How to Become a Footwear Designer

About Footwear Designer

Have you ever considered wearing formals with flip-flops on your feet or high heels on a sports field? No, that's right. As a particular outfit goes with a particular occasion, so does a specific piece of footwear. A career as a footwear designer is as exciting as a career in fashion design. Every other day, new trends emerge, and if you have a desire to create something innovative, becoming a footwear designer is a viable career option. A footwear designer aspires and creates new products; they stay current on emerging trends, trying to design the perfect product at the right time to satisfy customer needs; and they frequently adhere to a design brief in accordance with production constraints and branding demands.

A profession in footwear design requires artistic contributions and exceptional drawing abilities. A footwear designer needs to be imaginative and familiar with design paradigms. Designers of shoes frequently spend their days in an office and occasionally go shopping for supplies. For them to forecast footwear trends, past and present styles must be studied. Shoe and other footwear designers come up with imaginative and distinctive designs. Footwear Designing is a dynamic field of fashion design. A career in the field of Footwear Designing is for those aspirants who have a keen interest in footwear and everything related to it. Footwear designers come up with creative and innovative ideas for shoes and other types of footwear. These designers work for various brands, fashion houses, high street stores, catalog companies and specialist manufacturers of leisure and sportswear.

Most Footwear Designers start their career after gaining an undergraduate or postgraduate degree in fashion, art, design, or any other related subject. The Designing industry has become highly competitive these days, so it is important for those entering this career path to have a thorough knowledge, aptitude, skills, and interest in the fashion industry.

Responsibilities of Footwear Designer

Enlisted below are a few duties or responsibilities performed by a Footwear Designer:

• Visualising, Brainstorming, and Researching design ideas

• Communicating with customers and suppliers

• Understanding different footwear materials and their usage

• Sketching ideas by hand or using computer programmes

• Working closely with the design team

• Analysing requirements as per the season

• Developing strategies for all products.

Eligibility to become Footwear Designer

The eligibility criteria to become a Footwear Designer is elaborated below:

How to become a Footwear Designer?

Candidates can take the following steps to become a footwear designer:

Step 1: Completion of 10+2

Students must complete the 10+2 level of education in any subject with an average grade of 50% or higher. Several schools provide 10+2 fashion design courses. Students who are certain of a career as a fashion designer, accessory designer, or shoe designer must consider designs in 10+2.

Step 2: Entrance Examination

After completing 10+2 in any subject with an aggregate of 50% or equivalent from a recognised board, students must sit for entrance examinations to be admitted to the respective bachelor's level programme. Below are some of the popular entrance exams that will help you learn how to become a footwear designer.

Popular Design Entrance Examinations

Step 3: Undertaking Bachelor

After successfully completing a 10+2 with an aggregate of 50% or higher, students are required to enroll in undergraduate programmes with a specialisation in accessory design or related to footwear design. We've already mentioned the popular bachelor's degree that will help you figure out how to become a footwear designer:

Popular Undergraduate Footwear Design Courses 

Step 4: Post Bachelor's Degree

Students can choose from a variety of career paths after earning a bachelor's degree. If the candidate is certain that they want to pursue a career in accessory design, we have listed both options that they could consider in their post-bachelors' career path.

1.  After completing a bachelor's degree in design or architecture, the candidate may pursue an M Des (Master of Design). Accessory design has several specialisations. One could choose from the following programmes: leather design, apparel design, shoe design, or soft material design. It is also the most popular footwear design course among those looking to advance their careers.
2. After earning a bachelor's degree in design, the candidate can begin working in the industry at an entry-level position. After gaining 1-2 years of industry experience, he or she can pursue an MDes (Master of Design), MVoc (Master of Vocational Studies), or MTech (Master of Technology). Some popular specialisations for footwear designer careers are listed above.

Courses to become a Footwear Designer

Provided below is the list of popular courses that one can pursue to become a successful Footwear Designer. To take admission related assistance from our experts, free to either dial the helpline number 1800-572-9877 (toll-free) or fill-up the Common Application Form.

Note: Admission to most of these courses is done through merit or entrance tests such as FDDI AIST, NIFT Exam etc.

Types of Job Roles Footwear Designer

The profession of a Footwear Designer is competitive, demanding yet lucrative. One can showcase his/her creativity and innovation by choosing this career option. By entering this field, one can choose to work for a footwear manufacturer, brand or retailer. One can also work for footwear companies on specific projects, sportswear companies, designer labels, at both junior and executive levels. After gaining significant experience, one can progress to senior designer, design director or head of the department.

