Design Jobs Board

Job Title: Head of Design

Department: Design

Reporting to: Brand Director

Main Purpose: 

Responsible for leading the design and aesthetic direction of the brand with the Brand Director. Understand and evolve the Brand DNA in line with the agreed strategy. Responsible for the seasonal strategic design briefs and creative vision with the Hobbs customer very much at its heart. Ensuring the brief and creative vision delivers the commercial strategy in the business plan.

Responsibilities

• Set the creative and seasonal vision
• Lead and manage the design, print, fabric and pattern room teams
• Brief and manage the press show sampling process
• Design specific small capsule collections depending on the strategy eg the premium London Collection
• Represent the brand in sign off and business presentations
• Manage the team structure and budgets (salary, print, travel & samples)

Design direction

• Lead the creative tone and seasonal design direction at the beginning of each season. Ensure the brands individual personality is reflected and gives members of the teams a leading steer into the creative vision for each end use.
• Creation of the seasonal colour palette ensuring that this commercially works for all departments and end uses across the collection. Ensuring the timing and choice is planned and managed across the season across all end uses.
• Support the teams to identify the key shape, key item opportunities alongside developing strong cohesive packs for each end use and phased drop.
• Lead the fabric development strategy with the support of the cloth manager, ensuring the strategic objectives of the business delivering margin requirements for each product type are supported.

Research and market knowledge

• Input and lead the design and product opportunity in the B&M strategy to for the business.
• Knowledgeable about the fashion market including both aspirational and competitive brands
• Visit local and international shows for sourcing and inspiration as agreed within the critical path and budget
• Visit the Far East and any other manufacturing facilities as and when required within the critical path and budget
• Passionately, positively and inspirationally present your collections at sign off meetings, collection launches, wholesale customer visits and team presentations when required
• Visit stores regularly for feedback from both staff and customers to ensure the collections are exceeding expectations and feedback on challenges and missed opportunities to the Brand Director

Press show management

Identify key looks, fabrics and prints to add in. Brief the teams and work through pattern room schedule. Work with stylist and PR to deliver strong Hobbs interpretation of catwalk trends.

Premium London / other collection design as necessary

Hands on design skills to design capsule collections or react and add newness

Team management

• Manage and control the critical path dates with the HOB to deliver collections on time as specified by the launch dates
• Work closely with the Head of buying and merchandising to support the teams to build collections which are both creative and commercial, using the seasonal strategy as a starting point
• Ensure all critical path dates are set and agreed. Ensure the teams work to an effective and timely product sign off process whilst balancing the need for extra look book and press show pieces
• Work closely with the buying and technical teams to set and ensure fit and quality is developed and maintained, which exceeds that out our competitors
• Steer styling and trim meetings
• Manage the pattern room team, freelance pattern cutting resource and print teams across end uses and seasonal demands
• Support the teams to source inspirational prints, swatches, embroideries, trims and knit items during the creation of the collections.
• Responsible for the sign off of the collections with the Brand Director and Head of Merchandising, ready to present to the MD.
• Budget and planning. Work with finance to plan and agree a budget for travel, sampling, freelance resource, prints and pattern room.