CMF Designer II

Leapfrog Brands • Chicago, IL

1d • $65,000 - $75,000 • Hybrid

About The Position

We’re looking for a passionate CMF Designer to help bring our products to life through thoughtful color, material, and finish decisions. In this role, you’ll collaborate with designers, engineers, and manufacturing partners to translate CMF concepts into beautiful, manufacturable products that resonate with consumers. You’ll explore emerging trends, experiment with materials, and shape the visual and tactile experience of our product portfolio. If you love blending creativity, material exploration, and real-world product development, we would love to hear from you!

Requirements

• Bachelor’s Degree in Industrial Design, Fashion Design, Color & Material Design, Textile Design, Graphic Design, or a related field.
• 4+ years of experience in CMF design, preferably within consumer goods or fashion.
• Advanced proficiency in Photoshop, Illustrator and Keyshot, with strong expertise in pattern repeat systems, color separations, and production-ready file setup.
• Strong experience managing CMF execution from concept through production, including reviewing first articles and providing corrective feedback to overseas factory partners.
• Proficiency in specifying and managing color through standardized systems such as Pantone, Coloro, and Natural Color System to ensure consistency across materials, products and suppliers.
• Proven track record of launching consumer products to market with demonstrated commercial success.
• Strong understanding of color matching, texture development, and material behavior across plastics, metals, coatings, soft goods, and print applications.
• Demonstrated ability to develop cohesive color stories across multiple SKUs and product categories with a strong aesthetic judgment with a refined eye for detail, scale, proportion, and commercial appeal.
• Excellent collaboration and communication skills across cross-functional teams and leadership levels.
• Ability to balance multiple projects at varying development stages while adapting to shifting priorities with transparency and focus.
• Application must include a visual portfolio. Applications without an included portfolio will not be considered.

Responsibilities

• Lead the development of color palettes and specifications for new and existing products, ensuring alignment with brand identity, positioning, and commercial objectives.
• Define seasonal color and pattern strategies that ladder up to brand vision and drive cohesive storytelling across assortments.
• Create and communicate design intent through high fidelity digital renderings, mood boards, and trend presentations to guide cross-functional decision-making.
• Present color and pattern direction to senior leadership and cross-functional teams, clearly articulating creative rationale and market positioning.
• Research and apply insights from trend forecasting, competitive analysis, and consumer behavior to inform market-relevant color, material and pattern direction.
• Lead on-product surface design development, ensuring patterns and graphics integrate seamlessly with color direction and support seasonal narratives.
• Partner closely with marketing, merchandising, engineering, and overseas suppliers to ensure concepts are feasible and align with cost and performance targets.
• Troubleshoot color matching challenges during development and production, providing clear feedback for colors across different substrates to multiple suppliers to ensure execution accuracy and quality standards.
• Maintain accurate CMF documentation and contribute to the evolution of team resources, libraries, and best practices.
• Mentor and support junior designers while influencing long-term material innovation and opportunities for differentiation.

Benefits

• 15 days Paid Time Off your first year, and an additional day each year thereafter (up to 25 days), as well as company paid sick days, holidays and parental leave options
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance as well as commuter benefits and additional voluntary benefits
• Annual bonus payouts for all salaried employees, and up to a 5% 401k match with no vesting period
• Summer Fridays - from Memorial Day to Labor Day enjoy half days every Friday

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level