Women’s Associate Designer, Sweaters

Associate Designer, Sweaters

Rag & Bone is seeking an Associate Designer, Sweaters to support the design and development of the women's sweater category from seasonal concept through final sample approval. This role is ideal for a creative, detail-oriented designer with strong taste level, a solid understanding of sweater construction, and the ability to balance brand-right design with commercial needs. The Associate Designer will partner closely with the Senior Designer, Merchandising, Technical Design, Production, and overseas vendors to help create compelling, modern, and well-executed sweater collections. This person should have a strong eye for yarn, stitch, texture, silhouette, color, and proportion, while also being highly organized and comfortable managing multiple styles across seasonal deadlines.

Responsibilities:

• Support seasonal research and concept development for the sweater category, including trend direction, runway, vintage, market, competitive shopping, yarn innovation, stitch ideas, color, texture, and silhouette.
• Assist in building seasonal mood boards, concept decks, stitch and yarn boards, and presentation materials for internal design reviews and market milestones.
• Identify new sweater opportunities that align with the brand aesthetic, customer, seasonal direction, and business needs.
• Create original sketches, CADs, stitch layouts, and colorways using Procreate, Adobe Illustrator, and Photoshop.
• Assist in developing yarn, stitch, trim, and construction ideas that support the overall seasonal assortment.
• Prepare detailed design sheets and tech packs, including stitch callouts, yarn information, gauge, measurements, construction details, trims, placements, and finishing details.
• Support color development, lab dip review, yarn submits, knit-downs, strike-offs, and sample approvals to ensure accuracy and brand alignment.
• Maintain and update seasonal design boards throughout the development process.
• Partner with Technical Design and Product Development to ensure sweater designs are feasible, well-constructed, and clearly communicated to vendors.
• Review proto samples, knit-downs, stitch trials, color submits, and SMS samples for accuracy of stitch, hand feel, proportion, fit, construction, quality, and overall design intent.
• Attend fittings and proto reviews, take clear notes, track revisions, and support follow-up comments to vendors.
• Communicate design updates, sample comments, and development direction to domestic and overseas partners in a clear and timely manner.
• Help ensure seasonal deadlines are met across sketch, tech pack, proto, SMS, market, and production handoff stages.
• Work closely with Merchandising to support assortment needs, key item strategy, and seasonal line planning.
• Partner with Product Development and Production on yarn sourcing, costing, sampling timelines, vendor capabilities, and quality standards.
• Collaborate with Technical Design to maintain fit, proportion, construction integrity, and sweater feasibility.
• Support seasonal design presentations, proto reviews, adoption meetings, market prep, and sample organization.
• Maintain organized digital and physical design files, including seasonal sketches, CADs, yarn libraries, stitch references, sample comments, tech packs, and development records.
• Update internal systems with accurate sweater-specific information, including yarns, gauges, stitch details, colorways, trims, and construction notes.
• Track samples, knit-downs, submits, and development status across the seasonal calendar.
• Prepare samples for meetings, fittings, and presentations, including steaming, organizing, labeling, and setting up boards and racks as needed.
• Support the Senior Designer with day-to-day design tasks, research, meeting preparation, and special projects.

Requirements:

• Bachelor's degree in Fashion Design, Knitwear Design, Textile Design, or a related field preferred.
• 2 to 4 years of apparel design experience, preferably within sweaters, knitwear, or contemporary women's ready-to-wear.
• Strong understanding of sweater construction, yarns, gauges, stitches, knit-downs, fully fashioned techniques, trims, finishing, fit, and garment construction.
• Strong sketching, CAD, technical flat, and design sheet abilities.
• Proficiency in Procreate, Adobe Illustrator, and Photoshop required.
• Experience with Miro, PLM, or similar design and research tools is a plus.
• Strong eye for color, proportion, texture, silhouette, and brand-right product.
• Highly organized with the ability to manage multiple styles, deadlines, and seasonal deliverables.
• Strong communication skills and comfort working in a fast-paced, collaborative environment.
• Portfolio required. Sweater or knitwear work strongly preferred.

Rules We Live By:

• Be a Good Human – Be original, be authentic. Stand for diversity, equitability & inclusivity.
• Have No Fear – Innovate, solve problems.
• Own Every Decision – Work together, get results.
• Quality Matters – Not only with product but we see it in our people.
• Make Shit Happen – Be disciplined, be competitive.

Benefits:

• Paid Time Off
• Clothing Allowance
• Generous Employee Discount
• Paid Parental Leave
• Membership to Calm and access to other wellness benefits
• Medical, dental, vision and ancillary benefits
• 401k