Urban Outfitters Design Director - BDG Womens Denim & Wovens

Role Summary

Urban Outfitters is looking for a Design Director to lead the BDG lifestyle vision across denim and casual wovens, including jeans, casual and structured bottoms, shorts, skirts, dresses, shirting, jackets, utility, and related lifestyle product.

BDG is rooted in denim, but the opportunity extends beyond the jean. This role is responsible for building the complete lifestyle around denim—defining how silhouette, wash, fabric, proportion, construction, styling, and outfitting come together to create a compelling and recognizable point of view for the UO customer.

The Design Director will own the seasonal creative and product strategy for the category, translating overarching UO concepts into a forward, differentiated assortment that balances denim authority, key items and franchises, outfitting, commercial opportunity, and fashion newness. This leader should have a strong perspective on where denim and casual dressing are moving next and the ability to turn cultural, vintage, global, and fashion inspiration into product that feels uniquely BDG.

This role requires a sophisticated understanding of denim, wash, woven fabric, fit, construction, dye, finish, and manufacturing—with the expertise to set direction, challenge development, and guide the team toward exceptional product execution. Equally important is the ability to lead and develop a high-performing team, influence cross-functional partners, and connect creative vision to meaningful business growth.

The ideal candidate is a product-obsessed, culturally curious, forward-thinking creative leader who can move fluidly between big-picture brand vision and the details that make an individual garment great.

• Own the BDG Lifestyle Vision:
  Define and drive the seasonal creative and product strategy across denim and casual wovens, translating UO concepts into a distinctive BDG point of view and cohesive lifestyle assortment.
• Build the Assortment Strategy:
  Establish the seasonal roadmap across denim fits, casual and structured bottoms, shorts, skirts, shirting, jackets, utility, key items, franchises, and fashion newness, ensuring clear assortment architecture, outfitting, hierarchy, and differentiation.
• Drive Denim Evolution:
  Establish a forward point of view on denim silhouette, proportion, wash, fabric, construction, finish, and styling. Protect and evolve successful fits and franchises while identifying and developing the ideas that can become the next meaningful BDG businesses.
• Lead Wash + Raw Material Direction:
  Set seasonal direction across denim and woven fabrics, washes, dyes, finishes, trims, stitching, construction, and garment treatments. Partner with Product Development, R&D, Sourcing, and Production to build a raw-material strategy that delivers the creative vision while balancing quality, cost, margin, and scalability.
• Set the Product Standard:
  Guide and approve product from concept through development, fittings, sample reviews, and Finalization. Maintain a high bar for taste, fit, proportion, wash, fabrication, construction, detail, quality, and finish, and ensure the team has the technical direction needed to achieve it.
• Identify What’s Next:
  Maintain a deep understanding of the UO customer and actively research vintage, global denim culture, runway, street style, emerging designers and brands, youth culture, and broader shifts in how the customer is getting dressed. Translate those insights into forward product opportunities rather than simply following the competitive market.
• Connect Creativity + Business:
  Use selling, Velo metrics, rankings, customer response, and market intelligence to identify whitespace, opportunities, risks, and emerging franchises. Partner with Merchant leadership to…