Textile designer to textile product developer
A textile designer already meets 61% of what the textile product developer role asks for. The move turns on 8 required skills not yet in the profile.
46/ 100
1 How much of what a textile product developer is expected to do is already part of a textile designer’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the textile product developer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A textile product developer role treats 16 of its required skills as things a textile designer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- challenging issues in the textile industry
- decorate textile articles
- design warp knit fabrics
- design weft knitted fabrics
- design woven fabrics
- distinguish accessories
What stands in the way is 8 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 20 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A textile product developer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a textile designer background worth leading with.
- already held design weft knitted fabrics communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held design woven fabrics communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held textile marketing techniques business, administration and law
- already held design warp knit fabrics communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held develop textile colouring recipes handling and moving
- already held use warp knitting technologies working with machinery and specialised equipment
All 20 carried skills, including the 16 the textile product developer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 17 missing skills fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn conduct textile testing operations required
- still to learn develop specifications of technical textiles required
- still to learn maintain work standards required
- optional, not held check quality of products in textile production line optional
- optional, not held evaluate textile characteristics optional
- optional, not held test physical properties of textiles optional
- still to learn braiding technology required
- still to learn research and development in textiles required
- still to learn textile technologies required
- optional, not held textile finishing technology optional
- still to learn use textile finishing machine technologies required
- optional, not held finish processing of man-made fibres optional
- optional, not held manufacture braided products optional
- optional, not held use warp preparation technologies optional
- optional, not held use weaving machine technologies optional
- still to learn health and safety in the textile industry required
- optional, not held control textile process optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a textile product developer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 braiding technology study this
- 02 conduct textile testing operations practise this
- 03 develop specifications of technical textiles practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 20 skills that carry over
- already held challenging issues in the textile industry knowledge
- already held decorate textile articles skill
- already held design warp knit fabrics skill
- already held design weft knitted fabrics skill
- already held design woven fabrics skill
- already held distinguish accessories skill
- already held distinguish fabrics skill
- already held draw sketches to develop textile articles skill
- already held draw sketches to develop textile articles using softwares skill
- already held measure yarn count skill
- already held nonwoven machine technology knowledge
- already held portfolio management in textile manufacturing knowledge
- already held properties of textile materials knowledge
- already held textile marketing techniques knowledge
- already held textile printing technology knowledge
- already held use textile technique for hand-made products skill
- already held develop textile colouring recipes skill
- already held knitting machine technology knowledge
- already held textile chemistry knowledge
- already held use warp knitting technologies skill
9 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held check quality of products in textile production line optional
- optional, not held control textile process optional
- optional, not held evaluate textile characteristics optional
- optional, not held finish processing of man-made fibres optional
- optional, not held manufacture braided products optional
- optional, not held test physical properties of textiles optional
- optional, not held textile finishing technology optional
- optional, not held use warp preparation technologies optional
- optional, not held use weaving machine technologies optional
7 held skills the textile product developer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role create mood boards skill
- not needed by the target role design management knowledge
- not needed by the target role design yarns skill
- not needed by the target role dyeing technology knowledge
- not needed by the target role gather reference materials for artwork skill
- not needed by the target role keep up to date on costume design skill
- not needed by the target role seek innovation in current practices skill
5 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn braiding technology required
- still to learn research and development in textiles required
- still to learn health and safety in the textile industry required
- still to learn textile technologies required
- optional, not held textile finishing technology optional
Common questions about this move
Can a textile designer become a textile product developer?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A textile designer already covers 61% of what a textile product developer is expected to do: 20 skills carry over, 16 of which the textile product developer role treats as required.
What skills does a textile designer need to become a textile product developer?
8 required skills are missing, plus 9 optional ones. They fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is braiding technology.
How hard is the move from textile designer to textile product developer?
Its learning distance is 46 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.