Leather goods designer

Leather goods designers are in charge of the creative process of leather goods. They perform fashion trends analysis, accompany market researches and forecast needs, plan and develop collections, create concepts and build the collection lines. They additionally conduct the sampling, create prototypes or samples for presentation and promote concepts and collections. During the collection development, they define the mood and the concept board, the colour palettes, the materials, produce drawings and sketches. Leather goods designers identify the range of materials and components and define the design specifications. They collaborate with the technical team.

The following job titles also refer to leather goods designer:

leatherware drafter
leather goods fashion designer
leather goods creator
leather goods drafter
leather goods designer and developer
leatherware designer
leather goods drawer
fashion leather goods designer
leather goods CAD designer
leather goods designer & developer

Leather Goods Designers usually work in design studios, corporate offices, or workshops, where they have access to leather samples, tools, and design software. Their work environment may include both desk work, such as sketching and material research, and hands-on work with prototypes and samples. Travel may be required to visit suppliers, oversee production at manufacturing sites, or attend trade shows. While regular hours are typical, deadlines and seasonal collections may lead to extended hours, especially before product launches. Freelance designers may have more flexibility but adjust their schedules to meet client needs and project timelines.

A bachelor’s degree in fashion design, accessory design, or a specialized program in leather design is typically required for a career in leather goods design. Courses in pattern making, leatherworking, materials science, and design software are essential. Many designers start with internships or entry-level positions with fashion houses or leather goods brands, building hands-on skills and industry knowledge. A strong portfolio showcasing creative, high-quality designs and technical ability is vital for career advancement. Keeping up-to-date with leatherworking techniques, sustainable practices, and fashion trends is essential in this competitive field.

ISCO skill level is defined as a function of the complexity and range of tasks and duties to be performed in an occupation. It is measured on a scale from 1 to 4, with 1 the lowest level and 4 the highest, by considering:

• the nature of the work performed in an occupation in relation to the characteristic tasks and duties
• the level of formal education required for competent performance of the tasks and duties involved and
• the amount of informal on-the-job training and/or previous experience in a related occupation required for competent performance of these tasks and duties.

Leather goods designer is a Skill level 4 occupation.

These occupations, although different, require a lot of knowledge and skills similar to leather goods designer.

leather goods industrial engineer
leather goods quality manager
footwear designer
leather goods product development manager
footwear product development manager

This knowledge should be acquired through learning to fulfill the role of leather goods designer.

• Footwear and leather goods marketing planning: The principles and methods used in creating a marketing plan and how a company can best position itself compared to its competitors, taking into account the specifities of the footwear and leather goods market.
• Leather goods manufacturing processes: The processes, technology and machinery involved in the leather goods manufacturing.
• Leather goods components: The various procedures and methods in the processing of leather materials and leather goods components like manufacturability and properties.
• Leather goods quality: The quality specifications of materials, processes, and final products, the most common defects in leather, quick tests procedures, laboratory tests procedures and standards, and adequate equipment for quality checks.
• Footwear creation process: Footwear creation projects starting from inspiration to technical design and manufacturing by following several stages. Latest trends in footwear materials, components, processes, and concepts.
• Ergonomics in footwear and leather goods design: The principles used in the design of various styles of footwear and leather goods for the correct anatomic and ergonomic proportions and measurements.
• Leather goods materials: The wide range of materials used in leather goods production: leather, leather substitutes (synthetics or artificial materials), textile, etc; the way of distinguishing among various materials based on their properties, advantages and limitations.

These skills are necessary for the role of leather goods designer.

