St. Louis based Soft Surroundings (www.softsurroundings.com) is different from the experience customers typically have with other catalogs and retail stores. Rather than simply selling merchandise, Soft Surroundings celebrates a lifestyle of self-preservation and well-being.  We encourage women to take the time to relax and restore their spirits so that they are better able to handle their daily challenges.  Soft Surroundings helps them achieve this goal by offering soft, comfortable clothing, sleep-inducing bedding and the latest developments in skin care.

We all feel better when we look better.   32% of women say they spend between 15 and 20 minutes on their daily beauty routines.  30% admit to only between 5 and 15 minutes.  Accordingly, Soft Surroundings has assembled a collection of innovative skin care and timesaving cosmetics from the most recognized and respected brands in the Beauty industry.  Products such as Korres, Babor, and DermaDoctor correct, restore and nurture maturing skin, while experts Lauren Hutton, Linda Cantello and T. Le Clerk provide effortless cosmetics to enhance and highlight natural radiance.  In addition to skin care, Soft Surroundings carries lovely aromatics and other creations to ease tensions and promote relaxation.

As an organization, we pride ourselves on delighting our customers with excellent value, terrific merchandise, and exceptional customer service. We do that by hiring the best, most qualified people to fill the jobs we have available. When we have that, we have it all!

We are seeking a Technical Design Director whose repsonsibilities would include the following:

• Ensure that merchandise is of most consistent brand-right fit, of appropriate quality fabric and construction to enhance Soft Surroundings’ brand and meet or beat customer’s expectation.
• Monitor all Returns with urgency and follow-through to prevent continued shipping of unacceptable product and relisting of high returners.
• Make in-season corrections as necessary and possible.
• Participate with Quality Assurance in coaching them for top performance in spotting unacceptable receipts. 
• Work closely with Returns to assist as needed and prevent unacceptable quality/fit/construction from being returned to stock.
• Oversee all Returns reporting
• Partner with Merchandising to translate product development ideas/designs through to manufacturing.
• Communicate with vendors as needed to meet deadlines with product/sample requests accurately and promptly
• Assure vendor compliance with Vendor Business Requirements.
• Participate in writing/updating of Vendor Business Requirements.
• Continually evaluate TD systems and processes for efficiency and improvement.
• Manage product testing process, fit model process and sample archives.
• Help to accurately set and meet Return Rate goals.

The successful candidate will have a college degree with  knowledge of computer software, specifically MS Word, Excel, Micrografx Designer, Gerber Web PDM, and Adobe Illustrator CS.  Also requires fashion design, apparel manufacturing or pattern making background, as well as, problem-solving and formulation skills, math and calculation, reading and reasoning. Must have eight years of industry pattern making experience and/or technical design, in addition to, at least five years of managing technical designers.

Qualified candidates may complete an on-line application at our corporate website: www.softsurroundings.com Click on the Careers Link, then Jobs By Department, then Apply Now.