The Role + Purpose: The Director of Technical Design - Women's Denim, Hard & Soft Wovens is a senior technical leader responsible for the fit, construction, and quality standards across the Denim, Hard Wovens, and Soft Wovens categories for J.Crew and J.Crew Factory. Reporting to the Head of Technical Design, this role leads a team of technical designers and patternmakers, partnering closely with Design, Production, and Merchandising to ensure design intent is translated into exceptional, brand-right product. This is an opportunity to shape the technical direction of foundational categories across two iconic American brands.
- Lead and mentor a team of Technical Designers, Associate Technical Designers, and patternmakers across Denim, Hard Wovens, and Soft Wovens, fostering a culture of excellence, collaboration, and development.
- Serve as the primary technical design partner to Design for these categories, translating creative vision into precise fit, construction, and garment execution across denim washes, hardware, and structured and soft woven silhouettes.
- Own end-to-end fit and construction standards across Denim, Hard Wovens, and Soft Wovens, establishing consistent, brand-right fit philosophies for both J.Crew and J.Crew Factory while honoring each brand's distinct identity.
- Partner cross-functionally with Production, Materials, and Merchandising to drive efficient, high-quality development from proto through final approval, maintaining accountability to calendar and cost targets.
- Implement and continuously improve technical design systems, grading standards, spec processes, and PLM workflows within the category to drive efficiency and scalability.
- Build and strengthen relationships with key denim and woven mills and vendors, aligning on construction capabilities, quality standards, and innovation opportunities.
- Champion innovation within the category, staying ahead of trends in denim washes and finishes, woven fabrication, construction techniques, and sizing to elevate product quality.
Qualifications: Required:
- 15+ years of progressive technical design experience within the apparel industry, including significant experience specializing in denim and woven categories (hard and soft), with prior people-leadership experience.
- Deep hands-on expertise in denim construction (washes, hardware, fit blocks) as well as hard and soft woven fabrications and construction techniques.
- Demonstrated track record of building and developing high-performing technical design teams, including hiring and mentoring at multiple levels.
- Exceptional ability to cultivate collaborative partnerships with Design, acting as a trusted translator of creative vision into technical reality while maintaining brand aesthetic integrity.
- Comprehensive understanding of garment construction, pattern engineering, grading standards, and fit development across denim and woven fabrications and silhouettes.
Preferred:
- Experience working across both full-price and value/factory brand environments, with an understanding of delivering brand-appropriate quality and fit within varying cost architectures.
- Proficiency in PLM systems (e.g., Centric, Gerber WebPDM) and strong working knowledge of Adobe Illustrator; experience with digital product creation tools is a plus.
- Prior experience at a multi-brand retail or specialty apparel organization; familiarity with domestic and international sourcing and vendor landscapes for denim and wovens is a strong advantage.
- Bachelor's degree in Fashion Design, Apparel Technology, or a related field; equivalent industry experience is equally valued.
We welcome you to apply, even if you don't check all the boxes. Our passion is scouting life-long learners who are driven by curiosity, and who feel connected to our brands and share our desire to make an impact. We're always seeking bright new talent who leverage their unique experiences to discover, grow and evolve with our teams.
Benefits + Perks- Health & Well-being - Eligible associates and family members receive medical, dental, prescription and vision insurance, family planning (fertility, adoption & surrogacy support), fitness discounts, medical travel and more.
- Associate Discount - We love our products just as much as you do! That's why we offer a great associate discount across all of our brands (J.Crew, J.Crew Factory, and Madewell).
- Summer Fridays - In addition to our hybrid work model, we also close our office at 1:00 PM every Friday during the Summer months.
- Community Impact - We support the communities where we live and work through our philanthropic efforts and the J.Crew Cares Program.
- Winter Break - In addition to our PTO package, J.Crew Group offers a winter break at the end of December to eligible full-time associates at the Home Office to provide time to refresh and recharge.
Note: Availability of these benefits and perks may be subject to work location & employment type and may have certain eligibility requirements.
Salary Range: $152,800.00 - $201,400.00
At J.Crew Group (JCG) we aim to pay competitively for our company's size and industry. The base salary offered will take into account internal equity and may vary depending on the candidate's geographic region of work premises, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience among other factors. The base salary is just one component of J.Crew Group's competitive total rewards strategy that also includes the opportunity for bonus, competitive benefits and perks.
