Lead Designer, GFB Footwear Materials Design

Nike • Beaverton, OR

3d

About The Position

You will be part of the Nike Global Football Footwear Design team, working at the intersection of performance innovation, material craftsmanship, and global sport culture. This role collaborates closely with cross-functional partners across Footwear Design, Color Design, Graphic Design, Digital Design, Product Management, Marketing, Development, Innovation, and Manufacturing Partners to deliver industry-leading product expression and innovation. You will help drive the material design vision for Global Football Footwear, partnering closely with your senior manager and a Lead Material Designer to bring seasonal concepts and long-term innovation strategies to life. While this role provides leadership and direction within the team, it does not include direct people management responsibilities. This role reports directly to the Senior Manager, Footwear Materials Design.

Requirements

• Brings a portfolio demonstrating excellence in material design, textile design, footwear design, or related product design disciplines
• Possesses 4+ years of relevant experience in material design, textile design, footwear design, or a related field
• Demonstrates a deep understanding of football culture, athlete insights, and performance product creation
• Has experience developing innovative material concepts from ideation through commercialization
• Translates consumer and athlete insights into compelling narratives and product solutions
• Understands how manufacturing processes can unlock new opportunities for material innovation
• Demonstrates strong craftsmanship through material exploration, sample creation, and prototyping
• Operates as a proactive and highly collaborative partner across functions
• Thrives in a fast-paced, team-oriented environment
• Brings a passion for sustainability, innovation, and the future of sport
• To be considered, you must submit a design portfolio.

Responsibilities

• Create original, industry-leading material concepts for football footwear collections
• Develop material strategies that support seasonal narratives, athlete insights, and product performance goals
• Translate consumer, athlete, and cultural insights into innovative material solutions
• Explore and implement new material constructions, finishes, textures, and manufacturing techniques
• Build and refine material palettes that elevate product expression across multiple franchises and product tiers
• Partner with Design, Color, Graphics, and Development teams to ensure cohesive product storytelling
• Collaborate directly with manufacturing partners to achieve material quality, feasibility, and execution excellence
• Create, evaluate, and refine physical prototypes, mockups, and material samples
• Drive innovation through material exploration while balancing performance, cost, manufacturability, and sustainability goals
• Contribute to both immediate seasonal product creation and long-term material innovation roadmaps
• Lead presentations and communicate design intent to internal and external stakeholders
• Influence and align cross-functional teams around material strategy and creative direction

Benefits

• We offer a number of accommodations to complete our interview process including screen readers, sign language interpreters, accessible and single location for in-person interviews, closed captioning, and other reasonable modifications as needed.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: No Education Listed