Group is a worldwide leader in the action sports apparel business segment with a fast paced, high-energy environment that is continually on the move. With prominent brands such as O’Neill, PSD Underwear, Mountain Khakis, Sol Angeles, and Hang Ten, La Jolla Group has proved to be a builder of great brands, a creator of innovative products, and a master of operational excellence.

Our team enjoys flexibility with a hybrid schedule of in-office and remote work. We offer awesome discounts on our clothing brands, early release Fridays (2:00pm), occasional employer provided lunches, year-round fun events as well as a full benefits package!  We believe our employees are our strongest asset and invest in their growth by focusing on developing their strengths.

General Summary

We are looking for a talented Women’s Sportwear Designer to join the product design team at O’Neill Clothing.  The ideal candidate brings at least 5 years of previous experience in womenswear, knits & wovens, is super creative with an understanding of what is commercial, has a positive attitude, is driven by excellence, and has an elevated eye with close attention to detail.  We want a true team player who understands how to execute from concept to production in the product design cycle while adhering to deadlines and standard operating processes.  Collaborating & communicating effectively is required, and experience with PLM systems is a plus.  Must have an excellent eye for color, trend, aesthetics, the juniors and contemporary markets and bring strong knowledge in garment construction, fit and textiles.  Possessing the ability to re-color, adjust and scale prints is also favorable.

Essential Job Functions

• Responsible for technical sketches and execution of the O’Neill Women’s & Girls sportswear line
• Responsible for creating and maintaining all cads, tech sketches, detail sketches, boms, tech packs & VLP’s
• Responsible for managing fabric sourcing requests, style descriptions and style set up & maintenance in PLM
• Must come prepared for all milestone meetings with designs, reference swatches, fabrics and correct information on sketches and VLP’s
• Ability to create and manipulate stripe, plaid and illustrator texture fills, scale and size artwork, embroidery, print fills and trims
• Meticulous & proficient in executing complete tech packs in Illustrator format, maintaining tech packs through our PLM system
• Attend and drive style fittings, collaborate with tech design department for best-in-class fits
• Review & comment on strike-offs & lab dips, collaborate with textile designers and director on prints & execution
• Must be able to communicate clear POV and ideas tailored to who our customer is via imagery, mood boards and recaps
• Must be able to analyze market trends and apply to designs within the brand lens
• Stay organized on deadlines, trim, labels, fabric development & VLP’s
• Work closely with Director, Merchandisers, PD, tech and communicate cross-functionally
• SMU’s are managed by category designers across all divisions
• Sense of urgency & professionalism in correspondence & dealings with both internal and external partners
• Teamwork skills to share information and work collaboratively to build a cohesive collection by season
• Creative problem-solving, and capable of analyzing merch line plans and supporting margin goals
• Organizing bought & reference samples and maintaining photo library & fabric references

Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

Technical Proficiency

• Strong command of Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop on the Mac platform
• Familiarity with PLM systems (Centric PLM experience a plus)

 Apparel Design Expertise

• Solid understanding of apparel design, garment construction, and production processes
• Knowledge of fabric development, washes, and textile print techniques
• Excellent CAD sketching ability and presentation of design concepts

Creative & Visual Skills

• Strong sense of color theory, proportion, and scale
• Keen eye for detail, accuracy, and aesthetic consistency

Collaboration & Work Ethic

• Team-oriented mindset with the ability to take direction and collaborate cross-functionally
• Positive, proactive attitude with a strong sense of accountability

Organization & Communication

• Highly organized with effective time management and prioritization skills
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment
• Clear verbal and visual presentation skills

Required Education and Experience

• 5+ Years of women’s apparel design experience
• Accessories design experience a plus

Please provide examples of work or portfolio to be considered.

Physical Requirements

Seeing: Must be able to see well enough to read reports.
Hearing: Must be able to hear well enough to communicate with customers, vendors and employees.
Climbing/Stooping/Kneeling: Must be able to stoop or kneel to pick up products.
Lifting/Pulling/Pushing: Must be able to lift up to 10 pounds.
Fingering/Grasping/Feeling: Must be able to type and use technical sources.

La Jolla Group provides equal employment opportunities to all qualified individuals without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, pregnancy, age, national origin, physical or mental disability, military or veteran status, genetic information, or any other protected classification. Equal employment opportunity includes, but is not limited to, hiring, training, promotion, demotion, transfer, leaves of absence, and termination. La Jolla Group takes allegations of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation seriously and will promptly investigate when such behavior is reported.

Note: The statements herein are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed, but are not to be seen as a complete list of responsibilities, duties, and skills required of personnel so classified. Also, they do not establish a contract for employment and are subject to change at the discretion of the employer.

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