Position Overview
As the Material Quality, Testing, and Color Lead for Apparel and Accessories, your role will focus on establishing global quality standards, developing new processes, and coordinating multi-team contributions to ensure premium material quality, exceptional color accuracy, and outstanding performance across the entire A&A product range. Your technical expertise and analytical skills will facilitate cross-functional communication in relevant discussions about quality, color, and systems. The Color and Quality teams will rely on your leadership to drive progress, demonstrate technical proficiency, and nurture professional growth. You will proactively deliver material quality and color expertise, demonstrating a keen attention to detail and a commitment to product integrity in a fast-paced dynamic work environment. You will report to the Head of Materials for A&A and collaborate closely with Material Development, Product Quality, Material Sourcing, Product Compliance, and material vendors/product factories worldwide.
Your Mission
- Maintain full ownership of internal quality standards for Apparel and Accessories regarding materials, trims, and color.
- Oversee the roll-out of updated standards and requirements for internal stakeholders and external partners (T2/T1/3rd party labs).
- Manage the Material Color Team responsible for the Lab Dipping process, innovating new color processes and reallocating team workloads based on business priorities.
- Serve as the primary contact for system creation, updates, and alignment to integrate quality, color, and related data within the broader product creation technology ecosystem.
- Ensure timely testing of all prospective materials to support the end-to-end material approval process.
- Create, plan, and execute Tech Branding strategies that respond to the needs dictated by Product Strategy/Product Management teams.
- Lead quality initiatives at the material level that yield significant, lasting improvements at the product level.
- Conduct regular touchpoints with Compliance, Returns, and Quality Teams to assess the integrity of past, present, and future products.
- Allocate and manage the necessary budget and resources for all developmental material/trim/color testing.
- Drive the collection, interpretation, and communication of all material testing data (3rd party, T2, and Internal).
- Maximize information availability and optimize the translation of product range and material specifications into a seasonal testing plan.
- Partner with product creation teams, sourcing offices, and suppliers to identify and mitigate material quality risks before manufacturing.
- Collaborate with sourcing offices to assist in resolving bulk material quality issues.
- Represent our organization with standards bodies (ISO/ASTM/AATCC) to align our testing methodologies with international norms and ensure our influence within these communities.
Your Story
- Experience: You have over 10 years of experience in materials quality, materials development, or textile production.
- Technical Expertise: You possess extensive knowledge of textile fibers, production processes (e.g., spinning, weaving, knitting, dyeing, and finishing), and standard test methods for quality testing. Experience with trims and hard goods is a plus.
- Analytical Mindset: You can extract insights from large datasets and recognize patterns to determine optimal actions in pursuit of premium quality.
- Communication: You have exceptional verbal and written communication skills, allowing you to collaborate effectively with internal and external partners globally, presenting complex information to diverse audiences.
- Organizational Skills: You are detail-oriented with the ability to manage and execute multiple short-term and long-term projects simultaneously.
- Global Exposure: You have experience with global material sourcing and development, including travel to key manufacturing hubs and trade fairs.
Apply Online
To be considered for this position, please apply online using the form below. Only applications matching the job profile will be considered.
Meet the Team
We are committed to creating innovative products for our customers. Meeting the needs and demands of our runners and new customers is of utmost importance. Our approach involves researching, designing, developing, and testing numerous ideas both scientifically and aesthetically. Only products that meet our rigorous testing standards make it to market.