kate spade new york · 1 week ago
Director, Design, Leathergoods
New York, NY
Full-time
Hybrid
Director/Executive
$170K/yr - $225K/yr
10+ years expKate Spade New York is a global lifestyle brand known for its colorful and bold designs. The Director of Design for Leathergoods will manage the design process for handbags and small leathergoods, lead the design team, and ensure product quality while collaborating with merchandising and product development teams.
Fashion
Hiring Manager
Diana Costescu
Responsibilities
Manage the design process from concept through production for Mainline handbags and small leathergoods
Lead the design team through the design process, providing clear direction and feedback for concepts, designs, layers, techniques, color and print placement, in close partnership with the VP of Leathergoods Design
Actively participate in the conceptual development of product lines including communicating and selling ideas/concepts, including recommendations for seasonal themes, new concepts, etc
Present concepts and designs in detail and holistically during cross functional milestone meetings in a manner that conveys design’s vision as well as merchandising requirements and demonstrates an understanding of the interdependencies of all product decisions
Partner closely with Merchandising on ensuring designs achieve line architecture needs
Research trends to apply to target consumer needs and translate to design process
Ensure that product is of high quality, cohesively designed and consistent with market trends, as well as business strategy
Work with designers, technical design team and product development team to ensure design packages are complete and accurate
Partner with the product development team to drive innovation through silhouettes, construction and techniques
Provide direction to hardware design team partners on hardware elements for handbags and small leathergoods
Partner with concept, print and color team members to ensure cohesive use of concepts, seasonal prints and colors
Execute corrections as needed; work with merchandising and product development to find appropriate solutions for costing or construction issues
Qualification
Required
Bachelor's Degree or equivalent work experience
10+ years design experience
Experience designing handbags in high end designer market supported by proven portfolio to be considered for role
Strong computer knowledge, including adobe illustrator
Strong leadership and communication skills
Strong ability to hand sketch
Strong design and conceptual skills
Strong sense of trends, style and color
Shape building skills required
Thorough knowledge of raw materials, as well as, construction techniques
Understanding of merchandising as it relates to sales and store environment
Preferred
SLG experience a plus
Benefits
Medical insurance
Dental insurance
Vision insurance
401 (K)
Paid Paternity and Maternity leave
Commuter Benefits
Disability insurance
Tuition assistance
Company
kate spade new york
since our launch in 1993 with six essential handbags, we’ve always stood for optimistic femininity.
5001-10000 employees
Funding
Current Stage
Late StageLeadership Team
Clarice W. Dowdle
CEO
Liz Fraser
CEO & Brand President
Recent News
2025-12-10
2025-11-07
2025-10-21
Company data provided by crunchbase