Thomas Harshbarger
(917) 714-5594
T.Harshbarger@outlook.com

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WOVENS AND KNITWEAR DESIGNER

Womenswear Design Professional with extensive experience in all categories of Woven and Knit Design.  Has worked for many leading fashion brands in New York, including DKNY, Karl Lagerfeld, Express, Kenneth Cole, Ann Taylor, Anne Klein, Polo Sport, Old Navy, Club Monaco, Episode Europe, and Charivari.

  • Hand Sketching

  • Illustrator Sketching

  • Fabric R&D/ Color Research

  • Presentation Skills

  • Tech Pack Development

  • Trend Analysis

  • Brand Building

  • Fitting/ Garment Construction

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:

DKNY August 2022- June 2025

Design Director- DKNY Suits

  • Design and Develop Structured Wovens, Knit and Woven tops

  • Responsible for Showroom sample development and Post Buy Meeting follow up

  • Work with Fabric R & D team on New fabrications/ Yarn dye patterns

  • Collaborate with Tech Team on fit and construction of garments

DESIGN CONSULTANT August 2016- August 2022

  • DKNY/ Karl Lagerfeld Suits- Design Director- (August 2022- August 2023)

  • AE77- Woven Tops/ Dress Designer (December 2021- February 2022)

  • Wynne Layers- Designer (November 2019- April 2019)

  • Tommy Hilfiger Suits- Senior Designer (May 2019- November 2019)

  • The Salting- Sample Coordinator (Fall/ Winter 2018/ 2019)

  • “The Smell of Smoke”- Wardrobe Stylist (January 2019)

  • Worth- Senior Design Consultant- Fall 2019 Concepts/ Color- Trend Research (September 2018)

  • Olive’s Very Vintage- Visual Merchandising- Store displays (Summer/ Fall 2018)

  • Design Conclave/ Artisan Weavers Summit- Varanasi, India (May 2018)

  • Ringer Jeans- Sketching in Illustrator/ Photoshop- Tech pack development (April/ May 2017)

  • Kimtex- Consulting on Seasonal Fabric/ Color Research (January 2014- February 2017)

EXPRESS November 2004- June 2016

Design Director- Women’s Wovens/ Knits (September 2013- June 2016)

Senior Designer- Women’s Wovens (November 2004- September 2013)

  • Responsible for the direction, design, and development of Studio Jackets, Pants, Skirts, and Outerwear

  • Accountable for the Dressy Woven/ Knit business which generated $205 Million in 2015

  • Built and maintained the Editor Pant which has generated over $1 Billion in sales to date

  • Created monthly deliveries with VP and team, built and shown elaborate Concept and Style Review Presentations for Cross functional and Executive teams

  • Collaborated with Fabric R&D on selection and development of new fabrications, including color and pattern work- participated in overseas fabric development trips to Europe, Turkey, and the Far East

  • Partnered with Merchant team on direction of line, new business needs, and Test style development

  • Guided Technical Design team on fit of garments and detailing from 1st proto to Production

  • Managed Designer and Design Assistant

KENNETH COLE NEW YORK March 2004- November 2004

Woven Designer

  • Designed all categories of woven product

  • Responsible for the development of merchandise from fabric selection to detailed spec sheets

  • Heavily involved in fittings from 1st proto to final production fittings

ANN TAYLOR February 2002- July 2003

Knitwear Designer

DESIGNER/ ILLUSTRATOR October 1994- December 2001

  • Full time/ Freelance- Anne Klein 2, Episode Europe, Polo Sport, Old Navy, Club Monaco, DKNY, Charivari


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EDUCATION
The Otis Institute of Parsons School of Design    Los Angeles, CA
Bachelor of Fine Arts in Fashion Design