Day: October 23, 2023

About Emma Zuckerman

Emma Zuckerman, a New Jersey native, graduated from the University of Delaware in 2016 with a degree in Apparel Design. During her time at UD, she actively participated in the FASH program and engaged in extracurricular activities related to her major. Emma conducted research on functional fashion with Dr. Martha Hall and held positions on the executive board, eventually becoming the President of Synergy Fashion Group in her senior year. She also founded a club dedicated to creating adaptive garments for children with disabilities. After graduation, Emma commenced her career in technical design with Under Armour (UA), accumulating six years of experience across various apparel categories and fabrications. She began in youth basketball, then transitioned through a range of products, from underwear to seamless leggings, woven jackets, and pants. In her later years at Under Armour, she played a significant role in the launch of Curry Brand and the introduction of UA’s first inline women’s basketball apparel line (non-uniform). Presently, Emma holds the position of Senior Technical Designer at Nike, where she contributes to the development of ACG and Nike SB product lines.

In her free time, Emma loves working on personal sewing, patterning, and draping projects. She also loves hiking, skateboarding, baking, swimming, and painting!

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this interview are those of Emma Zuckerman and do not reflect the views or positions of her employer or any affiliated organizations.

Sheng: What does a technical designer do? Can you walk us through your typical day as a technical designer? Also, what makes you love your job?

Emma: Technical designers work on developing clothing – we work with factory partners to take a style from a conceptual sketch to bulk production. For each style, we start by working with our design partners to understand their vision. We create detailed construction sketches, measurement charts, and sometimes original patterns, then compile those into a tech pack along with our designer’s garment sketch and a Bill of Materials outlining all garment components. A factory partner uses the information in that tech pack to make a sample to send back to us. We fit that sample with our team, cutting and pinning until we achieve the desired fit and aesthetic. The factory uses our feedback to create a second sample, and this process repeats until the style is finalized and approved for production. Throughout the process, we keep the tech pack up-to-date and ensure it accurately reflects the style we’re developing.

There are so many things I love about my job! The subjects of fitting and patterning are fascinating to me, and there will always be so much to learn about them. I love that throughout my career, there will be no limit to how much I can learn and how much my skills can grow. I exercise my creativity while also exercising the mathematical side of my brain, so my job is constantly challenging me in really interesting ways. I get to work with people around the world, learn about other cultures, backgrounds, and communication styles, and collaborate with amazingly talented teammates.

Sheng: How does a technical designer get involved in a fashion company’s sourcing process?

Emma: A technical designer’s level of involvement in the sourcing process varies from company to company, but it is always extremely helpful to work closely with our sourcing team. Since both technical designers and the sourcing team communicate with factories, we often check in with each other to make sure the information we’re sending is consistent. We (technical designers) can help provide feedback on factory capabilities and sample quality. Understanding the sourcing process helps us gain insight into why our sourcing partners allocate certain styles to specific factories (for example, a factory might have expertise with woven fabrics, outerwear, or embroidery; a style might qualify for a lower duty rate if sourced from a specific region; some factories may reach their maximum capacity for new styles more quickly than others).

Technical designers work most closely with our sourcing partners during costing conversations. Factories send cost sheets for every style at several key points during development. These cost sheets break down every element that contributes to the final cost of making the garment, from materials to trims, to time spent.  One major role of a sourcing partner (or, at some companies, a product developer) is to process these cost sheets and advise the rest of the team on how much cost needs to be saved, and/or what steps can be taken to save cost, to ensure the style is profitable. Technical designers can use our garment construction and patterning expertise to effectively contribute to these conversations (which leads nicely into the next question)!

Sheng: We know production cost is a critical sourcing factor for fashion brands and retailers. From a technical designer’s perspective, what factors affect garment production and its sourcing costs? What strategies can be employed to manage these costs, beyond labor wages?

Emma: So many factors affect production cost – at the top of my mind are material cost (for fabric yardage and individual trims like zippers) and cut/make time (which includes labor cost and factory overhead). Material usage and cut/make time are both factors that technical designers can heavily influence during costing conversations with our design and sourcing teams. 

