Junior Technologist - Footwear/Accessories

We’re the feel-good fashion brand making style accessible and fun for over 55 years, on our website, mobile app and over 300 stores in the UK.

By living our values - we play to win, customer obsessed, we are one and it starts with me - we deliver That New Look Feeling for our customers and each other. 

The Role: 

To develop and manage a product offer that meets customer requirements for quality and fit, maximising sales and profit opportunities while minimising faulty and fit returns. As a Junior Technologist you will be responsible for managing your own department from first fit through to delivery.

This role requires you to be in the office 4 days a week.

WHATS IN IT FOR YOU:

• 40% staff discount plus friends & family discounts throughout the year
• Access to our reward platform for external discount and offers
• Private pension scheme
• Virtual GP access for you and your children – it allows you to speak to a doctor at a time and date that suits you
• All employees are covered by our life assurance policy from day one
• Unlock extra leave with our buy more holiday scheme.
• Celebrate YOU! Enjoy an extra paid day off on your birthday each year
• Enhanced maternity, paternity and adoption leave, and shared parental leave.
• Spread the cost of your commute with interest-free season ticket loans
• Do your bit for the environment and save money with our Cycle2Work scheme
• We're proud to partner with the Retail Trust and Fashion & Textile Children's Trust

What you’ll be doing:

• Take responsibility for fitting and sealing of a department
• Maintaining departmental quality, fit, testing and grading standards to uphold manual compliance with support from your manager
• Working with design and supply base to develop product briefs, providing accurate measurement and fabric requirements
• Risk assess product and supplier capabilities to ensure correct quality standards are achievable
• Manage the product development process from first fit through to production, liaising with design, buying, merchandising, suppliers, franchise, international, supply chain and E-Commerce as required
• Understand product construction and suitability for mass production
• Understand how to adapt product to minimise costs
• Negotiate effectively with suppliers to achieve desired quality and fit objectives
• Ensure full understanding of packaging and labeling requirements to ensure consistency of brand and quality
• Conducting regular New Look store visits to identify faults and action improvements
• Monitor the market, identifying competitor advances in quality/ fit, and highlight to managers
• Monitor and manage weekly faulty returns using weekly reports and highlight to suppliers and BMD
• Review supplier compliance in a commercial manner to resolve DC on holds within 48 hours of ‘Supplier Compliance Authorisation’
• Manage test reports through ‘Datalink’
• Completes factory/ testing laboratory/ distribution center trips in line with departmental needs
• Providing reporting on quality and fit at department level in order to identify which areas to focus improvements with support from your manager
• To be responsible for the motivation and development of direct reports in your department

Who you are:

• Good understanding of fit requirements for product area and ability to communicate clearly the relevant changes required to achieve an approved fit and required quality
• Ability to put together a comprehensive and clear design brief outlining measurements and fabric requirements
• Good understanding of product testing with the ability to review failed results commercially in line with the product
• An understanding of grading and sizing
• Understanding of fabric and trim requirements to ensure suitability for product type
• Understanding of open costings
• Understanding of supply chain issues, for example: lead times/ flexibility/ supplier capability
• Start to understand factory processes to identify potential issues and cost saving opportunities (lay planning/ construction/ line flow/ etc)
• Knowledge of the current competitive market place to identify relevant product developments in quality and fit
• Understanding of labelling, packaging and presentation of a product to include legal compliance
• Numerical and analytical skills in order to review returns data and grade rules
• Risk assessment skills
• Previous experience in quality with a major retailer / supplier/ department within New Look

Why New Look?
We care about you and the planet and believe fashion should be a force for positive change.  We celebrate inclusion and diversity in everything we do. We’re proud of our inclusive culture and our talented team members who embrace our shared purpose, behaviours and values. 

We prioritise development, offering training to support your progression, so you can be your absolute best and achieve your goals. 

We pride ourselves on being a flexible employer, our colleagues work a range of patterns. If you have a specific pattern in mind, we're keen to discuss this with you in line with the output needed for the role.    

Please ensure that your CV is in simple format e.g. Microsoft Word when applying using your CV to ensure smooth application process.