Résumé
Trevor Wills
Creative & Design Director. 16+ years in accessories design, leading design teams since 2021 across 11+ licensed brands and national retail private label.
Profile
Design leader for licensed and private-label accessories. I ran the seasonal design process for 11+ brands a season, from trend research through production, and presented collections to licensor brand teams for approval. I led my design organization into AI, evaluating platforms, clearing licensing and IP risk with IT, Legal and Procurement, and training 30+ designers and merchandisers to use it in trend, concept and design work. I also led the company-wide move to CLO 3D sampling with Target’s 3D Product Creation team, which cut physical samples 66% and sped up time to market 35%. Industrial design background, with hands-on experience in materials, construction and factory partnerships in China, Taiwan and India.
Selected impact
AI adoption and training
Led the design organization into AI. Researched and trialed Vizcom.AI, Raspberry AI and Fermat with a designer test group, worked through licensing, IP risk and usage terms with IT, Legal and Procurement, and trained 30+ designers and merchandisers. Ran internal sessions every other week on putting AI into real trend, concept and design work.
Digital product creation
Researched, piloted and rolled out CLO 3D across Randa. Built the international 3D team, set standards, and got buy-in from product development, operations and IT. 66% fewer physical samples, 35% faster speed to market, 2 weeks cut from the development cycle, 75% of approvals moved to digital.
Trend forecasting, rebuilt
Replaced static InDesign mood boards with an interactive trend site built with AI, compressing a process that took weeks into days. Brand partners and sales opened a live link instead of a large email attachment that lost quality in compression.
Multi-brand design direction
Directed seasonal design for all 11 licensed brands each season, keeping each brand distinct on one calendar and one factory base.
Retail strategy
Led a men’s accessories assortment assessment for Walmart, combining store visits, data and an original photo shoot into specific add and drop recommendations for the buying team.
Team building
Managed 6+ direct reports and 50+ cross-functional partners, built design guides and training toolkits for new designers, and hired a China-based 3D designer.
Experience
Randa Apparel & Accessories
Senior Design Director, Men’s Leather & Accessories
- Design strategy, product development and brand management for Randa’s largest category: 11+ licensed brands plus private label for Target, Walmart, Macy’s, Costco, Kohl’s and JCPenney.
- Managed 6+ direct reports and worked with 50+ partners across product development, sourcing, merchandising, sales, marketing and sustainability.
- Led the design organization’s adoption of AI: evaluated platforms with a designer trial group, cleared licensing, IP risk and usage terms with IT, Legal and Procurement, and trained 30+ designers and merchandisers to use AI in trend, concept and design work.
- Led the company-wide CLO 3D rollout with Target’s 3D Product Creation team: 66% fewer physical samples, 35% faster speed to market, 2 weeks cut from the development cycle, 75% of approvals moved to digital.
- Product Group Lead on Randa’s ESG Committee and founding member of the AI Trailblazers group.
Randa Apparel & Accessories
Design Director
- Designed and directed men’s leather goods and accessories across licensed lines and retail channels.
- Tightened the loop between design, merchandising and sales to cut costly late-stage revisions.
Randa Apparel & Accessories
Senior Designer
- Core member of the small team that built Damen + Hastings, Randa’s first owned brand: named it, led brand development and helped take it to a national launch at Kohl’s, including a Made-in-USA collaboration with Pintrill.
- Started Randa’s first leather sustainability work before a formal ESG program existed.
Randa Apparel & Accessories
Designer
- Owned the design process from concept and material selection through factory handoff and production approval.
Randa Apparel & Accessories
Assistant Designer
- Supported senior designers across licensed brand programs: construction, material sourcing, trend research, and work with vendors and sales.
Fossil Group
Assistant Designer
- Watch and accessories design at a global brand: product development, materials and manufacturing.
Education
The Art Institute of California, Orange County
Bachelor of Science, Industrial Design
University of Kansas, School of Fine Arts
Coursework in art and industrial design
Skills & tools
Design direction
- Seasonal direction across multiple brands
- Trend research and trend books
- AI-assisted trend synthesis and forecast sites
- Presenting to licensor brand teams for approval
- Lookbook and product photography
Team leadership
- 6+ direct reports, 50+ cross-functional partners
- Design guides and training toolkits for new designers
- Hiring and onboarding, including a China-based 3D designer
- Design reviews across US and overseas offices
Product & sourcing
- Industrial design background
- Tech packs, specs and sample approvals
- Leathers, hardware and trims
- Factory partners in China, Taiwan and India
Tools & innovation
- AI design tools, hands-on user and rollout lead
- Vizcom.AI, Adobe Firefly, Midjourney
- CLO 3D, department champion for the rollout
- Adobe Creative Suite
- Gerber Yunique PLM
- Licensor approval platforms: Prooftrack, COPA, Box
- SharePoint for file sharing