Apprentice

Coach is a leading design house of modern luxury accessories and lifestyle collections, with a long-standing reputation built on quality craftsmanship. Defined by a free-spirited, all-American attitude, the brand approaches design with a modern vision, reimagining luxury for today with an authenticity and innovation that is uniquely Coach. All over the world, the Coach name is synonymous with effortless New York style.

Coach is part of the Tapestry portfolio – a global house of brands powered by optimism, innovation, and inclusivity.

Job Title: Coach (Re)Loved Craftsperson Apprenticeship Program

Primary Purpose:

Join us in crafting a more circular, sustainable future for fashion

The Coach (Re)Loved Craftsperson Apprenticeship Program is a new program inspired by our vision of a better-made future through better-made things. Coach (Re)Loved is our circular ecosystem of unique Coach programs in repair, refurbishment, upcycling, recycling and trade-in designed to keep Coach products in use and out of landfills. Powered by the imagination of our design team and the ingenuity of the skilled craftspeople in our Coach (Re)Loved and Repair Workshop, it is part of our pact to do better for the planet.

Drawing upon our 80-year heritage in leathercraft, the Coach (Re)Loved Craftsperson Apprenticeship Program is designed to develop a new generation of craftspeople who are passionate about being part of a more circular future in fashion.

Over the course of the one-year program, apprentices will learn technical leather craftsmanship skills and develop the skills needed to transform pre-loved Coach bags into newly reimagined and restored bags our customers will wear (and love) for a long time. Through extensive hands-on training in our workshop under the supervision of Master Craftspeople and other workshop experts, apprentices will develop skills in four areas:

• Quality assessment: Develop a deep understanding of leather and the qualities used by Coach; learn how to assess product quality and identify repair needs
• Repair and refurbishment: Learn the technical skills to restore and repair bags, e.g., deep-cleaning and conditioning, leather cutting, skiving, stitching, edge staining, etc., using both hand techniques and machinery
• Upcrafting: Develop artisanal design and craft techniques required to upcycle bags, e.g., cutting and stitching leather by hand, riveting/studding, patchwork, weaving and whipstitch leathercraft, etc.; work closely with design team to creatively problem solve and achieve design intent
• Recycling/remaking: Understand finished goods construction and deconstruction and gain exposure to the processes of design, pattern making, prototyping and new product construction

By the end of this program, each craftsperson will:

• Develop the foundations of the technical craftsmanship skills required to repair, refurbish and upcraft Coach leather goods through hands-on-training under the supervision of expert craftspeople
• Develop a deep understanding of the product lifecycle as well as the design techniques and craftsmanship skills required to give pre-loved Coach products a second life
• Learn about the Coach design process by partnering with the Coach (Re)Loved design team on product development and customization techniques to upcraft Coach bags
• Learn from our Coach/Tapestry sustainability teams about the challenges facing the fashion industry and our planet, the commitments Coach is making to address those challenges, and the transformative impact of circular business models on our industry

At the end of this one-year program, apprentices will have the opportunity to join Coach and build their career as a Coach (Re)Loved junior craftsperson in the Coach (Re)Loved and Repair Workshop in New Jersey.

The accomplished individual will possess...

• Degree from design or community/trade/vocations school
• 0-1 years’ experience in patternmaking and product development
• Quick learning abilities and familiarity with table tools like hammers, pliers, scissors etc.
• Creative input, be able to provide professional solutions to design and construction problems
• Be willing to learn how to operate leather working machinery including sewing machines, leather clickers, etc.
• Proficiency in the English language, reading and writing; Spanish is helpful
• Ability to collaborate and partner with internal and external colleagues
• Goal orientated and comfortable with meeting tight deadlines
• Comfortable with ambiguity and changing priorities
• Computer savvy
• Innovative mind set and enthusiastic about the craftsmanship trade

Our Competencies for All Employees

• Courage: Doesn’t hold back anything that needs to be said; provides current, direct, complete, and “actionable” positive and corrective feedback to others; lets people know where they stand; faces up to people problems on any person or situation (not including direct reports) quickly and directly; is not afraid to take negative action when necessary.
• Creativity: Comes up with a lot of new and unique ideas; easily makes connections among previously unrelated notions; tends to be seen as original and value-added in brainstorming settings.
• Customer Focus: Is dedicated to meeting the expectations and requirements of internal and external customers; gets first-hand customer information and uses it for improvements in products and services; acts with customers in mind; establishes and maintains effective relationships with customers and gains their trust and respect.
• Dealing with Ambiguity: Can effectively cope with change; can shift gears comfortably; can decide and act without having the total picture; isn’t upset when things are up in the air; doesn’t have to finish things before moving on; can comfortably handle risk and uncertainty.
• Drive for Results: Can be counted on to exceed goals successfully; is constantly and consistently one of the top performers; very bottom-line oriented; steadfastly pushes self and others for results.
• Interpersonal Savvy: Relates well to all kinds of people, up, down, and sideways, inside and outside the organization; builds appropriate rapport; builds constructive and effective relationships; uses diplomacy and tact; can diffuse even high-tension situations comfortably.
• Learning on the Fly: Learns quickly when facing new problems; a relentless and versatile learner; open to change; analyzes both successes and failures for clues to improvement; experiments and will try anything to find solutions; enjoys the challenge of unfamiliar tasks; quickly grasps the essence and the underlying structure of anything.

Our Competencies for All People Managers

• Strategic Agility: Sees ahead clearly; can anticipate future consequences and trends accurately; has broad knowledge and perspective; is future oriented; can articulately paint credible pictures and visions of possibilities and likelihoods; can create competitive and breakthrough strategies and plans.
• Developing Direct Reports and Others: Provides challenging and stretching tasks and assignments; holds frequent development discussions; is aware of each person's career goals; constructs compelling development plans and executes them; pushes people to accept developmental moves; will take on those who need help and further development; cooperates with the developmental system in the organization; is a people builder.
• Building Effective Teams: Blends people into teams when needed; creates strong morale and spirit in their team; shares wins and successes; fosters open dialogue; lets people finish and be responsible for their work; defines success in terms of the whole team; creates a feeling of belonging in the team.

Coach is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer and we pride ourselves on hiring and developing the best people. All employment decisions (including recruitment, hiring, promotion, compensation, transfer, training, discipline and termination) are based on the applicant’s or employee’s qualifications as they relate to the requirements of the position under consideration. These decisions are made without regard to age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic characteristics, race, color, creed, religion, ethnicity, national origin, alienage, citizenship, disability, marital status, military status, pregnancy, or any other legally-recognized protected basis prohibited by applicable law. Visit Coach at www.coach.com.