Maya Pillai

Fashion Designer with 10+ years of experience across menswear specialising in commercial product development, trend forecasting and range building for global retail brands. Experienced in identifying key seasonal items, translating customer insights and market trends into commercially successful collections, and collaborating closely with Buying, Merchandising and Technical teams throughout the critical path. Managed three menswear brands from concept to launch at Landmark Group and delivered a 20% sales increase through activewear and winterwear collections at Cult.Sport.

Proficient in Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, CLO 3D and PLM, with strong expertise in fabric sourcing, fit development, competitor analysis and driving brand-right product strategies.

Freelance designer (2024-01 – Present)

Design apparel graphics, prints and product concepts across menswear and womenswear, including placement prints, repeat patterns, colourways and trend-led collections aligned with brand identity and customer profiles.

• Manage social media strategy and content creation for fashion and lifestyle brands, driving audience growth through content planning, visual storytelling, campaign execution and performance analysis.
• Collaborate directly with founders and small businesses on brand development, product positioning, creative direction and digital marketing initiatives to strengthen brand visibility and engagement.
• Deliver end-to-end creative solutions using Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, Canva and CLO 3D, managing multiple projects simultaneously while meeting deadlines and maintaining high creative and commercial standards.

Senior Fashion Designer at Cult.Sport (2022-11 – 2023-10)

• Designed 10+ fashion ranges, including activewear, winter wear, and graphic t-shirts.
• Developed 1 capsule collections like 'Desi Khel' and specialized lines for brand ambassador Ranveer Singh.
• Mentored a team of four junior designers and enhanced team skillsets in technical design.

Senior Fashion Designer at Landmark group Lifestyle International Pvt Ltd (2021-06 – 2022-10)

• operated three men's fashion brands, leading from concept to market.
• Launched of activewear and collegiate fashion lines, creating two distinct brands that captured 20% market share within the first year and drove substantial revenue gains.
• Proficient in Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop.
• Built strong ties with 15+ stakeholders to align branding, boost visibility, and resolve 3 key bottlenecks.
• Generated Business of 28 million in Fame active, 12 million in First team and 44 million for Fame forever.

Social Media Planner and Fashion Consultant at Gunjha (2020-01 – 2023-10)

• Evaluated and advised on fashion trends during design, boosting brand image and increasing client retention and popularity by 30%.
• Guided 12 handloom artisans, creating 25 unique designs that boosted Gunjha platform reach by 40%.
• Defined and executed strategies to enhance brand visibility, resulting in increase in 36% followers and interactions majorly in Instagram.
• End-to-end social media strategy and content calendar that drove organic follower growth from 11,000 to 15,000+ in six months.

Designer at Creative garments and textiles Pvt Ltd and Bombay Rayon Fashions Limited (2016-04 – 2019-09)

• Designed 56+ men's and children's wear range for international and domestic brands.
• Led 60+ design meetings, supervised junior designers, and handled CAD development.
• Revitalized a stagnant menswear collection and expanded sales to 10 million in one season In Creative garments and textiles Pvt Ltd.
• Proposed 200+ designs for fabrics, prints, and CADs, and created trend boards and tech packs.
• Collaborated to 20 million quarterly sales in menswear in Bombay Rayon Fashions Limited international brands (Inditex, Primark, matlan, Jack & jones Carrefour, Cortefiel, U S Polo, Auchan) and domestic clients (Future Group, Reliance, Big Bazaar).

Junior Fashion Designer at Temper Lifestyle (2015-06 – 2016-03)

• Upgraded 4 men's casual shirt line, overseeing trend research and range development.

Internee at Urban touch - Urban Clothing Co. (2014-01 – 2014-03)

• Conducted trend and market studies, created prints, and completed graphic process.

Post Graduate program in Digital Marketing – Purdue University (2023)

Diploma in Digital marketing – Udemy (2020)

BA Hons in Fashion/Apparel Design – Pearl Academy of Fashion (2015)