• Develop leather goods collection: Transform leather goods design ideas and concepts into prototypes and, finally, a collection. Analyse and check the designs from various angles like functionality, aesthetics, performance and manufacturability. Manage the development process of all the leather goods prototypes in order to meet the customer’s needs and to properly balance quality with production costs.
• Practice innovative thinking in the footwear and leather goods industries: Innovate and create in the footwear and leather goods sector. Evaluate new ideas and concepts to turn them into marketable products. Use entrepreneurial thinking in all stages of product and process development to identify new business opportunities for the targeted markets.
• Implement footwear marketing plan: Implement marketing plans according to company specifications, complying with market demand.
• Create mood boards: Create mood boards for fashion or interior design collections, gathering different sources of inspirations, sensations, trends, and textures, discussing with the people involved in the project to make sure that the shape, design, colours, and the global genre of the collections fit the order or the related artistic project.
• Apply development process to footwear design: Understand the needs of the consumer and analyse the fashion trends. Innovate and develop the footwear concepts from an aesthetic, functional and technological point of view by using a wide range of methods and techniques, selecting materials, components and suitable technologies, adapting new concepts to manufacturing requirements and transforming the new ideas into marketable and sustainable products for mass or customised production. Communicate visually the new designs and ideas.
• Communicate commercial and technical issues in foreign languages: Speak one or more foreign languages in order to communicate commercial and technical issues with various suppliers and clients.
• Use communication techniques: Apply techniques of communication that allow interlocutors to better understand each other and communicate accurately in the transmission of messages.
• Develop footwear and leather goods marketing plans: Be able to develop marketing plans and provide directions for marketing strategies of the company, as well as be able to identify potential markets and to perform marketing activities to promote the footwear products of the company.
• Sketch leather goods: Be able to use various sketching and drawing techniques, including artistic representation, by hand or by computer, being aware of proportion and perspective, to sketch and draw leather goods in an accurate manner, both as 2D flat designs or as 3D volumes. Be able to prepare specification sheets with details of materials, components and manufacturing requirements.
• Apply fashion trends to footwear and leather goods: Be able to stay up to date on the latest styles, attend fashion shows and review fashion/clothing magazines and manuals, analysing the past and present fashion trends in areas such as footwear, leather goods and clothing market. Use analytical thinking and creative models to apply and interpret in a systematic way the upcoming trends in terms of fashion and lifestyles.
• Use IT tools: Application of computers, computer networks and other information technologies and equipment to storing, retrieving, transmitting and manipulating data, in the context of a business or enterprise.

This knowledge is sometimes, but not always, required for the role of leather goods designer. However, mastering this knowledge allows you to have more opportunities for career development.

• CAD software: The computer-aided design (CAD) software for creating, modifying, analysing or optimising a design.
• Manual cutting processes for leather: Cutting rules, variance of the leather properties on its surface and elongation directions of the footwear pieces.
• CAD for footwear: The architecture and functionality of 2D and 3D computer-assisted design software systems for footwear.

These skills and competences are sometimes, but not always, required for the role of leather goods designer. However, mastering these skills and competences allows you to have more opportunities for career development.

• Use CAD for soles: Digitise and scan the lasts. Work with files in various CAD systems. Produce 3D models of soles and create 2D computer-aided designs. Grade and obtain the size series. Prepare technical specifications for manufacturing. Produce 2D and 3D computer-aided engineering designs and technical drawings of moulds for vulcanised and injected soles. Export the files of the virtual models to 3D printers, CAM or CNC systems.
• Reduce environmental impact of footwear manufacturing: Assess the environmental impact of footwear manufacturing and minimise environmental risks. Reduce environmentally harmful work practices in different stages of footwear manufacturing.
• Make technical drawings of fashion pieces: Make technical drawings of wearing apparel, leather goods and footwear including both technical and engineering drawings. Use them to communicate or to convey design ideas and manufacturing details to pattern makers, technologists, toolmakers, and equipment producers or to other machine operators for sampling and production.
• Create 3D CAD footwear prototypes: Be able to read and understand visual elements and technical design specifications from hand-made or computer-made sketches, pictures and drawings. Digitise or scan the lasts. Create the design upon the shape of the lasts according to the dimensional requirements of the customer. Perform 3D footwear modelling by using various functionalities of the CAD software such as producing, manipulating and testing virtual images for computer-aided 3D artistic and technical design of footwear. Produce alternative designs and develop virtual models and collection lines. Make presentation boards and catalogues.
• Use CAD software: Use computer-aided design (CAD) systems to assist in the creation, modification, analysis, or optimisation of a design.

2163 – Product and garment designers

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References

1. Leather goods designer – ESCO
2. Featured image: Photo by Vlada Karpovich