Assistant Designer — Indianwear (Embroidery & Surface Development)

PANKAJ & NIDHI

Luxury Indian Womenswear & Bridal Couture · Noida, India

 Assistant Designer — Indianwear

Embroidery & Surface Development

About Pankaj & Nidhi

Pankaj & Nidhi is a luxury Indian fashion house built over two decades around a deep belief in craftsmanship, innovation and surface development. Our work combines traditional Indian embroidery with contemporary textures, materials and techniques to create distinctive couture.

With embroidery, sampling and production developed in-house at our Noida unit, our designers work closely with karigars and embroidery masters — taking an idea from concept and swatch development through sampling and final production.

About the Role

We are looking for an Assistant Indianwear Designer with a strong specialisation in embroidery and surface embellishment.

This is a hands-on, sample-room-facing role involving concept development, embroidery design, swatch trials, motif and placement development, sourcing, karigar coordination, sampling, costing, quality checks and production handover.

The ideal candidate should have a strong understanding of Indian embroidery traditions while being able to experiment with contemporary techniques and translate creative concepts into refined luxury garments.

Key Responsibilities

Embroidery & Surface Development

• Develop original embroidery and surface treatments for bridal, couture and occasionwear including lehengas, sarees, shararas, anarkalis, kalidars, kurta sets and blouses.
• Work across techniques including zardozi, aari, tambour, dabka, naqshi, salma-sitara, cutdana, resham, threadwork, sequins, beads, cording, applique, 3D florals, mukaish, gota patti and mixed-media
• Develop embroidery concepts from mood boards and references to motifs, swatches, layouts and final garment
• Create detailed buti, bel, jaal and placement designs mapped accurately to garment
• Prepare accurate naksha, tracing and embroidery instructions with material, colour, size, density and stitch
• Build and maintain organised swatch and embroidery reference

Design & Documentation

• Create hand sketches, CADs and technical flats for Indianwear
• Prepare and maintain embroidery tech packs, motif charts, placement guides and specification
• Provide accurate material and consumption inputs for costing and production
• Maintain consistency in the collection’s colour, texture, material and surface
• Research new embroidery materials, trims, fabrics and techniques available in the

Sourcing, Sampling & Karigar Coordination

• Source and evaluate threads, sequins, beads, trims, fabrics and other embellishment materials from vendors and craft clusters.
• Work directly with karigars and embroidery masters to brief designs and resolve execution
• Follow embroidery samples closely from first trial through approval and final
• Manage sampling timelines and identify issues early to minimise rework, wastage and
• Attend fittings and review how embroidery, scale and placement work on the final

Quality & Production

• Check embroidery against approved swatches for alignment, density, tension, finishing, hand-feel and overall
• Ensure embroidery meets luxury and couture
• Balance intricate craftsmanship with wearability, costing, production feasibility and delivery
• Ensure complete and accurate documentation during final production
• Coordinate closely with design, sampling, production and embroidery teams throughout the

What We’re Looking For

Experience

• 3–5 years of experience in Indianwear, bridal, occasionwear or couture
• Experience with a luxury fashion house, designer studio or embroidery-led export house is

Craft & Embroidery

• Strong knowledge of Indian hand and machine embroidery techniques and
• Ability to understand embroidery construction, estimate costing and assess execution
• Strong eye for texture, colour, scale, dimension and

Design & Drawing

• Strong hand-sketching and embroidery motif development
• Good understanding of scale, proportion and placement on the
• Ability to translate creative direction into commercially viable garment

Floor & Production

• Comfortable working directly with karigars and embroidery masters, preferably in
• Strong understanding of sampling, costing, timelines and production
• Highly organised and capable of managing multiple styles and

Software

• Proficiency in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop for CADs, layouts and
• CorelDRAW and Excel would be an

Education

• Degree or diploma in Fashion Design from NIFT, Pearl, NID, Symbiosis or an equivalent

Portfolio Requirement

A strong embroidery-focused portfolio is mandatory. Your portfolio should showcase:

• Original embroidery concepts and motifs
• Swatch trials and surface experiments
• Embroidery layouts and naksha
• Placement development
• Finished garments
• Progression from initial concept to final sample
• Techniques and designs personally developed by you

Please clearly mention your role and contribution wherever the work was developed as part of a team.

Why Join Pankaj & Nidhi

• Work in a luxury couture environment where embroidery and craftsmanship are central to the design
• Work closely with in-house embroidery, sampling and production
• Get direct exposure to karigars, embroidery masters and senior
• Develop work for Indian and international
• Opportunity to grow within a design environment focused on craft, innovation and couture-quality
• Compensation aligned with experience and industry

How to Apply

 Please email your CV and portfolio (PDF or portfolio link) to careers@pankajnidhi.com with the subject line:

“Assistant Designer — Indianwear | Embroidery & Surface Development”

In 2–3 lines, tell us about one embroidery or surface technique you are particularly proud of developing.