Design Manager - Women’s Footwear

San Francisco, CA l Product Design Team l Reporting to the Design Director

At Rothy’s, we know there’s a better way to do business, and it starts by putting the planet and its people first. More than 194 million single-use plastic bottles and 704,000 pounds of ocean-bound marine plastic have been transformed into our signature thread, creating wardrobe staples that look just as good as they feel.

Striving for zero waste, we combine 3D knitting technology and handcrafted assembly to create machine washable styles that don’t compromise on comfort. From classic shoes to carry-everywhere bags, we create essentials for wherever you go.

At Rothy’s, building a sustainable future is at the heart of everything we do. We pride ourselves on fostering an inclusive environment at our HQ, retail stores and wholly-owned factory, and are growing our community every day.

About the Team:

The creative minds behind our beloved products. The Product Design team is a group of brilliant shoe and bag designers with unparalleled insight into past and future brand innovations. Whether designing all-new silhouettes or imagining fresh colors and patterns for existing styles, this powerhouse team dreams up the icons Rothy’s is known for—from yesterday, today and tomorrow. You will be a part of a collaborative fast paced environment, working alongside the greater cross functional team to leverage key insights into brand objectives, consumer behaviors, and market trends to create fresh silhouettes that align to the product design vision & strategy.

As Footwear Design Manager, You will manage and own the execution of seasonal design concepts, ensuring alignment with senior design leadership & design strategy. You will proactively communicate and collaborate with key stakeholders on category related objectives to make sure they align with rothy’s brand DNA, applying your experience of building sustainable and innovative products. In partnership with senior design leadership, you may be responsible for managing a direct report and/or external consultants, managing team workload and ensuring you adhere to calendar milestones and driving the overarching design vision to achieve category business targets. You’ll be hands-on in the process of design; from initial ideation & construction techniques, to materialization and development. Your extensive technical understanding of footwear constructions, lasts, fit, and manufacturing processes will inform innovative products engineered to meet costing objectives. You will have a strong pulse on all trends across the fashion lifestyle space with a keen awareness of macro trends, consumer touchpoints and manufacturing processes.

This position reports to the Design Director.

What you’ll do:

In partnership with the Design Team, drive seasonal design concepts and storytelling to create a cohesive product assortment, set by the Senior Design Leadership.
Manage seasonal design roadmap to support incremental departmental growth.
Contribute in building seasonal Design milestone cadence with Senior Design Leadership.
Mentor and guide team members as well as external consultants.
Oversee seasonal calendar milestones, ensuring you and your team meet deadlines set by the product development and merchandising teams.
Contribute to streamlining department processes, resources to achieve short and long term goals. Including managing one or more direct reports.
Facilitate technical design direction, focused on technical construction, aesthetic, materials, and functionality.
Conduct in-depth research on market and fashion trends and provide insights to support seasonal direction to the larger team.
Review prototypes and pre-production samples against technical packages and oversee the formulation, feedback, and corrections needed for future prototypes iterations.
Proactively communicate with internal team members, throughout the entire development process, integrating feedback from key stakeholders.
Facilitate all changes from first prototype through final sample with a strong emphasis on fit and construction.

Innovate and problem solve at all stages of the design and development process.
Collaborate with PD/Production & Factory team members design’s intent and offer solutions to technical knitting, material and construction details.
Travel to the factory (1-3 times a year) for prototype revisions and in-country development.

You have:

8+ years of experience in footwear design required.
Bachelor's degree in Industrial design, Fashion Design, or related field.
Proven experience in the technical and fashion lifestyle space, leading the execution of design vision and strategy through application of emerging macro trends, sustainable materialization, and consumer touchpoints.
A strong 2D skillset, and demonstrated ability to concept ideas through hand sketching, computer renderings, mockups, etc
Ability to create tech packs including outsole profile, bottom, cross-section views; review and revise blue prints
Ability to design and engineer products in-line with company objectives and margin targets.
A Strong proficiency in Illustrator and Photoshop.
Extensive knowledge and strong technical understanding of footwear construction, lasts, outsoles, materials, and manufacturing processes, as well as a passion for Innovation.
You are highly detail oriented, and able to prioritize time and task to keep projects moving forward.
Ability to work within a fast-paced, ever-changing work environment.
Strong visual and verbal communication skills and ability to foster relationships with key stakeholders.

Our benefits:

Generous paid time off
401k matching
Comprehensive health plans for you and your family
Supplemental mental health benefits
Healthy snacks
Monthly wellness reimbursement
Quarterly product allowance!

Compensation Range: $120K - $141K

Rothy's

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Design Manager - Women's Footwear