Following are some of the job profiles for a Footwear Designer that one can opt for:

Retail Store Manager (Shoes):

They oversee day-to-day retail operations and staff. Their job is to monitor the workflow and schedules. These managers must be familiar with the products sold in their store and any current and upcoming sales and promotions.

Footwear Developer:

They work closely with the shoe designer to launch and develop footwear designs with manufacturers. Their job is to collaborate between material suppliers, agents, and factories, and develop collection plans according to price targets, seasonal needs, and previous sales data.

Footwear Designer:

A footwear designer visualises, designs and comes up with innovative concepts for footwear. They create designs, pick up materials and patterns, and provide directions on how to make the products they design in an affordable and appealing manner.

Footwear Technician:

The primary function of this role is to be responsible for the technical development of shoes. Footwear Technicians are responsible for ensuring that prototypes/samples fit the required standard through internal and external fit sessions.

Footwear Development Manager:

They oversee the specifications process and develop products that meet or exceed the predetermined gross margin targets. Their responsibility also includes communicating the specifications and product details to the sourcing organization and suppliers.

Footwear Merchandiser:

Their main responsibility is to assist with the planning of the life cycle of footwear products, for both retail stores and the online business.

Employment Opportunities for Footwear Designer

Nowadays there is a great scope of work for Footwear Designers. In order to bag a good job as a Footwear Designer, one must have extraordinary skills. There are ample employment opportunities for Footwear Designers in retail buying, sales and marketing, and in footwear manufacturing. Some highly experienced Footwear Designers can also do freelancing and work for different fashion houses. Few of the sectors/ industries where a Footwear Designer can find employment opportunities are listed below:

• Design consultancy firms
• Footwear production
• Trading
• Retail and wholesale
• Import or export industry
• Merchandising
• Product Manufacturing
• Corporate businesses

Top Recruiting Companies for Footwear Designer

Few of the leading recruiting companies where a Footwear Designer can find employment opportunities are as follows:

• Converse
• Adidas
• Camper
• Crocs
• Nike
• Puma
• Bata
• Skechers
• Flex
• Action Shoes
• Liberty Group
• Woodland
• Lee Cooper

Skills Required to a Footwear Designer

The following abilities are necessary to become  Footwear Designer:

• Creativity: Thinking creatively encourages employees to collaborate. The creative process encourages teamwork, which is the most significant benefit of having a workplace where creativity and innovation can occur. Combat effectiveness improves overall organisational performance. To be successful in the footwear industry, designers must be creative. The fundamental ability to become a footwear designer is an aptitude for a wide range of creative fine arts. The desire to transform the material into a wonderful piece of craftsmanship is provided by artistry and imagination
• Pattern and colour knowledge: Knowing how colour affects the average customer is critical in design. Color is a powerful tool in footwear design. It can be used to bring attention, arrange material, highlight elements, elicit passion, and support an aesthetically pleasing design look. A style is required, and the eye-catching patterns and colour contrast make the design more appealing. Every pattern must be distinct from the others. Designers should be aware that not every colour complements every pattern or style. They should have a distinct personality
• Time Management: A job as a footwear designer is clearly no different from others, as practitioners in this discipline also possess this skill. This skill will also help professionals perform better under pressure at work. The footwear structuring requires a variety of tasks to be completed in a timely manner in order to satisfy the interests of the customers. Designers must put in extra effort to complete assignments within a certain time frame
• Measurement Skills: The ability to use measurement devices, rulers, scales, and calculate with these tools is critical for estimating the materials and products used in the design process. It is critical to ensure that the measurement is accurate. A minor blunder can derail the entire design. When designing for an event, you must be more careful because it will be useless if the model's feet do not fit into it. One of the most important skills for footwear designers is measurement
• Attention to Detail: Footwear designers must not only be creative people, but they must also have a keen eye for details. Footwear designers should have been able to handle minute and detailed shoe specifications. The best footwear designers have exquisite taste and an acute awareness of all the subtle nuances. Footwear designers must not only be talented artists, but also have an eye for detail. Footwear designers must have an eye for detail, knowledge of fashion trends, and technical skills to bring their designs to life
• Budget Management: They should also understand how well an industry makes a profit and meets its goals and objectives. Nonetheless, business skills are a collection of abilities that help a designer become as successful as their company. They should be familiar with key business areas such as finance, sales, and marketing. These elements are necessary for becoming a successful fashion designer. When purchasing materials, it is critical to ensure that everything fits within the budget. Footwear designers must be well-versed in the market and business. When creating the sample products, they must use low-cost materials
• Visualization: Maintaining a proper visualisation ability is essential for a career as a footwear designer. Thus, the more expert you become as you improve your visualisation skills in bringing your concepts to life on paper. Footwear designers must have strong visualisation skills because they must work for a variety of clients alongside their coworkers. These designers are skilled at bringing their ideas to life through strong visualisation skills
• Sketching Ability: Candidates interested in shoe design are expected to have this skill. Applicants with a strong interest in machines and making things digitally without drawing will not be successful in this profession. A proposal and a design creation could be the first stages of designing a layout. Footwear designers must be able to draw in order to bring their ideas to life. Fashion designers transform raw materials into various styles of footwear. These designers cannot communicate their creativity to clients unless they can draw
• Computer Skills: Computer knowledge is widely regarded as an essential qualification. Organizations want their designers to be computer savvy, as their industry will become increasingly reliant on technology. Many organisations strive for this skill because it allows them to manage their business more cheaply and efficiently. Footwear designers nowadays use computer-aided design (CAD) software to sketch their ideas. Because of CAD software, designers can see their work on virtual models. Designers can experiment with different colours, patterns, and shapes while making changes more effectively than working with materials on people

