Specialist - Material Testing

In short

As the Material Quality Specialist for Apparel and Accessories, you will be responsible for upholding global quality standards, implementing processes, and tracking metrics that ensure premium material quality and pinnacle performance across the entire A&A product range. Your technical knowledge and analytical skills will support your cross-functional communication in relevant quality, testing, and compliance discussions. You will report to the A&A Material Quality, Testing, and Color Lead, and work closely with Material Development, Product Quality, Material Sourcing, Product Compliance, and material vendors/product factories around the world.

Your Mission

• Partner with product creation teams, sourcing offices, and suppliers to identify and mitigate material quality risks before manufacturing, and support remediation material quality issues in bulk production

• Drive the collection, interpretation, and communication of material testing data (3rd party, T2, and Internal)

• Identify opportunity for quality improvements as it relates to material/trim development and specialized testing

• Maximize information availability and optimize the translation of product range + material specifications to a seasonal testing plan

• Build and maintain partnerships with third party testing agencies to ensure on-time results and to facilitate proper understanding of testing, compliance, and regulatory expectations

• Serve as point of contact to creation teams for product integrity inquiries, and support the education of the wider team as an advocate of quality

Your story

• Experience: You have 4+ years’ experience in materials quality, materials development, or textile production.

• Technical Expertise: You have extensive knowledge of textile fibers, production processes (including spinning, weaving, knitting, dyeing, and finishing), as well as a very strong understanding of standard test methods for quality testing. Trims and hard goods experience is a plus.

• Analytical Mindset: You are able to extract meaning and draw parallels from large datasets. You can extrapolate patterns to determine the best course of action in pursuit of premium quality.

• Communication: You have excellent verbal and written communication skills to collaborate with internal and external partners globally. You can present complex information effectively to audiences with minimal technical background.

• Organizational Skills: You are detail-oriented with the ability to manage and execute multiple short-term and long-term projects simultaneously.

• Global Exposure: Experience with global material sourcing and development, including travel to key manufacturing hubs, trade fairs, and global sourcing offices is a plus.

• Fluent in English (written and spoken).