Senior Specialist Sample Sewing Apparel

Purpose & Overall Relevance for the Organization: 

 

Here in the DTLA WRKSHP we have the unique opportunity to design and craft one-of-a-kind garments for the brand, business partners, and talent. Our work comes to life on stages and runways around the world—where innovation, craftsmanship, and creativity meet to make bold statements in fashion. 

 

As Senior Specialist Sample Sewing Apparel you will oversee and direct the production of high-quality mock-ups, prototypes and small series for product development processes or athletes. You will also train, mentor, and give advice to pattern engineers, product developers and design partners on complex workmanship options and product-specific solutions. 

 

**This position requires in-office attendance Monday through Friday due the nature of needing to utilize sewing and production machinery on a daily basis in our DTLA WRKSHP.**

 

Key Responsibilities:  

 

General 

• Ability to creatively contribute to product creation from a sewing perspective. 

• Compliance with all operating instructions and work safety regulations in the general handling and operation of all available machines.  

• Compliance with adidas internal standards and processes.  

• Ensure the measurement accuracy of all samples for the Sample Studio within provided production tolerances  

• Ensure close collaboration and communication with the respective interface regarding sample creation and execution. 

 

Sewing and bonding techniques 

• Oversee and approve the creation of prototypes and small series to support the development process taking into account the production execution. 

• Guide the development of prototypes according to the specifications of the interface and project management team with the help of processing specifications / article description. 

• Direct and evaluate made-to-measure samples. 

• Assess and test new garment constructions to ensure high quality, such as sewing strength and bond stability. 

 

Consulting and training 

• Advising and supporting development teams with optimized construction solutions in terms of quality, cost and production feasibility.   

• Advise and train pattern engineers, product developers and design partners on complex processing variations and product specific solutions during the development process. 

• Support creative workshops and provide trainings for pattern engineers and development teams 

• Act as mentor to more junior team members, apprentices or assigned mentees from other areas of responsibility 

 

 

Key Relationships:  

• Prototype Engineering Team- Creative Studios 

• Cross-functional Teams (Marketing, Product Development, Design) 

• Innovation Teams  

• External CAD and Creative Studio Partners 

 

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:  

• Manual dexterity and a quick grasp of things 

• Understanding the construction of materials and clothing 

• In depth & broad knowledge in the field of sewn and bonded sample creation  

• Specialized skills in the areas of technical workmanship, embellishment and cutting. 

• Strong Team and communication skills 

• Ability to work with diverse groups, motivate them and act as a mentor or teach them thru apprenticeship 

• Ability to work independently and exercise independent judgment on construction feasibility and process decisions. 

• Support translation of innovative ideas and proven ability to find customized solutions. 

• Basic IT skills (Illustrator, MS Office) 

 

 

Requisite Education and Experience / Minimum Qualifications:  

• Technical training required (training as a textile and fashion sewer, fashion tailor or in the industrial field of clothing production) 

• Minimum of 3 years experience as in house Specialist Sample Sewing Apparel; alternatively, 6 years in industrial field of clothing production.  

• Demonstrated ability to lead sample-making processes, provide strategic