Rene' Lehner

Manger of developing new concepts for styling and componentry

TBA

BRANDS > ELLESSE, FLY 53, GEORGE BEST & ONE TRUE SAXON

ROLE SUMMARY
>Autonomous planning of new directional footwear ranges covering the many facets involved, from style categories and concepts to costing's.
>Generation of briefs in conference with the Department management, Sales team and Retail buyers.
>S.M.U. Style/S.K.U. design and development, taylor making product for in-house brands as well as Retailers requirements.
>Seasonal range design and development for Men's, Sports / Lifestyle categories, also working on smart casual/dress shoes. Producing full tech packs, tech specs as well supplier selection.
>Facilitating the visual realization of licensed brand's footwear through concept and design generation.
>Creation of C.A.D. drawings, including technical drawings and specification sheets for open soles and TPU / Silicon moulds.
>Sample documentation, generation and amendments using illustration and photography.
>Analysis and reporting of current trends and technologies for the Footwear design department.
>Sourcing at trade shows as well as Asian supplier visits conducting product development and Q.C. assessments.
>Mentoring and offering design / technical advice to junior designers and Q.C.

ACHIEVEMENTS
Recently I was pleased to find one of my more unique developments being selected by the editor of GQ magazine international, The 100 best things in the world right now. Having a technical background has led me to being responsible for open new injection moulded EVA shoes. The Mocks kids moulds was successfully sampled recently.

BRANDS > GROSBY, EVERLAST & SLAZENGER

ROLE SUMMARY
>Seasonal range development for Men's, Women's and Children's sports / lifestyle categories, also working on Infant's, Slides and thongs.
>Over all helping create a culture that fosters the shift from generic design to authentic design incorporating the brand's own D. N. A.
>Assisting 3 brands to visually realize their footwear through concept and design generation.
>Responsible for all C.A.D. drawings, including specification sheets and technical drawings.
>Sample documentation and generation, through graphic illustration and photography.
>Liaising with the supplier, as well as independent travel to the far East.
>Analysing financial information and applying it to production, sales and purchasing footwear.
>Generating sales resources such as catalogues and Power point presentations. marketing material.
>Graphic design for sales related aspects, i.e. Swing tags, P.O.S. displays, packaging drawings for all categories.

ACHIEVEMENTS
My 2 PacBrands roles were created out of the necessity to amalgamate a in house designer into the business. Being the first designer employed gave me the opportunity and responsibility of paving the way and integrating a creative design element and new approach to product development. During my tenures as a creative/senior designer, product developer and also Q.C. I have developed well received, commercially viable footwear. These various roles have forged a good broad spectrum of understanding and solid foundation to expand upon, where ever my career path in footwear may lead.