Product Design

Product Design & Product Development Manager Lead the creation of beautiful, commercial home textiles for retailers nationwide. We are a well-established home textiles wholesaler supplying major retail partners across Australia and the South Pacific. We’re seeking an experienced and highly capable Product Design & Product Development Manager to drive innovation, manage development processes, and deliver high-quality textile products from concept to production. This is a key leadership role that blends design expertise, technical product knowledge, commercial thinking, and strong supplier management. You’ll be central to shaping our product ranges and ensuring they resonate with retailers and customers alike. About the Role In this role, you will oversee the full end-to-end design and development lifecycle across our bedding, bath, décor, and lifestyle textile categories. You will guide seasonal direction, manage artwork and product creation, work collaboratively with offshore manufacturers, and ensure our products meet quality, cost and delivery expectations. This is a hands‑on role with significant influence across multiple departments, including Sales, Production, and Marketing. Key Responsibilities Product Strategy & Planning Develop and execute the product development roadmap aligned with brand positioning, seasonal trends, and commercial objectives. Conduct and interpret consumer, market, and competitor research to identify new product opportunities. Plan collections, materials, and product features that deliver differentiation and value. Design Leadership Develop seasonal design concepts, colour palettes, fabric directions, and product stories aligned with brand strategy and market positioning. Lead the creation of textile designs, patterns, constructions, and finishing techniques across bedding, towelling, décor, and other soft product categories. Guide designers, partners, and mills to ensure creative cohesion across collections. Product Development Own the end-to-end development process from design brief to production-ready specification. Translate trend insights, consumer insights, and commercial objectives into viable product opportunities. Prototype new materials, textures, jacquards, woven, knits, prints, and embellishments, ensuring feasibility at scale. Manage technical specifications, packs, and detailed product specifications. Material & Technology Innovation Identify and explore opportunities to adopt new fibres, yarn blends, weaves, finishes, and performance technologies relevant to home textiles. Investigate and implement sustainable materials and responsible manufacturing practices. Partner with mills to experiment with constructions, jacquards, dyeing, printing, and finishing capabilities. Supplier & Factory Collaboration Work closely with mills, manufacturers, and sourcing teams to align on cost targets, lead times, and production feasibility. Manage sampling rounds, review prototypes, and approve pre-production outputs such as lab dips, strike-offs, and TOP samples. Provide clear technical direction to ensure accurate execution of design intent. Quality, Performance & Compliance Define product standards, performance criteria, and testing requirements across categories. Work with Quality Assurance to evaluate construction, durability, colourfastness, and regulatory compliance. Troubleshoot technical and material challenges to ensure product reliability and customer satisfaction. Cross-Functional Collaboration Partner with management on range planning, pricing architecture, and category strategy. Work with Marketing and E-Commerce teams to translate design stories and product features into strong customer-facing content. Provide product knowledge and design insights to Sales, Retail, and Visual Merchandising. Project & Lifecycle Management Oversee critical path management, ensuring timely delivery of seasonal range milestones. Maintain accurate documentation, tracking tools, and PLM records. Post‑launch, analyse performance to inform future range improvements and innovation pipelines. About You 5+ years’ experience in product design and product development within home textiles, homewares, or fashion. Strong creative skills with proficiency in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop. Solid technical understanding of textile construction, materials, and manufacturing processes. Experience working with offshore factories and managing production sampling. Excellent communication and presentation skills. Strong organisational skills and ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously. A creative, proactive thinker with strong commercial awareness. Leadership experience or the desire to step into a leadership capacity. Why Join Us? A key strategic role influencing national home textile ranges. Creative autonomy with the opportunity to develop innovative, market-leading products. Work in a friendly, collaborative team with a passion for design and quality. Opportunities for career growth within a successful and expanding wholesaler. Competitive salary package based on experience. #J-18808-Ljbffr