Head of Product Design and Client Innovation

Company Description

Founded in 2008, Creare Group LLC is a global leader in sourcing, creative and technical design, and textile and garment innovation. With headquarters in New York City, the company operates across key regions around the world. Creare Group partners with top global manufacturers to deliver exclusive designs, innovative fabrics, and high-quality, value-driven garments. Its clientele includes some of the world’s leading retailers and brands, reflecting the organization's commitment to excellence and innovation.

Role Description

This is a full-time, on-site role as the Head of Product Design and Client Innovation, located in New York, NY. The role involves leading product design and innovation strategies, managing client relationships, and driving the development of forward-thinking design solutions. Responsibilities include overseeing the lifecycle of product design, implementing design thinking methodologies, ensuring high-quality outputs, and steering the team to align with client goals and market trends.

• Lead the development of fabric and garment collections for both existing accounts and new business opportunities.
• Serve as a key client-facing partner, managing daily communication and follow-ups to ensure alignment on development timelines, costing, and product execution.
• Identify new business opportunities within retail brands to drive growth
• Collaborate with factory and mill partners to create and curate innovative collections that strengthen sales presentations for the North America market.
• Research and identify emerging trends, as well as the latest innovations in fabrics, yarns, and technologies, to effectively showcase to clients.
• Maintain consistent communication with mills and factories, ensuring timely follow-up and on-schedule execution of all development projects.
• Provide strategic recommendations on fabric selection and garment design, aligned with customer-specific requirements, sales forecasts, and target pricing.
• Present curated fabric and garment collections to clients' internal stakeholders—including Product Development, Design, and Sourcing/Production teams—on a quarterly basis.
• Partner cross-functionally to develop and execute seasonal market strategies.
• Collaborate closely with design teams to assess current sales trends and evolving customer needs across a portfolio of 40–50\+ client brands.
• Align product development initiatives with customer assortment plans, sales performance, and sell-through data, ensuring timely delivery of new concepts in accordance with client calendars (monthly or weekly cycles, depending on project scope).
• Conduct account-level analysis to identify growth opportunities and drive incremental sales.
• Travel domestically and overseas to vendor partners required
• Collaborate closely with CEO/ Owner on business goals as well as with the VP of Business Development on sales strategies
• Oversee product development calendars, ensuring all milestones—from concept through sampling—are delivered on time and in line with client expectations.

Qualifications

• 10–15 years of experience in the apparel industry, with a strong focus on product development, merchandising, and/or fabric innovation
• Bachelor’s degree in Fashion Design, Merchandising, Textiles, or a related field
• Strong proficiency in Microsoft Office (Excel, PowerPoint) and Adobe Creative Suite (Illustrator, Photoshop)
• Deep understanding of fabric construction, yarns, garment development processes, and costing methodologies
• Proven ability to manage multiple projects and timelines in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment
• Strong client-facing experience with the ability to build and maintain long-term business relationships
• Excellent communication and presentation skills, with experience presenting to cross-functional teams and external partners
• Solid knowledge of global sourcing, supply chain processes, and factory/mill capabilities
• Strong analytical skills, with the ability to interpret sales data, trends, and forecasts to drive product decisions
• Experience working with multiple brands/accounts simultaneously (multi-category experience is a plus: wovens, knits, sweaters, etc.)
• Ability to identify and translate market trends into commercially viable product assortments
• Detail-oriented with strong organizational and follow-up skills, particularly in managing development calendars and production timelines
• Experience working in international environments and collaborating with overseas vendors and teams
• Team management leadership skills