Designer Innovation

At adidas innovation, our #1 goal is to design the best for the athlete at speed, meaning we create innovative, industry leading and highly disruptive solutions for the world’s best athletes on the world’s biggest stages.

As an Innovation Apparel Designer, you will need to be highly creative and thrive in an ever changing and dynamic environment. The ideal candidate is someone who naturally challenges the expected ways of working, harnessing new tools and process, to ensure we stay ahead of the of the sports industry, not only meeting but exceeding the expectations of our athletes.

Candidates will need to have an excellent understanding of technical performance apparel, across men’s and women’s product and ideally, cross category experience. You will need to have an advanced knowledge of construction, materialisation and patterning, but also be able to fuse this baseline knowledge with non-traditional and unexpected sources of inspiration. Drawing from culture, art, and the broader design world to inform and influence the future of apparel.

Within the innovation team you will collaborate daily with a diverse range of partners, including material design, product creation, athlete science and engineering, along with external creative partners and studios, to deliver advanced concepts. To do so, excellent communication and storytelling skills will be critical to ensure you can articulate your vision and inspire cross-functional teams at key company milestones. Your ability to build strong relationships with these partners will be crucial in driving projects from concept to completion.

If you are passionate about sports and thrive in a fast-paced environment where creativity and innovation are paramount, we invite you to join our team and redefine athletic apparel and lead the future of sport.

Purpose & Overall Relevance for the Organization:

Design industry leading creative solutions for assigned concept or category, to create performance innovations which drive the advanced product process from opportunity identification through production reality.  

Key Responsibilities:

• Design cutting edge product innovation that sets the industry standard for athletic performance.
• Research athlete and consumer insights to drive aesthetic and functional aspects of each project.
• Understand design trends and innovation as well as their application.
• Communicate and share new insights and best practices to extended innovation team members.
• Collaborate with dedicated cross-functional teams.
• Execute the creative vision into products.
• Self-Manage own creative process and design projects in a confident manner with clear decision-making and productivity.
• Implement vision to innovation themes by translating insights, performance benefits, and technology opportunities into strategic products. 
• Verbally present product ideas and details with clarity 
• Visualize ideas for products and ranges with a high degree of expertise.
• Travel, if required, to the marketplaces or manufacturing partners.

Key Relationships:

• Creative Direction
• Categories
• Marketing
• Development
• Team members
• External partners

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Strong knowledge of innovation, industry, consumer trend, sports, and athletic culture.
• Technical understanding of material, textile, footwear and/or apparel product and construction.
• Strong presentation and communication skills

• Demonstrated ability to think conceptually and drive design concepts.
• Ability to effectively contribute towards multiple priority projects proactively.
• Proficient Computer skills on Apple Mac, PC or VR (Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, Microsoft Office, CAD, Gravity sketch, etc.)
• Experience with 3D programs. (Clo3D, Browzwear, VStitcher, Rhino, Modo, ICAD Pro, or similar tools)
• Fluent in English (oral & written)

Requisite Education and Experience / Minimum Qualifications:

• BA or MA in Industrial Design, Fashion Design, Textile, or relevant Design subject, or equivalent combination of education and experience
• At least 3 years of relevant work experience
• Passion for adidas and it’s mission
• Passion for sports, culture, design