At L.L.Bean, we believe the outdoors brings out the best in all of us. We are committed to fostering a culture of belonging and creating safe, inclusive spaces where everyone feels welcome—both here and Outside. We value individual differences and are dedicated to maintaining an inclusive work environment where everyone can bring the best of their experience and talents and truly thrive.
Bring your passion for women’s apparel, outdoor inspiration, and timeless style to L.L.Bean. We’re looking for a creative Women’s Apparel Designer to join our talented team in Freeport, Maine—where iconic product design meets an authentic outdoor lifestyle. If you’re energized by creating beautiful, brand-right apparel and inspired by the opportunity to live and work in Maine, we’d love to hear from you!
The Designer II helps shape the product aesthetic for L.L.Bean’s apparel, including color, pattern, silhouette, fabric and trim direction. This role partners with Product Development and Merchandising to research market trends, define seasonal concepts, create color palettes, and develop brand-right designs that support commercial product strategies.
Product Strategy & Seasonal Vision
- Contribute to the seasonal product vision by developing compelling concepts, key item strategies, and collection narratives that align with brand objectives and consumer needs.
- Create and communicate seasonal direction through inspiration boards, trend storytelling, color palettes, fabric direction, and silhouette strategies.
- Translate market opportunities into commercially viable product concepts that balance innovation, brand positioning, and business goals.
- Support line architecture and assortment planning to ensure cohesive collections and clear product differentiation.
- Partner with Merchandising and Product Development to identify whitespace opportunities, emerging categories, and growth areas within the assortment.
Consumer, Trend & Market Insights
- Monitor consumer behavior, cultural shifts, competitive landscapes, and emerging market trends to inform product direction.
- Research and interpret color, fabric, silhouette, and styling trends relevant to the target customer and brand positioning.
- Leverage trend forecasting services, retail analysis, social insights, and marketplace data to identify opportunities and risks.
- Participate in domestic and international market travel, trade shows, vendor visits, and competitive shopping to gather inspiration and industry insights.
- Evaluate competitor assortments and best practices to help refine product strategy and elevate design execution.
Product Creation & Development
- Design and develop apparel products that deliver on brand aesthetics, functionality, quality, fit, and performance expectations.
- Create detailed design sketches, technical flats, and presentation materials that clearly communicate product intent.
- Select and develop fabrics, trims, washes, prints, graphics, and construction details that support design objectives and target costs.
- Partner with Product Development, Technical Design, and sourcing teams throughout the development process to ensure products are commercially executable.
- Develop and maintain product information, color approvals, material specifications, and design documentation within PLM systems.
- Review and approve lab dips, strike-offs, prints, trims, and prototype samples to ensure design integrity and quality standards.
- Collaborate with Graphic Design and Print partners to develop distinctive surface design, pattern, and branding elements.
Fit, Function & Product Excellence
- Participate in fittings and product reviews, providing feedback on fit, styling, comfort, and overall consumer experience.
- Ensure product solutions meet the intended end use, performance requirements, and aesthetic goals.
- Champion consistency and cohesion across collections while introducing fresh ideas, styling details, and seasonal updates.
- Maintain a strong understanding of apparel construction, materials, and manufacturing capabilities to drive high-quality product outcomes.
Cross-Functional Collaboration & Leadership
- Build strong partnerships across Design, Merchandising, Product Development, Technical Design, Sourcing, and external vendors.
- Present concepts, seasonal direction, and product recommendations to cross-functional stakeholders and leadership teams.
- Influence product decisions through clear communication, strong design rationale, and a consumer-first mindset.
- Support team initiatives, mentorship opportunities, and collaborative problem-solving across functions.
Digital Innovation & Process Excellence
- Utilize digital design tools, AI-assisted creative platforms, PLM systems, and visualization technologies to improve speed, accuracy, and collaboration.
- Explore emerging technologies and workflows that enhance product creation, ideation, and storytelling.
- Drive efficient design processes while maintaining high standards of creativity and product quality.
Sustainability & Responsible Design
- Incorporate responsible material and construction considerations into the design process where appropriate.
- Partner with cross-functional teams to support sustainability initiatives, material innovation, and waste reduction efforts.
- Balance environmental considerations with product performance, cost, and consumer expectations.
Health and Safety Requirement: Every employee is responsible for contributing to a safe and healthy workplace. Employees are expected to be active participants in health and safety by following all safety policies and procedures, reporting unsafe conditions or at-risk behaviors to leadership, and conducting work in a safe manner. Those in a leadership role are also expected to model safe behaviors, evaluate risk, and ensure that risks are reduced to acceptable levels.
Skills & Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Fashion Design, Apparel Design, Textile Design, or a related field.
- 5+ years of apparel design experience.
- Strong understanding of apparel construction, materials, fit, and product development processes.
- Proficiency in Adobe Illustrator and other relevant digital design tools.
- Experience working within PLM systems and managing product documentation.
- Excellent communication, presentation, and cross-functional collaboration skills.
- Strong trend interpretation, consumer insight, and storytelling capabilities.
- Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment.
L.L.Bean uses a market-based compensation approach. The anticipated starting base pay for this position is $98,100.00 - $122,600.00. Individual compensation may vary based on factors such as a candidate’s experience, qualifications, education, geographic location, skills, competencies, and proficiency for the role.
If you care about the outdoors, joining L.L.Bean is a great way to feel good about what you do. Our benefits package makes a good thing even better, with programs and perks designed to support your health and financial goals. Plus, maintaining a healthy work-life balance and re-charging outside are all part of the plan.
If your experience looks a little different from what we've identified and you think you'd be great at this role, we'd love to learn more about you! At L.L.Bean, we believe the outdoors brings out the best in all of us. We strive to reflect this every day in our commitments to employees and partners and in our efforts to promote belonging.
