Director, Kobe Apparel Product Design

Reports directly to the Sr. Creative Director and partners across Innovation, Excellence, Development, Materials, Styling, Footwear, Colour, Graphics, PLM, Development and Merchandising to shape the future of Kobe Apparel. It leads a nimble team of apparel designers in creating elevated platforms and systems that embody the Kobe mindset, driven by radical curiosity, fearless experimentation and an unwavering pursuit of pinnacle performance.

• Lead a team of apparel designers in creating elevated platforms and systems that embody the Kobe mindset.
• Drive innovative, athlete-inspired product design that reflects a relentless pursuit of excellence.
• Lead the design of innovative, athlete-informed performance apparel for Kobe Basketball.
• Translate athlete and consumer insights into meaningful product concepts, collections and narratives.
• Drive the end-to-end design process from concept through execution, including research, concept development, sketching, mood boards, material and trim direction, and prototype refinement.
• Partner with cross-functional teams across design, product management and development to ensure every product meets high standards of innovation, performance and craft.
• Partner across Innovation, Excellence, Development, Materials, Styling, Footwear, Colour, Graphics, PLM, Development and Merchandising to shape the future of Kobe Apparel.
• Create distinctive product stories that honour Kobe's legacy while shaping the future of the game.
• Serve as a leader and mentor, inspiring and guiding other designers through creative excellence and product innovation.
• Help define what performance basketball apparel looks and feels like for the next generation of athletes.

• Bachelor's degree in Apparel/Fashion Design or a related field; any suitable combination of education, experience and training will be accepted.
• 8+ years of relevant work experience in a design environment working with materials, trims, design and fit.
• Exceptional knowledge of design, art and fashion, as well as a passion for sport and youth culture.
• Exceptional ability to apply and perform design skills, including hand drawing/sketching, hand illustrations, proficiency in Adobe Illustrator, concept ideation, use of texture, spacing and scale, and visual presentation development and layout.
• High proficiency in Adobe Creative Suite.
• Comprehensive understanding of garment construction and fit.
• Comprehensive understanding of textile sciences.
• Comprehensive understanding of apparel trims.
• Ability to build design worlds, mood boards and presentations of creative vision.
• Ability to translate consumer and athlete insights into innovative product solutions and narratives.
• Ability to work in a rapidly changing, high growth environment and to manage multiple and competing work priorities, demands and changes.
• Demonstrated leadership capability, including the ability to inspire, involve and mentor others within the work group.
• An enthusiastic and positive attitude and the ability to work efficiently in a quick paced environment.