Sr. Footwear Technician

We believe that difference sparks brilliance, so we welcome people and ideas from everywhere to join us in stretching what’s possible.

At Tapestry, being true to yourself is core to who we are. When each of us brings our individuality to our collective ambition, our creativity is unleashed. This global house of brands – Coach, Kate Spade New York, Stuart Weitzman – was built by unconventional entrepreneurs and unexpected solutions, so when we say we believe in dreams, we mean we believe in making them happen. We’re always on a journey to becoming our best, but you can count on this: Here, your voice is valued, your ambitions are supported, and your work is recognized.

A member of the Tapestry family, we are part of a global house of brands that has unwavering optimism and is committed to being innovative and wholly inclusive. Visit Our People page to learn more about Tapestry's commitment to equity, inclusion, and diversity. 

Job Title: Sr. Footwear Technician

Reports To: Director, Technical Footwear

Location: Vietnam

Primary Purpose:

The Footwear Technician will be responsible for creating and testing prototypes and Fitting Approval as well, ensuring the final product meets the desire of fit, comfort, style, and performance requirements. Work closely with design development, commercialization, and quality teams to provide technical expertise and support throughout the product development process.

This role requires a strong understanding of footwear construction, materials, and manufacturing processes, as well as excellent communication skills.

The successful individual will leverage their proficiency in Footwear to...

• Collaborate closely with the design, product development, commercialization, and manufacturing teams to translate design concepts into technically feasible footwear products.
• Ensure aesthetic product consistency.
• Maintain a constant flow of communication between designers, developers, material management, commercialization, and costing teams.
• Oversee the development of technical specifications, including construction details, material specifications, and fit requirements.
• Conduct thorough technical reviews of footwear Prototypes and Fitting Samples to identify and address any issues related to construction, fit, and quality.
• Stay current on industry trends, innovations, and best practices in footwear design and manufacturing to drive continuous improvement and innovation.
• Collaborate with Fitting Models to evaluate fit, comfort, and performance of footwear Prototypes, Fitting Approvals, and Sales samples during development stages.
• New last/construction development, assessment, correction
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to resolve technical challenges and drive solutions that meet design, performance, and cost requirements.
• Smooth transferring tech pack from product development stage to commercialization and production teams.
• Manage Prototypes and Fitting Samples schedule and priorities.
• Knowledge of shoes last dimensions and size grading.
• Knowledge of blueprint reading and interpretation related to soles, heels, wedges, ornaments.
• Comprehend Product Development Timeline (PDT) calendar and milestones dates.

An outstanding professional will have...

• Minimum 8 years of experience in footwear design and technical aspect, preferable in luxury fashion footwear, with a proven track record of successfully leading teams and delivering innovative products.
• Expertise in footwear construction, materials, fitting, and manufacturing processes.
• Strong knowledge on different footwear categories: women, men, kids’ footwear, and typologies Dress, Casual, Sneakers, Jellies, Flip Flop, Vulcanized, Injected.
• Strong technical proficiency in Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, and other design software and ability to translate 2D information into 3D prototypes.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to effectively collaborate with cross-functional teams.
• Detail-oriented with a passion for quality and craftsmanship.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, dynamic environment and manage multiple priorities effectively.
• Experience working in a global or multi-cultural environment is a plus.
• Fluent in English, both written and spoken.
• Drives for results; understands needs of the business and executes with excellence.
• Motivated, energized. “Hands on Attitude”
• Adaptable to the changing needs of the business; demonstrates problem solving attitude.
• Excellent organizational and record-keeping skills with attention to detail.
• Knowledge on Photoshop and Rhinos (3D, CAD) is a plus.

Our Competencies for All Employees

• Courage: Doesn’t hold back anything that needs to be said; provides current, direct, complete, and “actionable” positive and corrective feedback to others; lets people know where they stand; faces up to people problems on any person or situation (not including direct reports) quickly and directly; is not afraid to take negative action when necessary.
• Creativity: Comes up with a lot of new and unique ideas; easily makes connections among previously unrelated notions; tends to be seen as original and value-added in brainstorming settings.
• Customer Focus: Is dedicated to meeting the expectations and requirements of internal and external customers; gets first-hand customer information and uses it for improvements in products and services; acts with customers in mind; establishes and maintains effective relationships with customers and gains their trust and respect.
• Dealing with Ambiguity: Can effectively cope with change; can shift gears comfortably; can decide and act without having the total picture; isn’t upset when things are up in the air; doesn’t have to finish things before moving on; can comfortably handle risk and uncertainty.
• Drive for Results: Can be counted on to exceed goals successfully; is constantly and consistently one of the top performers; very bottom-line oriented; steadfastly pushes self and others for results.
• Interpersonal Savvy: Relates well to all kinds of people, up, down, and sideways, inside and outside the organization; builds appropriate rapport; builds constructive and effective relationships; uses diplomacy and tact; can diffuse even high-tension situations comfortably.
• Learning on the Fly: Learns quickly when facing new problems; a relentless and versatile learner; open to change; analyzes both successes and failures for clues to improvement; experiments and will try anything to find solutions; enjoys the challenge of unfamiliar tasks; quickly grasps the essence and the underlying structure of anything.

Our Competencies for All People Managers

• Strategic Agility: Sees ahead clearly; can anticipate future consequences and trends accurately; has broad knowledge and perspective; is future oriented; can articulately paint credible pictures and visions of possibilities and likelihoods; can create competitive and breakthrough strategies and plans.
• Developing Direct Reports and Others: Provides challenging and stretching tasks and assignments; holds frequent development discussions; is aware of each person’s career goals; constructs compelling development plans and executes them; pushes people to accept developmental moves; will take on those who need help and further development; cooperates with the developmental system in the organization; is a people builder.
• Building Effective Teams: Blends people into teams when needed; creates strong morale
  and spirit in his/her team; shares wins and successes; fosters open dialogue; lets people finish and be responsible for their work; defines success in terms of the whole team; creates a feeling of belonging in the team.

Tapestry, Inc. is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer and we pride ourselves on hiring and developing the best people. All employment decisions (including recruitment, hiring, promotion, compensation, transfer, training, discipline and termination) are based on the applicant’s or employee’s qualifications as they relate to the requirements of the position under consideration. These decisions are made without regard to age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic characteristics, race, color, creed, religion, ethnicity, national origin, alienage, citizenship, disability, marital status, military status, pregnancy, or any other legally-recognized protected basis prohibited by applicable law. Visit Tapestry, Inc. at http://www.tapestry.com/