Catalog Designer for Apparel

We're a custom apparel manufacturer building a design catalog that's generated from structured data, not laid out by hand. We need a designer to build the layout system for our first edition — a print PDF workwear catalog — in a way that regenerates as records change. This is a systems job as much as a design job. Every element on a card is populated from a record. Nothing is free-typed. If you've built templated catalogs, line sheets, or data-merged publications before, this will feel familiar. Scope Card layout system for design records (image, name, code, metadata, notes) Master pages, grid, and typographic system Section structure and front-of-book feature spreads Data-driven population (InDesign data merge, scripting, or an equivalent approach you can defend) Print-ready output with a documented handoff so we can regenerate future editions You're a fit if you Have shipped catalogs, line sheets, or product publications 40+ pages Are strong in InDesign, including styles, master pages, and data merge or scripting Think in reusable systems, not one-off pages Follow file specs precisely — we have naming conventions and asset standards, and they matter Nice to have: apparel or textile industry experience; web/digital catalog experience (edition two goes dynamic from the same data) Process Portfolio review — show us one catalog or line sheet and tell us how it was built Paid design test (~2–3 hours, $XXX) — one card and one spread from sample data Milestone-based engagement Compensation: Fixed fee by milestone, plus a delivery bonus. The bonus date adjusts if our feedback turnaround runs long — we won't penalize you for our delays. To apply: Send one relevant catalog sample and answer: how would you handle a catalog where the number of records isn't final when layout begins? Two phases Phase 1 — Sales edition (immediate). A hand-built Illustrator layout covering a subset of the catalog, so our sales team has something in hand for outreach now. Fast, finite, real. Phase 2 — The actual deliverable. The templated, data-driven system described above, regenerating from records. Phase 1 is a prototype of Phase 2, not a throwaway. Every layout decision you make in Illustrator has to be constructible in a templated system — if a card only works because you nudged it by hand, it doesn't work. We'd rather ship a slightly stiffer V1 that ports cleanly than a beautiful one we rebuild. Phase 1 confirms fit for Phase 2. We're hiring for both.