Senior Designer - Bags & Accessories

The Opportunity

ATR Brands is a multi-brand travel lifestyle group built around three distinct brands — Antler, the iconic British travel brand with over 110 years of heritage; Paravel, our premium sustainable American travel label, launching in market from October 2026; and Nere, Australia's leading travel brand. Each brand has its own identity, audience, and design world — united by a shared ambition to redefine how people travel.

Since ATR Brands acquired Antler in 2020, we have grown from a team of 6 to nearly 40 and built an entirely new product assortment across five travel lifestyle categories. We've reimagined the brand, invested in the team, and now with Paravel live in market and Nere expanding under our London leadership, we are moving from luggage maker to a true multi-category travel lifestyle group.

We're looking for a Senior Designer specialising in Bags & Accessories to help lead and deliver product strategies across the House of Brands, from inception to launch. This is a senior creative role covering ideation, development, colour, materials, prototyping, sampling, and calendar management — with real scope to build a new product world with us and showcase your creative vision to a global audience.

You'll work closely with design and development teams in the UK, Australia, and China, and collaborate across product, marketing, and commercial functions. Our growth plans mean you won't be restricted by routine — this role is central to our diversification beyond luggage, and you will be designing across more than bags alone.

About You

You're a highly creative, confident designer with proven experience developing bags and accessories — ideally within a global brand environment. You bring exceptional knowledge of materials and processes, and you're known for your ability to manage projects effectively from brief to launch without losing sight of either the creative vision or the commercial reality.

You're a team player with a "no task is too small" attitude — collaborative, organised, and equally comfortable working through ambiguity, leading a concept and getting into the detail of a tech pack. You thrive in fast-moving, entrepreneurial environments and you're energised by the opportunity to build something new. Above all, what we're doing here excites you.

Day-to-Day Responsibilities

We are fast-paced and entrepreneurial, a lean team with big ambitions. These are the things that will be at the core of your role day-to-day.

Design & Development

• Demonstrating exceptional creativity — designing products, developing tech packs, and liaising with product developers to bring new products to life.
• Leading accessories projects in their entirety, from ideation through to final product launch, including creative design, colour, materials, prototyping, sampling, and final specifications.
• Managing design projects to agreed deadlines and cost objectives.
• Researching and sourcing new materials — identifying new technologies, processes, and product innovations.
• Designing products with sustainability and circularity at their core.

Research & Commercial Thinking

• Conducting comprehensive market research to identify emerging trends, competitive threats, and new market opportunities.
• Presenting exciting and commercially viable product opportunities to the wider business.
• Applying a strategic approach to colour — developing and managing colour direction across the accessories range.

Collaboration & Cross-Functional Working

• Working closely with design and development teams in the UK, Australia, and Hong Kong — across multiple time zones.
• Collaborating with marketing and commercial teams to ensure product strategy aligns with brand and commercial objectives.
• Liaising with external vendors and factories to develop and deliver product.
• Supporting junior designers as the team grows, sharing knowledge and maintaining high creative standards.

Requirements

What Success Looks Like In This Role

In your first 3 months, you will have:

• Got fully across the current product assortment, development calendar, and supplier base — understanding where we are and where we're going across the portfolio.
• Built strong working relationships with the Product Design Director and cross-functional teams in the UK, Australia, and China.
• Taken confident ownership of live projects, delivering to brief, on time, and with a clear creative point of view.

By 6 months, you will be:

• Leading the accessories design and development pipeline independently — from concept through to final spec — with clear commercial and creative outcomes.
• Contributing meaningfully to the product strategy and category direction, bringing ideas that push the brand forward.
• Operating as a trusted creative voice across the team, with the Product Design Director relying on you to lead with confidence.

The Requirements

It's all about compatibility. These are the things you'll need to thrive in this role.

• Proven bag and accessory design experience, ideally developed within a global brand environment.
• Highly creative and confident in taking the lead — able to demonstrate a clear design and decision-making process and work to deadlines.
• Highly organised, with experience managing project calendars across multiple concurrent workstreams.
• Comfortable working across multiple product types beyond bags, supported by a multidisciplinary design and development team.
• Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop to a high level of proficiency — additional design software welcomed.
• Paper prototyping and sketch modelling skills.
• A strategic approach to colour.
• Strong communicator — both verbal and written — with excellent listening and collaboration skills.
• Team player with a "no task is too small" attitude and the interpersonal skills to work across cultures, time zones, and functions.
• Comfortable working in a fast-paced, ever-changing environment with a positive attitude under pressure.

Nice to Have

• Experience managing or mentoring junior designers.
• Exposure to sustainability-led design practices and circular product development.
• Experience working with factories and vendors in Asia or Australia.

Benefits

The Perks

Aside from the role, the people and our big ambitions, here are some of the other things that make Antler a great place to work.

• Lifestyle: 33 days paid leave inclusive of Bank Holidays.
• Health: Health cash plan provided by Medicash.
• Wealth: Pension + pension advice, life insurance and discretionary company bonus.
• Family: Enhanced family leave for primary carers.
• Benefits: Antler allowance and discount, Charlie HR perks, local discounts and cashback on various high street brands.