What are the responsibilities and job description for the Anthropologie Senior Designer - Structured Wovens position at Anthropologie?
Role Summary
Anthropologie is looking for a Senior Designer for Structured Wovens to contribute to the overall trend and direction for designs each season for Anthropologie apparel product categories. The Senior Designer will actively participate in designing seasonal collections while supervising the associate and assistant designers to ensure that designs and resulting product are appropriate for the Anthropologie customer.
Role Responsibilities
Contribute to the overall seasonal trend vision and creative direction across all product categories, labels, and design initiatives.
Conduct regular market and street-style research throughout the year; photograph trends and source competitive samples for design inspiration.
Partner with the Production team to globally source fabrics and yarns that align with design intent, budget targets, and quality standards.
Collaborate weekly with the Design Manager/Director and Buying team to review emerging trends and identify in-season opportunities.
Work closely with Designers and Design Leadership each season to establish and execute the conceptual direction for the total product assortment.
Identify and develop fabrics and yarns within line-plan and cost parameters, partnering with Production to manage lead times, minimums, and costing constraints.
Design styles, develop or select trims, and define colorways for materials reviewed at Raw Materials meetings.
Present development samples and color palettes at Proto and Finalization meetings for cross-functional merchant review.
Partner with the Design Coordinator to create, maintain, and update accurate tech packs in PDM; communicate fit, construction, and design intent to Technical Design. Complete all technical sketches for both domestic and overseas programs.
Travel to factories as needed to oversee development, sampling, and execution of seasonal programs.
Lead and manage weekly fit sessions, ensuring product integrity and consistency with design vision.
Mentor, develop, and train Designers and Assistant/Associate Designers; establish clear development goals each review period and foster a collaborative, creative, and high-performance design team.
Role Qualifications
Core Competencies & Skills
Demonstrated ability to recognize, interpret, and accurately forecast fashion and cultural trends.
Creative Vision: Ability to identify trends in their early stages and translate cultural insights into compelling, forward-thinking design concepts. Skilled at distilling aspirational ideas into key details that resonate with a broad, aspirational customer while maintaining brand relevance and accessibility.
Proven ability to research, analyze, and report on industry trends, color direction, and fabric innovations approximately 9–12 months ahead of season. Brings original creative ideas that provide Anthropologie with a clear point of differentiation in the market without becoming overly niche or obscure.
Strong ability to clearly articulate creative ideas and inspire others. Highly proficient in Adobe Illustrator for CAD development and design presentations. Excellent communication skills with the ability to effectively collaborate with Designers, Buyers, and cross-functional Home Office partners.
Exceptional organizational and time-management skills, with the ability to manage multiple projects and deadlines simultaneously. Capable of delegating responsibilities and directing the daily workflow of Assistant and Associate Designers while providing clear creative and technical guidance.
Comprehensive knowledge of apparel construction, including dyeing, silk screening, washing techniques, and specialized fabric treatments.
Thorough understanding of global manufacturing techniques and production processes. Ability to travel to factories and conduct effective, results-driven vendor and agent meetings.
Strong people leadership skills with the ability to motivate, mentor, develop, and coach team members. Recognizes that building and nurturing high-performing teams is critical to the company’s success. Provides constructive feedback and performance evaluations in alignment with company guidelines, with a focus on internal growth and advancement.
Proven ability to build strong partnerships with Buyers, Design Directors, and Department Heads across the organization.
Education
Bachelor’s degree in Fashion Design or a related field preferred.
Experience Requirements
7-9 years of progressive experience in fashion design.
Strong understanding of fashion trends and deep knowledge of the Anthropologie customer.
Expert-level technical knowledge of apparel construction.
Expert-level understanding of fabrics and trims, supported by strong vendor and resource relationships.
Extensive knowledge of fabric treatments, wash processes, and dye techniques.
Extensive experience with manufacturing techniques and end-to-end production processes.
The Perks
URBN offers comprehensive Perks & Benefits to employees. Availability and eligibility to specific benefits may be subject to your location and employment status. Benefits include medical, dental, vision, PTO, generous employee discounts, retirement savings and much more! For additional information visit www.urbn.com/work-with-us/benefits
EEO Statement
URBN celebrates diversity and is committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. We are proud to provide equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, sex (including gender, pregnancy, sexual orientation, and gender identity or expression), religion, creed, age, physical or mental disability, national origin or ancestry, ethnicity, citizenship, service in the uniformed services, genetic information, or any other protected characteristic as established by law. We believe strongly in fostering a safe, fair and respectful work environment. To ensure compliance with our non-discrimination and anti-harassment policies, we offer anti-harassment training to managers and employees.