Our client is seeking a Director of Production & Global Sourcing to lead how product comes to life, from concept through production. This role sits at the center of the business, partnering with teams and vendors around the world to deliver great product while driving quality, speed, and margin. It’s an opportunity to shape process, build strong global partnerships, and have a real impact on the brand’s growth. Does this sound like the right opportunity for you?
New Year, New You
Happy New Year! At EB, we believe each year brings endless new opportunities—both for brands building their teams and for professionals considering their next move.
The past year was an incredible one, and we’re grateful for everyone we had the opportunity to connect with, especially as the industry continued to evolve with shifting trends, new innovations, and renewed growth. As we head into 2026, we’re excited to continue to serve as a hiring partner supporting full-time and freelance hiring needs across the fashion, home, and beauty industries. We look forward to strengthening existing partnerships and building new ones in the year ahead. Wishing you all a wonderful year ahead!
Now Hiring: Digital Marketing Specialist
We’re looking for an experienced Digital Marketing Specialist to own paid media, SEO, and affiliate channels for a growing DTC swimwear brand, focused on driving smart, profitable e-commerce growth. This is a hands-on, onsite role in San Diego for someone who enjoys optimizing performance, collaborating cross-functionally, and building strong in-house marketing processes.
Now Hiring: Marketing Manager
We’re excited to partner with a standout swimwear brand in the search for a Marketing Manager. This is an amazing opportunity for someone who lives and breathes brand storytelling and campaign execution. This role leads cross-channel planning, protects a distinct brand identity, and collaborates closely with ecomm, wholesale, product, PR, and ops to bring beautiful, cohesive campaigns to life. $110–130k.
The Evolution of Fashion Careers: How the Industry Is Changing in 2026
As 2025 wraps up, brands and talent are taking time to reflect on the year and prepare for what comes next. The pace of change has been fast, and the transition into 2026 is shaping up to be just as transformative. Careers are shifting, teams are adapting, and the products reaching consumers are being influenced by designers who are rethinking the creative process from start to finish.
One of the biggest shifts happening right now is the rise of hybrid creative roles. Designers are working across more areas of the business and expanding their skill sets. Many are building 3D concepts, testing digital prototypes, exploring AI-assisted research tools, and collaborating earlier with marketing and ecommerce teams. Versatility is becoming a major advantage for talent, and brands are placing a high value on adaptability and cross-functional communication.
Sustainability is also playing a larger role in the day-to-day work of product creation. Instead of sitting within a single department, sustainable thinking now informs decisions across design, production, sourcing, and merchandising. Knowledge of new materials, traceability, and circularity practices is increasingly important for candidates, and brands are applying these principles more consistently across their seasonal planning.
Digital and direct-to-consumer growth continued throughout 2025 and will remain a major focus in 2026. As a result, creative teams centered around ecommerce, content, social storytelling, and brand identity are expanding. These groups have more influence than ever on how consumers discover, interact with, and connect to products both online and in person.
Today’s most relevant trends, including modern tailoring, clean minimalism, nostalgia-driven graphics, and modular design, come from a blend of global inspiration and digital insights. Designers are drawing from travel, online communities, archival research, and real-time trend data. Many brands begin their collections with virtual concepts before moving into physical sampling, which speeds up development, reduces waste, and allows for more experimentation.
Cross functional Collaboration has also become a defining part of the design process. Teams now work closely across technical design, product development, sourcing, merchandising, and social media. This creates collections that feel more connected to what consumers are responding to on a daily basis. Throughout each stage, designers keep the end user in mind, thinking about wearability, lifestyle, storytelling, and how each piece fits into long-term brand direction.
As brands prepare for 2026, hiring priorities are shifting to match these new needs. Companies are searching for creatives with strong craftsmanship, digital fluency, curiosity, and the ability to collaborate across multiple functions. For talent, the end of the year is an ideal time to update portfolios, highlight process work, refine digital or 3D skills, and reconnect with their network.
The year ahead is full of potential. Creative teams are growing, product development is becoming more intentional, and opportunities continue to expand for both brands and individuals. At EB, we will continue to support this next chapter by helping talent find roles that match their strengths and helping brands build teams that can thrive in the years ahead.
Now Hiring: Marketing Director
Our LA-based client is looking for a dynamic Marketing Director to lead bold brand initiatives and drive their next stage of growth. If you’re a big-picture strategist who loves transforming ideas into standout campaigns, this is an exciting opportunity to make a major impact in a fast-moving, creative environment! $150-170K + bonus.
Now Hiring: Jewelry Designer
We're working with a fast-growing, women-owned lifestyle brand that’s looking for a talented Jewelry Designer to help shape their seasonal collections. If you’re in the RDU area and love creating trend-forward pieces and working hands-on from concept to production, this may be a great fit for you!
New Jobs in New York!
Holiday season hiring is in full swing. We’re partnering with multiple NY-based clients on standout roles:
• Director of FP&A
• Designer
Ready for a fresh start in the new year? We’d love to connect.
Now Hiring: Sales & Business Development Manager
Our client has an exciting opportunity for a Sales and Business Development Manager to lead key customer relationships and drive sales and market growth. This role will play a vital part in shaping their sales strategy, identifying new opportunities, and supporting long-term business success. Interested?
Now Hiring: Merchandising Manager
Our client, a growing swimwear brand based in San Diego, is looking for a Merchandising Manager to help shape seasonal strategy and elevate their swim and resort collections. This is a great opportunity for someone who loves blending creativity with data to build strong assortments and make a real impact across teams.
