Team & Position Description:We are looking for a Senior Industrial Designer to join our Creative team in Vernon Hills, IL. This role offers the opportunity to design across a diverse range of toy and pet brands, including high-impact products for both Learning Resources and Brightkins®. You'll work on a collaborative, fast-paced team that values creativity, ownership, and bringing products to life quickly-from early concept exploration through production. This is a hands-on role for a senior designer who enjoys building, iterating, and solving real product challenges. If you're passionate about toy design and want to make a direct impact in a growing, family-owned company, we'd love to hear from you.
What you'll do day to day:- Lead the design and development of 15-20 Learning Resources children toy products and 10-14 Brightkins pet toy products annually, from concept through production
- Own projects end-to-end, proactively driving progress, identifying risks, and moving work forward with minimal supervision
- Generate multiple concept directions and quickly iterate from sketch through 3D models and functional prototypes
- Develop CAD models, renderings, and specification documents to communicate concepts to internal teams and external vendors
- Translate concepts into manufacturable, durable, and functional products by resolving engineering, material, and assembly challenges
- Partner with cross-functional teams (Product Management, Manufacturers/engineering, Packaging, Creative, Marketing, Sales) to maintain momentum and meet timelines
- Support user testing and incorporate feedback to refine and validate product concepts
- Mentor junior designers and contribute to a collaborative, high-performing team environment
What we're looking for (Key Performance Objectives):- Independently drive product development to deliver assigned projects on schedule with minimal oversight throughout the development lifecycle (concept through production)
- Deliver high-quality design solutions that meet project timelines and achieve ~95% approval rate from cross-functional partners within each project phase
- Generate and iterate multiple design concepts to arrive at strong final solutions early in each development phase (concept + refinement stages)
- Develop manufacturable, durable products by resolving design, engineering, and material challenges prior to final production handoff
- Collaborate cross-functionally and with vendors to maintain project momentum and ensure 100% milestone alignment across development timelines
Requirements / Ideal Attributes:- Portfolio showcasing strong toy design and product development experience
- BS/BA in Industrial Design, Toy Design, or equivalent
- 10+ years of consumer product development experience, expert-level experience in children's toys (pet product experience also a plus)
- Proficiency in Rhino, KeyShot, Adobe Creative Suite, and 3D prototyping tools
- Strong hands-on prototyping skills across materials and methods
- Deep knowledge of plastics, manufacturing processes, and design for manufacturing
- Strong communicator and collaborator across teams and external partners
- Highly proactive, independent, and detail-oriented with strong ownership mindset
Compensation Range: $100,000 - $110,000 annual salary - Actual compensation may vary due to other factors such as: years of experience, skill set and location. Total compensation includes profit sharing bonus potential, 401k matching, and a variety of other benefits (details can be found here).
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