Designer 2 - Footwear

At L.L.Bean, we believe the outdoors brings out the best in all of us. We are committed to fostering a culture of belonging and creating safe, inclusive spaces where everyone feels welcome—both here and Outside. We value individual differences and are dedicated to maintaining an inclusive work environment where everyone can bring the best of their experience and talents and truly thrive.

Bring your passion for footwear, the outdoors, and timeless design to L.L.Bean!

We’re seeking a creative to join our talented team in Freeport, Maine where an iconic outdoor brand, a collaborative design culture, and an authentic Maine lifestyle come together. If you’re excited to create distinctive, brand-right footwear that helps people feel more confident and comfortable outside, this is an opportunity to make a meaningful impact.

As a Footwear Designer II, you’ll help shape the future of L.L.Bean footwear through thoughtful color, material, and silhouette design. Working across Boots, Active, Slippers, and Casual, you’ll create timeless, functional products that honor our outdoor heritage while bringing a fresh perspective to each season. This role offers the opportunity to influence a broad range of products, collaborate with talented cross-functional partners, and design footwear built for life outside.

*This role requires relocation to Maine. We have a hybrid work schedule with a minimum of four days at our Headquarters Building in Freeport, ME.

Responsibilities:

• Translate seasonal trend direction into compelling, brand-right footwear concepts.
• Identify relevant footwear trends and thoughtfully create designs that align with L.L.Bean’s DNA.
• Create sketches, renderings, prototypes, and detailed tech packs in Adobe Illustrator that clearly communicate design intent.

• Explore silhouette, materials, color, construction, and function while balancing creativity, cost, and manufacturability.
• Conduct research on market and competitive brands- domestic travel for inspiration and trade shows.

• Partner with cross-functional teams in Product Development and Sourcing to refine, test, and commercialize designs.

• Use consumer insights, market research, and wear testing to improve comfort, performance, and relevance.

• Present clear, compelling design renderings at milestone meetings.
• Adjusting shell patterns and redlining photos of pullover samples throughout development process.
• Use Mural to clearly present concepts and align color and material direction across categories.

• Create and update an accurate pre-production BOM images and colors in Flex PLM
• Ensures all milestones/deadlines are achieved and successful. Attends to align on M2M key strategies, initiatives & actions.

Core Competencies:

• Strong communication and collaboration skills across global and cross-functional teams.

• Proficient in developing detailed upper and outsole tech packs.
• Ability to build strong partnerships with internal teams, vendors, and sourcing partners.
• Thrives in a fast-paced environment, balancing multiple priorities and evolving business needs.
• Consumer-focused mindset with a passion for creating functional, timeless products that enhance outdoor experiences.
• Curious, collaborative, and solution-oriented, with a strong appreciation for L.L.Bean's heritage, quality standards, and commitment to the target consumer.
• Self-starter who can take initiative while contributing positively to a team-oriented culture.
• Commitment to quality, craftsmanship, and creating products that deliver exceptional customer experiences outside.

Skills and Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in footwear design, industrial design, or a related field, or equivalent experience.
• 3-5 years of footwear design experience.
• Strong sketching, ideation, and tech-packing skills.
• Basic knowledge of footwear materials, fit, construction (last and toolings), and manufacturing.
• Proficiency in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop.

• Experience using AI tools is preferred.

• Strong visual, verbal, and written communication skills.

• Flexibility and willingness to support international partners across time zones as needed.
• Ability to manage multiple projects and timelines while working effectively with cross-functional and international partners.
• Ability to travel domestically and internationally, including potential travel to Asia up to twice per year.

*A portfolio link or uploaded PDF is required for consideration.

Health and Safety Requirement: Every employee is responsible for contributing to a safe and healthy workplace. Employees are expected to be active participants in health and safety by following all safety policies and procedures, reporting unsafe conditions or at-risk behaviors to leadership, and conducting work in a safe manner. Those in a leadership role are also expected to model safe behaviors, evaluate risk, and ensure that risks are reduced to acceptable levels. 

L.L.Bean uses a market-based compensation approach. The anticipated starting base pay for this position is $98,100.00 - $122,600.00. Individual compensation may vary based on factors such as a candidate’s experience, qualifications, education, geographic location, skills, competencies, and proficiency for the role.

If you care about the outdoors, joining L.L.Bean is a great way to feel good about what you do. Our benefits package makes a good thing even better, with programs and perks designed to support your health and financial goals. Plus, maintaining a healthy work-life balance and re-charging outside are all part of the plan.

If your experience looks a little different from what we've identified and you think you'd be great at this role, we'd love to learn more about you!   At L.L.Bean, we believe the outdoors brings out the best in all of us.  We strive to reflect this every day in our commitments to employees and partners and in our efforts to promote belonging.