Design Director, Speciality Accessories and Technical Design

Coach is a global fashion house founded in New York in 1941. Inspired by the vision of Creative Director Stuart Vevers and the inclusive and courageous spirit of our hometown, we make beautiful things, crafted to last—for you to be yourself in.

Coach is part of the Tapestry portfolio – a global house of brands committed to stretching what’s possible.

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.

Reports To: Vice President, Design

Position Overview

The Design Director, Specialty Accessories is a key creative leader within the Accessories Design organization, responsible for shaping and driving the design vision for specialty accessory categories across Women's, Men's, Runway, and Outlet collections. In addition to leading the design team, this role oversees the Technical Design function for Specialty Accessories and Special Projects , ensuring seamless execution from concept through commercialization while maintaining the highest standards of craftsmanship, fit, construction, and quality.

The role contributes to a wide range of categories— such as bag charms, belts, gifting, Coffee Shop merchandise, Coach Create, and runway specialty accessories —balancing creativity, craftsmanship, and commercial relevance while maintaining a consistent and modern Coach point of view.

Key Responsibilities

- Provide strategic oversight across both design and technical development, ensuring alignment between creative vision and product execution.
- Lead and develop the Specialty Accessories Design team and Technical Design team, fostering a culture that reflects Coach values of craftsmanship, authenticity, optimism, and modern luxury.
- Interpret brand narratives and runway concepts into expressive, well‑considered accessories.
- Collaborate with Product Development, Merchandising, and Materials partners throughout the design process to support quality, functionality, cost, and timing.
- Participate in line reviews, proto and sample evaluations, providing clear and constructive design feedback.
- Mentor and support team, encouraging strong execution, curiosity, and professional growth.
- Communicate design intent clearly in cross‑functional and leadership presentations.

Qualifications and Experience

- 10+ years of experience in accessories design and technical design with exposure to specialty, novelty, or small leather goods categories preferred.
- Demonstrated ability to lead and align both creative and technical teams, bridging design vision with product execution to deliver innovative, high quality product.
- Experience working within an established global brand, balancing creative expression with commercial considerations.
- Previous experience mentoring or managing junior designers.
- Runway or elevated collection experience is a plus.
- Bachelor’s degree in Fashion Design, Accessories Design, or a related work experience

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Key Competencies

- Strong design sensibility with a passion for accessories and product storytelling.
- Collaborative mindset and ability to work effectively across creative and cross‑functional teams.
- High attention to detail and appreciation for craft, materials, and finish.
- Clear visual and verbal communication skills.
- Ability to manage multiple categories and timelines in a dynamic environment.
- Adaptable, optimistic, and solutions‑oriented approach to design challenges.

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 their 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.

Coach. 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.

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

Tapestry, Inc. will provide applicants and employees with reasonable accommodation for disabilities or religious beliefs. If you require reasonable accommodation to complete the application process, please contact Tapestry People Services at 1-855-566-9264 or [email protected]

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Base Pay Range
$155,000.00-$175,000.00

Here are some of the benefits that we offer: Medical insurance, Dental insurance, Vision insurance, 401 (K), Paid Paternity and Maternity leave, Commuter Benefits, Disability insurance and Tuition assistance. Please click here for a complete list of U.S Corporate Compensation & Benefits.