Greater Munich Metropolitan Area
Creative and product leader with extensive experience across fashion design, collection development, product strategy and brand building within premium and luxury fashion. Throughout my career, I have combined creative vision with product expertise, commercial understanding and people leadership — leading multidisciplinary teams and developing collections from initial concept and trend direction through product development, sourcing and final market implementation. My experience spans Womenswear, Menswear, Knitwear and Kids, including functional creative leadership for approximately 30 designers and the development of creative concepts and collection direction for up to 25 collections annually within a fast-paced commercial fashion environment. In my current leadership role, I oversee Design and Product Development teams, approximately 10 collections per year plus seasonal add-ons, and a commercial scope of approximately €20M across DACH markets. With a foundation in tailoring, pattern making and fashion design, I understand product development from both a creative and technical perspective. Additional experience across wholesale, retail, consulting and entrepreneurship has given me a comprehensive understanding of the fashion value chain. I believe strong design leadership goes beyond creating a compelling aesthetic. It is about establishing clear creative direction, relevant products, strong teams and efficient processes, while connecting brand identity and creative vision with customer needs and commercial objectives. Core Expertise: Creative Direction · Design Leadership · Collection Strategy · Product Development · Brand Development · Trend Intelligence · Team Leadership · Process Optimization · Womenswear · Knitwear · Premium & Luxury Fashion
Leading Design and Product Development for Womenswear, working directly with the CEO and overseeing two teams across Design and Product Development. Responsible for approximately 10 collections per year plus seasonal add-ons, with budget responsibility and a commercial scope of approximately €20M across DACH markets. DESIGN & PRODUCT LEADERSHIP • Lead the creative direction and collection development across Womenswear • Define seasonal concepts, trends, colours, materials, silhouettes and key product directions • Oversee Design and Product Development teams, setting priorities and ensuring a consistent direction from concept to final product • Responsible for collection development from initial concept through product development and production • Work closely with the CEO on collection strategy, product priorities and commercial requirements • Manage budgets and balance creative ambition with product quality, timing and business objectives • Develop approximately 10 collections annually plus seasonal add-ons for DACH and European markets
Independent design and product consulting for emerging labels and established corporate fashion businesses, with projects ranging from several weeks to several months depending on scope and complexity. TREND & CREATIVE STRATEGY • Research trends and market developments and turn them into concrete directions for colour, product and collections • Develop seasonal concepts, trend directions and product ideas based on brand and market requirements • Advise teams on creative direction and the translation of trends into relevant collections COLLECTION & PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT • Consult on collection concepts, product architecture and seasonal direction • Support collection and product development from initial idea through development and production • Develop pop-up capsules and limited-edition concepts for specific market and retail opportunities • Advise teams on collection development, product decisions and brand consistency PROCESS DEVELOPMENT • Review existing workflows and help teams improve processes between Design, Product Development and Production • Support the structuring of collection and development processes according to individual project requirements • Projects range from emerging labels to established corporate fashion organizations, allowing me to work across different company structures, product needs and development environments.
Industry-based teaching and mentoring in Fashion Design, Product Development and Garment Technology, combining academic education with extensive professional experience in the fashion industry. • Teaching and mentoring across design, product development and garment technology • Development and supervision of practical, project-based design concepts • Knowledge transfer in materials, construction, manufacturing and product quality • Connecting creative design processes with commercial and industry-oriented product development • Mentoring students in concept development, collection building and professional presentation Bringing hands-on industry experience into the classroom and connecting design ideas with technical execution and product quality.
Selected as an industry expert to bring extensive practical experience in brand building, product development, quality management and process optimization into an academic and practice-oriented learning environment. • Brand Building – brand identity, positioning and translating brand strategy into product • Product Development – development processes from concept through technical implementation and production • Quality Management – quality standards, assurance and product quality • Garment Technology – garment construction, manufacturing processes and technical requirements • Process Development & Optimization – structuring and optimizing design and product development workflows • Connecting brand strategy, product, technology, quality and commercial requirements • Practical knowledge transfer through industry-oriented projects, case studies and applied problem-solving
Held functional creative leadership responsibility for approximately 30 designers across Comma and Comma CI, setting the creative direction and collection priorities across brands and product segments, including Outdoor. Developed concepts and creative direction for up to 25 collections annually and later took full creative responsibility for the development and launch of Comma Active. CREATIVE & COLLECTION DIRECTION • Defined seasonal trends, colours, prints and key themes and translated them into concrete collection concepts • Created key pieces, key looks and outfits that became part of the final collections • Took full creative responsibility for the development and launch of Comma Active • Established and led the Trend Lab, introducing new processes for turning trend research into collection concepts • Worked closely with Sourcing on product placement, suppliers, capabilities, quality, timing and commercial requirements FAST TRACK & PRODUCT STRATEGY • Took over creative and product responsibility for Comma & Comma CI Fast Track collections • Managed bestseller development, product continuity and collection build-up within an 11-LUG development cycle BRAND & CROSS-FUNCTIONAL COLLABORATION • Worked closely with Design, Pattern, Product Development, Sourcing and Marketing throughout the collection process • Acted as a central creative contact for agencies, suppliers and external partners • Developed marketing concepts, seasonal communication and campaign ideas together with Marketing • Directed in-house shoots, including product selection, styling and visual presentation • Developed collection texts and editorial content for fashion and industry publications