Dreamwear is a leading wholesale intimate apparel and sleepwear company working with iconic brands such as Juicy Couture, Laura Ashley, Danskin, Nautica, and many more. Our longstanding global partnerships enable us to deliver beautifully designed, high-quality products with speed, value, and exceptional execution, making Dreamwear a trusted partner to many of the world's leading retailers. Learn more at dreamwear.com/our-brands.
Our Design team sets the trend, color, and style direction for our seasonal and customer-driven collections, translating market insights and brand direction into compelling product concepts. The team develops color stories, mood boards, CADs, and presentations for internal and customer reviews, then partners cross-functionally to oversee their designs through sample development and production.
We are seeking a Freelance Assistant Designer with an exceptional eye for color to support seasonal color research, palette development, and color execution across our entire brand portfolio. This role will help translate emerging trends into commercially relevant color stories, while also providing broader design support for our junior brands and accounts as workload allows. This freelance opportunity has the potential to evolve into a full-time role but for now, our expectation is that you are able to work in our midtown office Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday.
This is an ideal opportunity for someone who is passionate about color, trend, and fashion, and wants hands-on exposure across multiple brands in a leading intimates company. The ideal candidate has a strong eye for color; the ability to align aesthetically across multiple brands; meticulous attention to detail; and the ability to stay organized and responsive in a fast-paced, deadline-driven design environment.
Job Responsibilities:
- Research current and emerging color, fashion, lifestyle, beauty, runway, and retail trends to identify relevant seasonal direction and inspiration for individual brands and customers.
- Assist in developing physical and digital color palettes, color stories, mood boards, trend boards, and presentation materials for concept development, internal reviews, and customer meetings.
- Create and update color presentations, palettes, and supporting materials based on team feedback, maintaining accuracy, consistency, and alignment with each brand.
- Support color matching and color selection across teams, with close attention to consistency against established brand standards.
- Maintain organized physical and digital color resources, including color racks, the sample room, swatches, standards, color libraries, and reference files; assist with Pantone and Coloro standards as needed.
- Provide additional design support for junior brands and accounts as workload allows, including CAD updates, technical flat sketches, colorway development, and preparation of presentation-ready design materials.
- Partner closely with Designers and cross-functional teams to keep color and design projects organized, communicate updates, and ensure key deadlines are met.
*This job description is not intended to be exhaustive. Duties and responsibilities may be changed or modified at any time at the discretion of management.
Qualifications:
- Degree in Fashion Design, Textile Design, Color, or a related field preferred, or equivalent relevant experience.
- Previous internship or 1-2 years of relevant experience in apparel design, textiles, color, or a related fashion environment preferred.
- Exceptional eye for color and a foundational understanding of color theory, with the ability to distinguish subtle variations in shades and undertones.
- Strong proficiency in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop; demonstrated experience creating CADs, colorways, palettes, and presentation materials preferred.
- Familiarity with Pantone and Coloro systems is a plus.
- Highly organized and detail-oriented, with the ability to maintain both physical and digital color and design resources accurately.
- Must possess strong communication skills with consistent follow-through.
- Ability to take direction, incorporate feedback and manage multiple priorities and deadlines in a fast-paced environment.
- Proactive, collaborative, and eager to learn, with a genuine passion for fashion, color, and trend.
- Must be able to work in our Midtown Manhattan office.
Please submit your resume and a portfolio that demonstrates a strong eye for color and design, including examples of color palettes/stories, mood or trend boards, CADs, colorways, or related design work.
Skills Required
- Degree in Fashion Design, Textile Design, Color, or a related field, or equivalent relevant experience
- Previous internship or 1-2 years of relevant experience in apparel design, textiles, color, or a related fashion environment
- Exceptional eye for color and foundational understanding of color theory, including distinguishing subtle shades and undertones
- Strong proficiency in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop
- Experience creating CADs, colorways, palettes, and presentation materials
- Familiarity with Pantone and Coloro systems
- Strong organization and attention to detail when maintaining physical and digital color and design resources
- Strong communication skills and consistent follow-through
- Ability to take direction, incorporate feedback, and manage multiple priorities and deadlines
- Proactive, collaborative, eager to learn, and passionate about fashion, color, and trend
- Ability to work in the Midtown Manhattan office Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday
- Resume and portfolio demonstrating color and design work
What We Do
Dreamwear is a family-owned apparel company established in 1994 and headquartered in New York City, with offices in Los Angeles, Hong Kong and China. It designs, sources, manufactures and distributes fashion-forward intimate apparel, shapewear and sleepwear for retail customers and global brand partners. The company emphasizes value-driven products, quality, innovation and worldwide partnerships that support efficient production and delivery across its product categories.
