Ankita

Senior apparel design professional with 21 years of experience across menswear, women's wear, and Kids wear, driving product innovation and category growth in diverse organizations. Strongly consumer-insight driven, with proven expertise in translating market trends into commercially viable collections across fabrics, graphics, colours, and silhouettes. Experienced in leading end-to-end product development while ensuring alignment with brand strategy, quality standards, and evolving market dynamics.

Recognized for delivering customer-centric design solutions, executing critical projects successfully, and mentoring teams to achieve high-performance outcomes.

Associate Director Design – Leading Roadster, Mr.Bowerbird & Ether (in-house brands Myntra), French Connection, FCUK, Nautica Women's (Licensed Brands) - Myntra Jabong India Private Limited, Walmart Initiative - Bangalore

(2024-12)

Roadster is a leading casual wear and lifestyle brand positioned around youth, adventure, and rugged individuality for both men's & women's. Mr. Bowerbird is a premium menswear brand defined by sophisticated design sensibilities and modern elegance. Ether is a premium menswear brand combining sustainable practices, Kora techniques, and advanced garment technology.

• Collaborated with the catalogue team to strategically plan and execute seasonal and in-season shoots, ensuring timely and impactful product representation
• Defined and drove product strategies to build a distinct and differentiated identity for each brand
• Led cross-functional coordination to ensure seamless execution and on-time launches of collections
• Led concept development and brand storytelling across multiple HOBs, delivering impactful presentations and ensuring timely, successful launches on the portal
• Revamped the Roadster catalogue to enhance product presentation and drive improved sales performance
• Identified and translated emerging fashion trends into commercially viable products, driving higher ASPs and strengthening overall category performance
• Strengthened the Roadster shirts category through competitive analysis, price laddering, and optimized product development
• Re-strategized the Roadster women's knits category by optimizing price laddering and enhancing product offerings for better commercial performance
• Strategically planned and executed monthly design drops to maintain product freshness, improve consumer engagement, and support online growth
• Spearheaded the end-to-end revamp of the Ether brand, enhancing its positioning, visual identity, and market relevance
• Collaborated with global teams (New York & London), marketing, catalogue, and marketplace partners to ensure seamless product execution, strong campaign communication, and timely seasonal launches
• Partnered with marketplace vendors to ensure timely go-live of seasonal collections, aligned with brand aesthetics and quality standards

Deputy General Manager – Design Head - Easybuy, a Landmark Group Initiative - Bangalore

(2018-07 - 2024-11)

• Developed and presented compelling brand stories to key stakeholders, including organizing an in-house mini trade show to enable month-wise assortment planning
• Led men's product strategy by clearly demarcating assortment percentages between Gen Z and Millennial consumer segments
• Curated and executed month-wise assortments to maintain freshness, relevance, and sustained consumer engagement in stores
• Spearheaded the launch of the Men's Athleisure category to capitalize on evolving consumer lifestyles and demand
• Revitalized the Men's and Kids' denim ranges through strategic redesign, enhancing category appeal and market competitiveness
• Built compelling brand stories and partnered with the marketing team to align on photoshoot concepts and communication strategies
• Played a pivotal role in designing and developing technical packs for the Easybuy brand across all categories, leveraging consumer insights and behavior trends
• Drove seamless product execution by establishing new processes, leading the launch of in-house private labels, and building seasonal calendars and range plans
• Successfully transformed the men's and women's denim categories by upgrading fits, fabrics, and washes in line with market trends and consumer expectations
• Re-engineered the women's knitwear category based on customer needs and seasonal trends; developed strategic vendor partnerships to improve profitability, increasing Western women's contribution from 11% to 15% by 2021
• Launched nightwear within Western Women's wear, driving strong sales and category growth
• Defined and executed product strategies for men's formal, semi-formal, casual, and sportswear categories
• Repositioned sportswear brands (Atheligo and Power Play) for both men's and Western women's segments to strengthen market relevance
• Led innovation for NOS (Never-Out-of-Season) table graphics across departments, driving a rapid sales turnaround from –40% to +40% within three months in 2021
• Optimized product value and margin balance to enhance overall profitability
• Streamlined product strategies to ensure timely inward flow and seasonal readiness across all seasons
• Partnered with VM teams on POG development to deliver cohesive colour stories and strong visual consistency
• Spearheaded product strategy and process implementation aligned with business goals, driving revenue growth
• Led vendor collaborations and negotiations to finalize commercially viable assortments aligned with market demand
• Drove market and trend analysis to position the brand as contemporary, collaborating closely with marketing and VM for impactful launches
• Established efficient product development processes, including successful in-house label launches and structured seasonal planning
• Defined accessories direction across categories, ensuring cohesive styling, strong storytelling, and elevated presentation

Design Consultant (Kids Wear) - Fabindia - Delhi

(2018-02 - 2018-07)

• Designed boys' and girls' fusion wear collections aligned with buyer briefs and seasonal requirements
• Translated buyer briefs into well-defined ranges and developed detailed technical packs to ensure accurate execution and effective vendor communication

