Michael Zindell, President of Product Design at Boston Warehouse in Salem, MA

About

I’m a seasoned design ninja — a passionate creative leader with a proven track record for translating trends and ideas into make-able, sell-able, covet-able products.

For 17 years I have worked in the home decor, housewares and gift ware industries. I have managed and motivated design teams, been the official in-house "go-to" guy, as well as a freelance hotshot. I’ve built and managed products from the ground up, worn many hats, and can juggle effectively between being a team player, a team leader, and rogue designer.

As a freelancer- I am a one stop shop. I'm an illustrator, pattern maker, stylist, industrial designer, and product specialist. (which means not only can I design pretty things, but I can technically spec them for production overseas. I know materials, processes and manufacturing like the back of my hand.

Over the years I've worked on thousands of products that have been sold in many well known retailers. I've also worked directly on private label designs with some pretty cool brands.

I'm always looking for new partners to work with, particularly retailers and manufacturers for freelance and contract work. Drop me an email and we can start a project together.

Education

BFA, MFA Fine Art and Design

Temple University, Tyler School of Art

1992 - 1998

Experience

President of Product Design

Boston Warehouse

Norwood, MA

Dec 2013 - Present (12 years 6 months)

Develop, direct and create all product across home decor categories. Manage all facets of the product design process from trend research to final art. Responsible for 2000 new designs yearly inclusive of my product line, private label, and with associated brands.

-Coordinate with sourcing and management to increase productivity.
-Work with sales team, marketing and end consumers to determine new product opportunities.
-Collaborated with design team to research and present design/material trends and helped to identify overall consumer trends to establish design direction.
-Developed new products from rough sketches, CADs to final production.
-Work with manufacturing engineers to resolve construction and cost concerns.
-Attended home furnishings trade shows as part of trend research.
President of Product Design

ABC's of Decor

Aug 2010 - Present (15 years 10 months)

Develop, direct and create all product across home decor categories. Manage all facets of the product development process from trend research to final product. Responsible for 2000 new designs yearly inclusive of my product line, private label, and with associated brands. In May of 2013 ABC's became an integrated brand of Boston Warehouse.

-Coordinate sourcing, design and management to increase productivity.
-Work with sales team, marketing and end consumers to determine new product opportunities.
-Collaborated with design team to research and present design/material trends and helped to identify overall consumer trends to establish design direction.
-Developed new products from rough sketches, CADs to final production.
-Work with manufacturing engineers to resolve construction and cost concerns.
-Attended home furnishings trade shows as part of trend research.
Freelance Designer

Michael Zindell Designs

Salem, MA

2008 - Present (18 years)

I provide design and consulting services on a freelance basis to several US companies. My work for these clients ranges from conceptual research, concept ideation, line-art, Technical layouts,CAD files, Milling files, and presentation quality renderings.

Please contact for list of clients.
Design Director

Lifetime Brands

Nov 2006 - Aug 2010 (3 years 9 months)

Created consumer-driven products in home decor, tabletop and entertaining categories. Designed and executed artwork for products, revision of prototypes and production samples and finalization of line offerings. Traveled to Asia to meet with manufacturers and worked with overseas offices to uphold design integrity.

-Worked with product managers to develop new concepts for
each season.
-Developed designs from rough sketches, presentation drawings, to
technical drawings.
-Helped to research new materials, styles and finishes for design inspiration.
-Designed several top-selling collections.
Design Director

Syratech Corporation

Nov 2003 - Oct 2006 (2 years 11 months)

Created consumer-driven products in home decor, tabletop and entertaining categories. Designed and executed artwork for products, revision of prototypes and production samples and finalization of line offerings. Traveled to Asia to meet with manufacturers and worked with overseas offices to uphold design integrity. In 2006, Syratech and it's brands were absorbed by Lifetime Brands.

-Worked with product managers to develop new concepts for
each season.
-Developed designs from rough sketches, presentation drawings, to
technical drawings.
-Helped to research new materials, styles and finishes for design inspiration.
-Designed several top-selling collections.
Product Specialist / Application Engineer

SensAble Technologies

Jul 2000 - Nov 2003 (3 years 4 months)

SensAble Technologies is dedicated to providing cutting-edge technology and workflow solutions to the product development community. My position was “onsite” design contractor, assisting consumer product development teams (crystal, ceramic, jewelry, home décor, etc…) in accelerating design to market timeframes. I participated in product development as well as research and development meetings. I also created 3-D renderings, artwork, and sketches, CAD models, concept models, and physical prototypes. Some of the clients I worked with included Hallmark, Tiffany and Co. and Swarovski NA.
Designer, Design Coordinator

The Franklin Mint

1998 - 2000 (2 years)

The (now defunct) Franklin Mint was a direct market collectibles company, specializing in a variety of collectibles and licensed goods. My position was as both active designer and design coordinator of jewelry/metal products. As such, I acted as both designer and liaison between the art department, manufacturing engineers and sourcing agents, keeping the creative vision intact throughout the development cycle which allowed me to effectively participate in all areas of development. I participated and held design reviews, concept meetings and marketing approvals. I also created style boards, artwork, sketches, material samples and concept models.

Industries

Skills

Elsewhere on the Web

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On Coroflot

@michaelzindell, member since 2007

Followers 4

Michael Zindell

Branded Environments Project Manager

Industrial Designer, Packaging – Lead