Material usage: Marker efficiency refers to the amount of fabric used per garment compared to the amount wasted. The more closely pattern pieces can fit together, the less space for fabric scraps between them and the more efficient a marker will be. A technical designer can use their patterning experience to advise pattern shapes that will contribute to marker efficiency. For example, adding or removing a seam may allow pattern pieces to fit more closely together. Choosing where and when to engineer print placements – for example, matching stripes across a seam – will also impact the way pattern pieces can be arranged and, therefore, how efficient a marker can be. An efficient marker will both save cost and minimize fabric waste.

More on material usage, and cut/make time: Each construction choice contributes to the final cost of making the garment. For example, when it comes to finishing seam allowances, binding a seam allowance will take longer and use more material than an overlock stitch. For that reason, binding a seam allowance will also be more expensive. As garment construction experts, we lead conversations about style details, the time it will take to construct them, and other options that could potentially save time and material. This helps our team make informed choices that consider both cost and aesthetics.

Sheng: What are your thoughts on the trend of fashion companies using more sustainable materials like recycled cotton in their products?

Emma: I support fashion companies making an effort toward more sustainable & ethical production, and using recycled materials is an important step. Fabric with recycled fiber content can be more expensive and more difficult to source than traditional fabric, which may discourage some companies from moving in that direction. I’m hopeful that this trend will continue and that as it gains popularity, fabric with recycled fiber content will become easier to source over time.

Speaking of ethical production, I also would like to see fashion industry brands take additional steps toward a more earth-positive and people-positive existence, including:

• Considering local labor laws, worker wages, and working conditions when selecting factories
• Implementing garment repair programs to extend the lifecycle of their styles
• Improving accuracy of demand planning to reduce excess inventory and/or considering donation or upcycling of excess inventory
• Expanding size ranges and accurately grading sizes to fit well on plus-sized consumers
• Moving away from gendering clothing as “men’s” or “women’s;” during sample development, checking that samples fit well on lots of body types (including individuals who have had gender-affirming care, individuals who haven’t, individuals who may be wearing gender affirming garments like binders)
• Diversifying the company workforce at every level, from entry-level to leadership to c-suite
• Expanding representation in advertising campaigns to reflect the diversity of global consumers
• Supporting nonprofit agencies whose work aligns with company values

Some companies are doing a great job of fulfilling some, most, or all of the items on my above wish list, but we know that the fashion industry has a long way to go when it comes to impacting our earth and our societies positively. I think it’s our job as newer fashion industry professionals to speak up about all of this and start to push our industry in a better direction.

Sheng: What other key industry trends will you closely monitor in 2023?

Emma: I am so interested in the increased use of 2D and 3D patterning software. Programs such as Gerber, Optitex, Clo, and Browzwear are already changing the design and development process in fascinating ways. Experience in any of these programs has already become a very valuable asset for job applicants. I’m curious whether garments will ever be sold to consumers based only on 3D renderings, and if body scanning will become a more mainstream part of the shopping process.

I’m also curious how the increased use of 2D and 3D patterning software will impact more traditional design processes, like paper patterns and draping. Will these arts be preserved? Are there types of apparel that will always need to be draped or patterned physically? Will students 20 years from now still learn to pattern and drape the way we did, or will these skills be fully computer-based?

Sheng: Any reflections on your experiences at UD and FASH? what advice would you offer current students preparing for a career in fashion after graduation?

Emma: I feel so lucky to have had the experience that I did at UD and within the FASH program. I learned so much in my patterning, draping, collections, textiles, and sourcing classes (big shoutout to Dr. Lu!) that has stayed with me and helped me find success in my current job.

I have so much advice! If you’re looking for a career in technical design, practice any patterning software you can access as much as you can. As you begin applying to jobs, try to reach out to contacts at the companies you’re applying to (even if it means sending a random LinkedIn message to a fellow UD grad, or asking a professor/another student to help connect you with someone). Start your career with curiosity and an open mind – you will learn so much on the job that isn’t covered in school. Try to find a mentor, or several mentors, who’ve had work experiences similar to yours. A mentor who you can trust and rely on for advice makes a huge difference when work gets challenging. Speaking of which – work does get challenging, and that’s okay! Work on learning to identify situations that you can work through and learn from (which are hugely beneficial to your personal growth and career development), compared to work environments that are more consistently unhealthy or not providing what you need (which are an indication that it’s time to make a change). If you have coworkers you trust, sharing salary information openly is a great way to make sure everyone’s skills and contributions are being valued appropriately.

Enjoy your time in college and in the FASH program. I miss it!

–The END–