Peak Season Refresh: Updating Your Resume & Portfolio
Refresh for the New Year
As we head into the holiday season and prepare for a new year, it’s an ideal time to refresh your professional materials. Whether you’re planning a career move before year-end or setting yourself up for new opportunities in early 2026, updating your resume, refining your portfolio, and strengthening your online presence can help you move into the new year with clarity and confidence.
Start with Your Resume: Opportunities to Strengthen Your Story
Fashion designers are creative by nature, but that creativity doesn’t always come through on paper. Clear formatting, measurable results (like best-selling styles or process improvements), and early mention of category expertise help ensure your resume communicates both talent and professionalism.
There’s also opportunity in showcasing commercial results. If your designs helped increase sales, improve efficiency, or introduce innovation, include those achievements. A resume that highlights impact tells a stronger story than one that lists responsibilities.
Including a direct link to your portfolio makes it easy for hiring managers to see your work and understand your strengths.
Standing Out in a Competitive Market
As brands plan for the year ahead, the hiring landscape becomes especially active. Defining your niche—whether it’s outerwear, print design, or sustainable product development—helps position you as an expert in your field.
Consistency across your professional platforms also matters. A cohesive aesthetic, an up-to-date LinkedIn profile, and thoughtful engagement with industry content all reinforce your personal brand and professional focus.
Tailoring each application demonstrates your understanding of a brand’s identity. Adjusting your resume or portfolio to reflect their aesthetic shows attention to detail and genuine interest in the role.
Portfolio Polish: Curate, Don’t Crowd
A strong portfolio is intentional and easy to navigate. Organize your best work by brand, collection, or category, and lead with projects that align with the style or values of the brands you’re targeting. Show range, but maintain a cohesive narrative that reflects your design perspective.
Process work—mood boards, sketches, CADs, and tech packs—adds valuable context. It demonstrates your approach and problem-solving skills, especially when your portfolio is viewed independently in remote settings.
Highlighting outcomes adds weight to your creative story. Designs that reached market, became best sellers, or supported campaign success show both creative and commercial strength.
At Emerging Blue, we connect fashion brands with designers, product developers, and creatives ready for their next step. We also work with talent to refine resumes and portfolios so their skills and goals are clearly represented. If you’re using this season to reset and prepare for what’s next, we’re here to help, from resume support to portfolio feedback and job search guidance. We’re here to help make your next move happen in 2026, together!
Now Hiring: Director of Technical Design
We’re thrilled to be partnering with a luxury womenswear brand in NYC that’s looking for a Director of Technical Design to lead their team! This is an incredible opportunity for someone who’s passionate about craftsmanship, fit, and innovation to make a major impact on a high-end, design-driven collection. $140-160K
Now Hiring: Kids Streetwear Designer - Accessories
We’re excited to partner with a growing streetwear brand in search of a Kids Streetwear Designer - Accessories. This position offers the opportunity to define the look and feel of bags, headwear, and cold-weather pieces in their kids’ collection. $90-110K
Now Hiring: Senior Menswear Designer
A leading contemporary luxury fashion house is seeking a Senior Menswear Designer to join its growing team. Working in close partnership with the founder, this role will help shape the creative direction of menswear—guiding collections from concept to completion with an emphasis on innovation and modern sophistication. Ideal for a hands-on designer with strong technical skills, creative leadership, and a deep understanding of luxury craftsmanship. $110-120K
From Vintage to Vision: The Talent Behind Denim
Denim isn’t just having a moment—it’s having a full-fledged revival. From the resurgence of Y2K low-rise silhouettes to the timeless appeal of 90s straight-leg jeans, vintage-inspired denim is dominating summer collections and consumer closets alike. The energy around denim right now blends nostalgia with modern sensibilities, giving both designers and brands room to get creative.
What’s driving this comeback? A few things. First, the demand for sustainable fashion has pushed brands to explore archival styles and repurposed materials. Shoppers are thinking about longevity and how their clothes align with the planet. Vintage denim fits the bill—it’s durable, stylish, and inherently more sustainable when brands focus on reusing fabrics or recreating classic fits. At EB, we’ve seen a noticeable uptick in brands sourcing design talent with a deep understanding of vintage trends and circular design practices.
Then there’s the influence of streetwear. The line between street style and high fashion continues to blur, and denim plays a huge role in that crossover. Think oversized silhouettes, patchwork pieces, and reimagined trucker jackets. As fashion houses look to appeal to a younger audience, they’re pulling inspiration straight from the streets, and that means hiring designers and product developers who can interpret culture as much as style.
Brands like Mavi, Pistola, MOTHER Denim and 7 For All Mankind are perfect examples of denim done right, merging fit, fabric, and trend with heritage craftsmanship. We’re also seeing newer names enter the space with vintage-inspired launches that offer a fresh take on old-school looks, often paired with inclusive sizing, eco-friendly washes, and modern marketing tactics.
For design and marketing talent, this denim resurgence means opportunity. Whether it’s working on capsule collections, spearheading influencer campaigns, or diving into brand storytelling, there’s room for creativity and impact.
If your brand is leaning into vintage fashion or gearing up for a denim-focused launch, we can help you find the creative talent who gets it—from denim specialists and fashion designers to marketing leads and brand storytellers.
Now Hiring: Director of Ecommerce
Ecommerce leadership roles are some of the hottest positions on the market right now, with brands racing to optimize digital retail as their #1 growth driver. This Director of Ecommerce opportunity in SF offers the chance to own and scale the most critical revenue channel for a leading brand, combining strategic vision with hands-on execution at a pivotal moment in the industry.