What are the responsibilities and job description for the Home Decor Product Designer-Dotcom (Hybrid) position at Uniek Inc.?
Company Description
Top North American Home Décor Company is seeking an enthusiastic Product Designer to join our e-commerce business team in this exciting and fast-paced industry! The ideal candidate will have completed a degree program in Design (Product Design, Graphic Design, Interior Design, or Industrial Design) with 5 years of experience. A background in home décor or furniture products is highly desired.
As a Product Designer, you will be a key contributor to custom product development, working with our internal cross-functional teams and overseas suppliers. You will support and add value to our Design, Marketing, and Sales teams as we bring product to market via our online channel partners (Amazon, Wayfair, Overstock, Target.com, among others) and through our brand website, kateandlaurel.com
Purpose and Objectives:
- Responsible for the design, development, and introduction of new products that meet the needs of the Uniek business and our consumers.
- Responsible for understanding current and future design trends.
- Responsible for following the product pathway from concept through sampling.
Essential/Specific Duties and Tasks:
- Understanding and accountability for developing and participating in the product design for new product introductions, while hitting determined price points and trade profit goals.
- Working with Marketing, Product Management, Engineering, and Sourcing to provide requested deliverables for all assigned projects, including hand sketches, digital renderings, and 2D mock-ups.
- Product design and development for the following categories that is trend right and meet the needs of channel partners and consumers:
- Accent Furniture
- Wall Organization
- Shelving
- Mirrors
- Décor Accents
- Art
- Picture Frames
- Support designs through relevant trend information.
- Continually investigate new product ideas, design features, and attributes to provide Uniek with product distinction and a competitive advantage.
- Work directly with the manufacturing staff, sourcing department, and outside suppliers to continue to drive the use of new materials.
- Understand a spectrum of materials, construction types, and associated cost drivers. Make informed decisions when specifying materials.
- Understand performance measures of new and existing products that include quality, channel placement, sales forecasts vs actual performance, standard cost vs actual cost, and targeted margins.
- Performs other duties as assigned.
Held Accountable For:
- Designing and developing approved new products per project plans and within established budget parameters while achieving margin requirements.
- Maintaining a thorough understanding of current and future décor trends.
- Works independently on the design of product lines with direction from the e-commerce team and diligently meets or exceeds project timelines.
- Communication to management of product/project status and next steps.
Qualifications:
- College degree in Graphic Design, Product Design, Interior Design, or Industrial Design.
- 5 years in a design role, preferably in furniture or home décor design and development.
- Excellent working knowledge of Adobe Creative Suite and Microsoft Office products required.
- Working knowledge of SolidWorks, and/or Keyshot, and/or other 3D rendering programs is highly desired.
- Experience with project management – the ability to prioritize, manage, and deliver multiple projects on time.
- Experience with overseas sourcing.
- Comfortable working with a team and independently, with self-discipline to keep workflow efficient.
- Flexibility to adapt quickly to internal and external changes and a desire to work in a fast-paced environment.
- Excellent written and oral communication skills, plus conceptual and creative aptitude.
Key Performance Indicators:
- On-time and on-cost completion of assigned projects.
- Completion of trend support for independent designs as requested by team members.
- Demonstrated understanding of materials used to create different home décor products.
- Recognized by team members as enthusiastic and passionate about growing in this industry.
We offer an excellent benefits package to include: paid vacation; paid sick time; holiday pay, health, dental, and vision insurance; paid Short Term Disability, Basic Life, and AD&D insurance; Flexible Spending Account (medical & dependent); supplemental life and AD&D; Long Term Disability and 401K with company match.
Interested and qualified candidates should send their resume and a link to their portfolio for consideration.
Please note this is not an IT or Engineering role.
This position is not remote.