London, England, United Kingdom
Freelance Sportswear Designer, Freelance Activewear Designer, Creative Director and Brand Management Consultant. I am a freelance sportswear designer, activewear designer, athleisure designer, trend forecaster, and creative director with over 15 years industry experience. I have designed for brands including Finisterre, Icebreaker, VF Corporation, Sweaty Betty and Striders Edge. FREELANCE DESIGN service tailored to suit your requirements across women's and men's sportswear. I specialise in the following product categories: Running, Fitness, Gym, Athleisure, Yoga, Pilates, Loungewear, Cycling, Swim, Ski, Hiking, Outerwear, Accessories. CREATIVE DIRECTION service brings brands to life across look and feel, whilst outlining creative and commercial strategies through directional range planning, product, photoshoot and marketing campaigns. CONSULTING service to support you with launching a brand, taking a brand to market, distribution strategies and expanding your business. • 15 Years experience in the sportswear industry. • Specialise in running, gym, fitness, swim, yoga, pilates, athleisure, ski wear, and outerwear design. • Comprehensive understanding of manufacturing processes including seamless technology. • Excellent industry relationships. • Launched a global sportswear label with destination retailers including Harrods, John Lewis, House of Fraser. • Successfully work to target margins without compromising on the execution of product. • Motivating and inclusive of all, outgoing, patient and able to relate to a multitude of working styles. • Enjoy working as part of a team or under own initiative. • Entrepreneurial, resourceful, professional, dynamic and adaptable. For further information please visit www.katybiddulph.co.uk
I am a freelance sportswear designer, activewear designer, athleisure designer, trend forecaster, and creative director with over 12 years industry experience. FREELANCE DESIGN service tailored to suit your requirements across womens and mens sportswear. I specialise in the following product categories: Running, Fitness, Gym, Athleisure, Yoga, Pilates, Loungewear, Cycling, Swim, Ski, Hiking, Outerwear, Accessories. CONSULTING service to support you with launching a brand, taking a brand to market and expanding your business. My experience includes: • Branding • Taking a brand and product to market • Wholesaling to retailers domestically and internationally • Order fulfilment and logistics • Setting, working to and achieving margin • Running a brand • Planning and creatively directing campaign photoshoots • Working with PR and marketing • Press events • Working with garment techs and production companies • Design • Sample development • Manufacturing processes • Execution of product • Executing business plans • Pitching for and raising investment ABOUT My background in the fashion and sportswear industry is expansive, well-connected and informed by a creative strength that has been assiduously honed through my Fashion design degree qualification and my applied industry experience. Over the last twelve years my career has taken me to the Far East, America, Russia, and Europe. I have designed for a multitude of brands including Finisterre, Sweaty Betty, and Striders Edge. I am highly experienced and knowledgeable across the diverse realms of fashion, sportswear and taking a brand to market. Having exclusively and independently taken a brand from inception to market and successfully stocked internationally across multiple continents by influential destination retailers such as Harrods, John Lewis and House of Fraser. I am very well versed in the process and the various complexities that may arise. For further information please visit www.katybiddulph.co.uk
Key Achievements: • Created successful, innovative and statement sportswear apparel. • Successfully lead and inspired my own team including freelancers. • Strong and successful relationships with suppliers, stockists and media. • International knowledge of sportswear market. • Launched Striders Edge with destination retailers including Harrods, John Lewis, House of Fraser. • Creatively directed photo-shoots which rivalled major brands whilst working to tight budgets. • Interviewed by various press titles including the BBC. • Regular brand editorial press coverage within the fashion and fitness titles. • Excellent in-depth understanding of both seamless technology and cut and sew garments. • Designed successful collections with increased LFL sales. Responsibilities: • Executing high-quality designs and product for running, fitness, gym, yoga, Pilates, swim, hiking, and accessories. • Tracking design and development schedule to ensure timely completion following the product development calendar. • Trend direction, season forecast, colour palette building. • Regular international travel – New York, California, Russia, Portugal, China, Europe. • Research trips and communicating industry and design trends. • Sourcing high quality fabrics whilst maintaining target price points. • Working closely with PR and marketing to deliver brand signature. • Presenting at press events from invite only media to in-store launches. Further Skills: • Flat sketching and hands on experience with CAD and office software. • Formulating colour palettes • Creation of high quality design packs and execution of product designs. • Designing and sourcing trims with suppliers. • Strong understanding of end user and ability to design for different consumers. • Managing complete product and collection cycles. • Excellent knowledge of manufacturing processes - seamless as well as cut and sew. • Excellent communication skills and presenting of concepts and direction.
StyleSight Oct 2010 - Jan 2011 Freelance Sportswear / Activewear Designer - Trend Forecaster Trend forecasting and designing sportswear ranges across men’s and womenswear. Producing trend direction mood boards and cohesive collections for the performance sports sector. Stylesight is purchased by major brands to enable them to design and buy on trend for the upcoming seasons. Falmouth University Oct 2010 - Oct 2010 Guest Lecturer - Performance Sportswear I was invited to lecture on the Performance Sportswear Design BA Hons Degree at Falmouth University. I prepared and gave a presentation on how to put a tech pack together as well as provided an insight into the real world of the design industry showing students how their degree will translate into industry techniques and further inspired them to start pro-actively thinking of elements where they can learn themselves away from the studio - such as competitor market research. After a Q and A session I later held one to one tutorials to aid them in their project. A Gift From The Gods Sept 2010 - Oct 2010 Freelance Sportswear / Activewear Designer Premium Loungewear Smartway Consulting Nov 2009 - Aug 2010 Freelance Sportswear / Activewear Designer. Travelling. 9 month backpacking trip through South East Asia, Aus and NZ. Included jungle trekking in Vietnam and skiing in New Zealand. During my travels I freelanced as a designer for Smartway Consulting – a manufacturing and sourcing company.
Key Achievements: • Increased Run £ sales 367.8% and units 300% LFL vs LY (Q3 09 vs Q3 08) • Press coverage including Vogue, Health & Fitness, Zest and Runners World magazines. • Successfully managed two design assistants. Responsibilities: • Trend direction and season forecast inspiration boards. • Designing performance ski, swim, running, cycling, and gym, as well as accessories. • Designing graphics and swimwear prints as well as printed reflective designs. • Design and source new trims and the latest technical fabrics. • Create thorough and informative technical design/factory packs. • Research, create mood, colour and trend direction boards. • Present ranges to Directors, Marketing, Retail, Merchandising, and Buying team. • Travel to factories including China, Portugal, and Lithuania. • Daily communication with factories. • Attending fit sessions and working closely with garment tech. • Plan research trips. • Trade show visits. • Comp’ shopping at competitor brands as well as high end and high street stores. • Sweaty Betty store visits to gain insight into customers’ needs.
• Mood, colour and trend direction presentation boards. • Fabric sourcing and range building. • Detailed spec sheets and factory packs. • Worked on initial pattern cutting and sampling.