Fabric Research & Development Assistant, Wholesale Apparel (New York)
The Fabric Research & Development Assistant supports the fabric and textile team in the women's wholesale ready-to-wear business by managing fabric research, development, and sourcing activities. This role involves close collaboration with design, production, and mills to track fabric samples, maintain development records, and assist with fabric preparation and organization, ensuring smooth fabric development from research through pre-production.
About Careertakes
👉 Important disclosure: Careertakes is a third-party recruiting platform supporting this hiring process. If selected, you will be employed directly by our client, Manufacturing.
Applicants for this role may also receive access to additional matched opportunities through the Careertakes platform.
Overview
Confidential Client is seeking an entry-level Fabric Research & Development Assistant to support the Fabric/Textile team for a women's wholesale ready-to-wear business. This role is ideal for a highly organized, detail-oriented candidate interested in fabric research, textile development and sourcing. On-site in Manhattan, NY.
Key Responsibilities
- Support seasonal fabric research and development for womenswear wholesale collections.
- Partner with Design to understand seasonal fabric direction and development needs.
- Communicate with domestic and overseas mills on fabric developments, pricing, minimums, widths, content and availability.
- Request and maintain Fabric Data Sheets (FDS) for sampled and developed qualities.
- Coordinate requests for swatches, headers, sample yardage and sub-proto yardage from mills and suppliers.
- Assist with counter-sourcing and identifying alternative fabric options as needed.
- Track fabric submissions, approvals, sample yardage and development status.
- Order, receive, label, organize and distribute incoming fabric samples and yardage.
- Cut and prepare fabric swatches and reference samples for design boards, internal libraries and development records.
- Assist designers with pulling fabric and yardage for sample cutting and fittings.
- Maintain seasonal fabric binders, swatch libraries and digital development records.
- Organize fabric selections by mill, category, season and division.
- Maintain an organized sample yardage and fabric storage area and save documentation in shared drives/systems.
- Provide daily follow-up with mills and internal teams on outstanding fabric developments.
- Support additional fabric, textile and product development projects as needed.
Qualifications
- Bachelor’s or Associate degree in Textile Development, Fashion Merchandising, Fashion Design, Product Development or related field preferred.
- Internship, academic or entry-level experience in textiles, fabric development, sourcing, apparel production or product development preferred.
- Basic understanding of woven and knit fabrics, fabric construction and textile terminology.
- Strong interest in women’s ready-to-wear and the apparel development process.
- Highly organized with exceptional attention to detail.
- Strong follow-up skills and ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously.
- Comfortable communicating with mills, vendors and cross-functional internal teams.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills.
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office.
- Experience with PLM systems and/or Adobe Photoshop is a plus.
- Strong aesthetic sense and interest in fabric, color, print and seasonal trends.
- Proactive, dependable and able to work in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment.
Compensation & Schedule
- This is an hourly, non-exempt, full-time position (on-site in Manhattan, NY).
- Estimated pay shown: $52,752 per year (estimated). Compensation up to approximately $62,000 annualized depending on experience and qualifications.
- Pay practices comply with applicable New York pay transparency requirements; final pay will reflect experience and role responsibilities.
Why Apply
- Launch a career in fabric/textile research and apparel development with hands-on experience across design, production and mill partnerships.
- Work in a collaborative environment supporting women’s wholesale ready-to-wear collections.
- Opportunities for learning PLM systems, fabric sourcing, and cross-functional product development processes.
Equal Opportunity & Hiring Transparency
Careertakes and our client are Equal Opportunity Employers committed to building a diverse and inclusive workforce. We prohibit discrimination or harassment of any kind. To support a fair and efficient hiring process, AI tools may be used to assist with application review or resume screening. These tools do not replace human decision-making. Final hiring decisions are made by people.
If you have questions about how your data is used, please contact us directly.
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