Pay Scale/Salary of Footwear Designer

The salary of a footwear designer depends upon where one works. Whether one has been hired by some company, or he/she works as a freelancer or is a self-employed/entrepreneur. The salary of a Footwear Designer usually increases with experience in this field.

Following is the relative salary figure for different Footwear Designer job profile:

Note: The above figures are an estimate and may vary from individual to individual and company to company. 

Career Path for Footwear Designer

Since the last few years, a career as a Footwear Designer has been growing at a steady rate. According to studies, people of all ages and genders wear a variety of footwear, including athletic and non-athletic shoes. The growing popularity of fancy, popular, yet comfortable footwear among all age groups is a key factor driving the global footwear industry. The global footwear market is segmented by type of footwear, end users of footwear, different stages of footwear available for purchase, material used, and geographical distribution. Market participants are focusing on expanding their business channels through various web portals in various regions.

Designers are responsible for creating rough sketches of footwear by hand or designing them using CAD software on a daily basis. They frequently run around looking for materials and other raw materials. They frequently work on the product's initial sketches as well. Whereas, from a  senior designer, you are expected to perfect everything the junior designer has created. He or she must also supervise a team of junior designers and ensure that they adhere to proper procedures and guidelines when developing the product. They are in charge of seasonal conceptualization and the creation of shoe design concepts. They are accountable for producing a product that meets both sales volume and gross margin targets.

Being a design director is also not an easy job to do. They are the brains behind exceptional footwear design. They travel abroad and oversee the entire footwear production process. A chief designer is also known as a creative director. Design directors manage design teams, develop and supervise design projects, and oversee design and branding projects for clients.

Books & Study Material to Become Footwear Designer

Candidates who wish to enter the field of Footwear Designing should have good manual dexterity and a flair for fashion and foresight regarding upcoming trends in the industry. Besides this, candidates must also be aware of the best books for a career in Footwear Designing that can impart right knowledge about shoe design and production.

Some Footwear Designing books are listed below:

• Shoes A-Z: Designers, Brands, Manufacturers and Retailers by Jonathan Wolford

• Footwear Design (Portfolio Skills: Fashion & Textiles) by Aki Choklat

• New Shoes: Contemporary Footwear Design by Rebecca Proctor

• Handbook of Footwear Design and Manufacture edited by A. Luximon

• How to Start a Shoe Design Business by Becci Rolli

Pros of becoming a Footwear Designer

• Creativity is an integral part of the job. One gets to use his/her imagination along with the sense of style and see it all come to life.
• The profession of Footwear Designing provides creative freedom and an option to explore entrepreneurship.
• There is a wide scope of opportunities for professional growth and advancement.
• There are various travel opportunities for fashion shows or meetings with clients.

Cons of becoming a Footwear Designer

• In this field, it may take years of patience to become successful.
• The job demands long working hours that may sometimes exhaust the body and mind of an individual.
• Footwear designing does not have much awareness compared to apparel designing.
• When compared to fashion designers, footwear designers are paid less in India.