Footwear Designer 2 - Color & Materials, Local Creation

Become a Part of the NIKE, Inc. Team

NIKE, Inc. does more than outfit the world’s best athletes. It is a place to explore potential, obliterate boundaries and push out the edges of what can be. The company looks for people who can grow, think, dream and create. Its culture thrives by embracing diversity and rewarding imagination. The brand seeks achievers, leaders and visionaries. At NIKE, Inc. it’s about each person bringing skills and passion to a challenging and constantly evolving game.

Nike Local Creation GC is one of the fastest product engines at Nike, enabling designers to connect with geo-specific consumers quickly and effectively. Reporting to the Local Creation Design organization, this role focuses on creating inspiring products tailored to specific marketplaces and geographic audiences, capturing fast-moving trends and delivering regionally relevant narratives with flexibility and speed. Local Creation team's mission is to amplify and incubate new ideas while driving and extending consumer favorites, serving local consumers with executions that offer greater relevance and immediacy. We seek a candidate who embodies our values of authenticity, accountability, collaboration, and courage—someone eager to grow, challenge themselves, and act independently as a self-driven contributor.

WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR

We are looking for a Designer II, Footwear Color & Materials, Local Creation GC to create color and material expression across sportswear footwear opportunities for the Greater China marketplace.

This is an intermediate-level individual contributor role. The Designer II is expected to apply established creative direction, increasingly own assigned work, and build fluency across the end-to-end footwear product creation process.

The ideal candidate has strong foundational color and material skills, curiosity about Greater China consumers and culture, attention to detail, and the ability to learn quickly in a fast-moving Local Creation environment.

WHO YOU’LL WORK WITH

This is an individual contributor role reporting to the Senior Design Manager, Footwear Color & Materials, Local Creation GC.

You will collaborate with:

• GC Footwear and Apparel Design, Color & Materials, and Graphics

• GC Product Management, Merchandising, Development, and Marketing

• Sportswear category and partners

• Global and Geo Design counterparts

• Material developers, vendors, manufacturers, and external creative partners

• Consumer insights and marketplace teams

You’ll also engage with external vendors and suppliers to bring your designs to life, ensuring alignment with Nike’s brand standards and regional consumer expectations.

WHAT YOU BRING

Education:

• Bachelor’s degree in Footwear Design, Color Design, Material Design, Textile Design, Fashion Design, Industrial Design, or a related field preferred.

• Equivalent education, experience, or professional training will be considered.

Experience and Capabilities:

• Typically 1 to 4 years of relevant design experience.

• A portfolio demonstrating color sensibility, material awareness, creative thinking, and product application.

• Working knowledge of color theory, color blocking, material selection, trims, finishes, and product storytelling.

• Foundational understanding of footwear construction and manufacturing.

• Curiosity about Greater China consumers, culture, sport, style, and marketplace trends.

• Ability to work within defined creative direction while contributing original ideas.

• Strong attention to detail and willingness to learn from feedback.

• Clear visual, verbal, and written communication.

• Ability to coordinate multiple assigned tasks and meet deadlines.

• Proficiency in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop.

• Familiarity with 3D and AI-enabled visualization tools such as Vizcom, and collaborative tools preferred.

• Ability to travel as required by the role.

WHAT YOU’LL WORK ON

As the Designer II, Footwear Color & Materials, Local Creation GC, you will:

• Execute assigned footwear color and material projects aligned with design direction, seasonal concepts, consumer briefs, and project timelines.

• Create color palettes, colorways, color blocking, material selections, trims, finishes, and product details with guidance from design leadership.

• Apply GC consumer, trend, city, sport, and marketplace research to assigned design work.

• Support seasonal narrative building, concept development, mood boards, material boards, and visual presentations.

• Develop CAD pages, color-ups, line art, material callouts, and other design communication required for product creation.Review prototypes and samples, resolve color and material achievability issues, and protect design intent through final execution.

• Participate in sample and prototype reviews, identify execution issues, and incorporate feedback into revisions.

• Learn footwear construction, material behavior, color achievability, manufacturing processes, and commercialization requirements.

• Communicate design concepts in internal and cross-functional reviews.

• Manage assigned tasks, handoffs, files, and deadlines with increasing independence.

• Collaborate with Footwear and Apparel, Color & Materials, and Graphic Design.

• Support required digital workflow, file-upload, or legal-submission processes associated with assigned products.

• Receive feedback openly, explore alternatives, and make design changes with speed and precision.

• Contribute to team tools, color and material libraries, trend research, and shared project resources.

#MYNEXT: Be Empowered to Grow within Nike and Create the Future

We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.

NIKE, Inc. is a growth company that looks for team members to grow with it. Nike offers a generous total rewards package, casual work environment, a diverse and inclusive culture, and an electric atmosphere for professional development. No matter the location, or the role, every Nike employee shares one galvanizing mission: To bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete* in the world.

NIKE, Inc. is committed to employing a diverse workforce. Qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, veteran status, or disability.