Men's Designer

Outerknown • Carlsbad, CA

64d

About The Position

The Men’s Designer at Outerknown is responsible for leading design execution across all men’s categories (e.g. tops, bottoms, outerwear, knits, sweaters, fleece, shirting, active, swim), with a strong focus on trend forecasting and analysis, brand clarity and customer centricity, creation and management of tech packs, and cross-category consistency. The role will partner closely with merchandising, technical design, product development, and production teams to ensure designs are on trend, customer focused, feasible, cost-effective, and aligned with the brand’s sustainability ethos. This role requires a minimum of three days in office, which may change at any time due to business needs.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Fashion Design, Apparel Design, or related; or equivalent experience.
• 3-5+ years of experience in men’s apparel design in a brand or wholesale environment covering multiple categories.
• Strong trend forecasting ability, a keen fashion sensibility and understanding of our brand ethos.
• Deep proficiency in tech pack creation (experience with tools like Adobe Illustrator, In Design, Backbone, Gerber, Techpacker, or equivalent).
• Excellent understanding of garment construction, sewing techniques, materials, and finishes.
• Experience working cross-functionally with technical design, sourcing, production, and merchandising.
• Strong communication, presentation, and collaborative skills.
• Well-organized, detail oriented, able to manage multiple projects simultaneously and meet deadlines.
• Portfolio demonstrating aesthetic maturity, technical skill, and versatility across categories.
• Flexibility to travel occasionally (e.g. for trade shows, vendor visits) if required.

Responsibilities

• Monitor men’s fashion trends, street style, trade shows, social media, and competitive brands to identify directional themes and market opportunities.
• Work with Creative Director and Merchandising to synthesize trend insights into concept presentations (mood boards, color palettes, silhouettes, prints/graphics) for seasonal direction.
• Translate macro and micro trend forecasts into actionable design direction tailored to our target customer.
• Design across all men’s categories (e.g. tops, bottoms, outerwear, knits, sweaters, fleece, shirting, active, swim), to ensure coherent brand language and technical feasibility.
• Drive innovation in silhouette, fabric, construction, detailing, prints/graphics, and embellishments across categories.
• Partner with product development and print teams to ideate and execute material and surface treatments consistent with seasonal direction.
• Sketch and CAD design concepts and present them visually for review and feedback.
• Produce flat drawings, spec sheets, and choose fabric and trims.
• Understand our sustainability ethos and goals to ensure the fabrics and trims we choose meet our standards.
• Participate in design reviews, internal critiques, and cross-functional meetings.
• Review incoming samples to ensure they are correct – this includes fit, details, color, finishing, and wash.
• Comment on lab dips, strike offs and other misc vendor submits.
• Participate in proto reviews and fittings — give feedback and direction to PD and TD.
• Partner with PD on the status of styles in development to ensure product execution meets design intent.
• Ensure designs are feasible for cost structure and construction constraints in collaboration with production and sourcing teams.
• Liaise with merchandising to align on assortments, pricing, margin, and sell-through potential.
• Develop detailed tech packs (spec sheets, construction details, BOM’s and fit block indications/ key measurements) for all men’s styles.
• Collaborate with technical design, merch and PD to iterate and refine tech packs through fit sessions, sample reviews, and comment cycles.
• Maintain an organized, up-to-date library of tech pack assets, including revisions, version control, and historical files.
• Evaluate cost implications, construction complexity, and technical risk in early stages.
• Work with tech/production to anticipate and resolve potential quality, fit, or tolerance issues.
• Participate in pre-production reviews, final fit approvals, and sign off on specs.

What This Job Offers

• Education Level: Bachelor's degree
• Number of Employees: 51-100 employees