Manager – Design (Men's Wear) - Breakbounce India - Bangalore

(2017-08 - 2018-01)

• Led the design and development of men's wear collections across all categories, ensuring strong brand positioning against aspirational competitors through comprehensive competitive analysis
• Conducted in-depth benchmarking of competitive brands to define the brand value proposition and key USPs for the target consumer segment
• Finalized category mix and range architecture based on extensive trend, market, and consumer research; developed patterns and fits through iterative trials and feedback
• Collaborated in vendor negotiations for product sourcing and development across categories, balancing quality, timelines, and profitability
• Drove product awareness and order generation by organizing and managing seasonal trade shows for franchise partners
• Defined signature styles and a clear fashion direction for boys' and girls' categories (8–14 years)
• Identified emerging trends to strengthen core basics, driving higher ASPs and improved store performance

Assistant Manager – Wrangler (Women's Wear); Men's Denim core business & Subline - Wrangler - VF Corporation (American Apparel Org) India - Bangalore

(2011-05 - 2017-08)

• Conducted national and international retail market surveys, including trend forecasting, to identify emerging fashion and product opportunities; collaborated with IDEO, a leading design consultancy, to support brand repositioning initiatives
• Performed comprehensive competitive benchmarking ahead of each season and presented trend and competition insights to product and design teams to inform range development
• Established a strategic partnership with the APAC team (Hong Kong) to drive organizational growth within the Indian retail market
• Built and maintained strong relationships with existing clients and prospective partners to ensure consistent business flow and sustained revenue growth
• Led fabric sourcing initiatives to secure cost-effective materials, coordinating with internal and external stakeholders to design and develop fabrics aligned with quality standards, cost targets, and timelines
• Guided and supervised teams on draping, embroidery, and sketch development, conducting regular unit visits to ensure adherence to delivery schedules and execution standards
• Conducted seasonal research, trials, and market feedback analysis to develop and present new fits across categories in line with evolving trends
• Conceptualized and developed moto-inspired products and performance denim for women's wear, introducing innovative design concepts, product ideas, and process improvements aligned with brand ethos
• Played a key role in developing range architecture and retail pricing strategies, establishing strong internal and external partnerships to achieve over 95% adherence to product development timelines
• Instrumental in setting up the Wrangler Women's fashion line and Wrangler Men's sub-line, including development of technical packs, trims, and fabric innovations
• Re-engineered men's core denim washes—representing 40% of the men's business—driving a significant uplift in sales performance
• Represented the organization at seasonal Roadshows, delivering range and strategy presentations to buyers across multiple channels, including multi-brand outlets, EOP stores, key retail partners (Central, Lifestyle, Shoppers Stop), and online platforms (Walmart, Myntra, Jabong)
• Collaborated closely with Asia Pacific design teams in Hong Kong and participated in WGSN workshops to strengthen design research and trend analysis methodologies

Senior Designer – Jealous 21 - Indus League Pvt. Ltd., now Future Group - Bangalore

(2011-02 - 2011-11)

• Contributed to trend and competitive analysis presentations for brand and design teams, and developed concept and seasonal boards to guide collection direction
• Designed fashion lines aligned with business objectives and created detailed technical packs/dockets to ensure accurate vendor execution
• Developed seasonal catalogues and introduced woven product lines—including tops and dresses in prints, checks, and solids—while experimenting with new silhouettes and fits to refresh the assortment
• Collaborated with visual merchandising teams to support seamless in-store seasonal displays and effective presentation of collections
• Successfully added party collection with good embellishment, surface ornamentation, along value-added fabrics. Developed new story tags and trims to enhance the collection at the store level
• Designed weekender ranges across women's and kids' categories (2–14 years) and contributed to trend and competitive analysis presentations

Executive Designer - Weekender Brand - Bangalore

(2008-04 - 2011-02)

• Designed weekender ranges across women's and kids' categories (2–14 years) and contributed to trend and competitive analysis presentations

Designer - Shahi Exports - Bangalore

(2007-02 - 2008-03)

• Designed women's knitwear for multiple brands (including Esprit), leading graphics, range presentations, and buyer-facing visual displays to drive business growth
• Designed and developed women's denim across multiple categories for private labels of key NCS, including Reliance Retail and Pantaloons

Junior Designer - Arvind Mills Pvt. Ltd - Bangalore

(2006-08 - 2007-01)

Post Graduate Diploma - Design Thinking and Innovation, Breakthrough Innovation, and Strategy Innovation - MIT Sloan, Columbia Business School, Tuck School of Business, EMERITUS (2021 - 2021)

Certification - Content Writer - IIMS SKILLS (2024 - 2024)

PG Diploma - Marketing & Brand Management - MICA Ahmedabad (2019 - 2019)

PG Diploma - Fashion Designing & Clothing Technology - School of Fashion Technology (SOFT), Pune, in collaboration with the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) (2006 - 2006)

Master of Arts - English Literature - Kanpur University (2004 - 2004)

Bachelor of Arts - English Language & Literature - Kanpur University (2002 - 2002)