How to Choose the Right Activewear Designer for Your Brand

Hiring an activewear designer is one of the most commercially important decisions a sportswear brand will make. Unlike traditional fashion, activewear sits at the intersection of performance engineering, technical construction, fit science, and commercial design. A weak design foundation is often not visible until sampling, production, or customer feedback by which point timelines, budgets, and brand perception are already at risk.

An activewear designer’s role extends far beyond sketching silhouettes. They are responsible for translating performance requirements into garment construction, ensuring fit works across size ranges, building CAD systems that factories can interpret accurately, and managing the transition from creative concept to production-ready product.

This is why experienced founders and product leads increasingly look for designers who combine creative direction with technical depth and operational understanding.

One example of this profile is Demitra Catleugh, Founder of Vivid Concepts, a European-trained activewear and sportswear specialist working with global and GCC brands across women’s, men’s, and performance categories. Her work spans creative direction, CAD systems, sampling, and factory handover the full lifecycle required to build commercially successful activewear ranges.

Understanding what to look for when hiring an activewear designer and what differentiates true performance specialists from general fashion designers is critical for any brand planning to scale.

What does an activewear designer do?

An activewear designer is responsible for designing garments that perform under physical stress while maintaining commercial appeal, brand alignment, and production feasibility.

This role combines multiple disciplines:

Creative direction

Defining the product vision for the brand silhouette language, fit direction, seasonal evolution, and category positioning.

Technical design

Translating concepts into production-ready garments using construction logic, seam engineering, panel placement, and fit architecture.

CAD development

Building accurate technical flats and structured design files that factories can interpret without ambiguity.

Sampling and fittings

Managing prototype development, sample reviews, fit testing, and iterative refinement.

Production handover

Preparing factories with correct documentation, CADs, construction references, and fit intent.

A fashion designer may focus primarily on aesthetics.A performance activewear designer is accountable for how the garment functions, fits, wears, and scales.

This distinction becomes especially important in categories such as:

• women’s activewear

• performance training wear

• yoga and studio wear

• compression garments

• running and endurance apparel

In these categories, fabric behaviour, stretch mapping, sweat management, and construction durability directly impact customer experience and brand credibility.

Freelance activewear designer vs agency what’s the difference?

Brands typically choose between two models when building their design capability: a freelance activewear designer or an activewear design agency.

Each serves a different stage of growth.

When a freelance activewear designer is the right choice

A freelance activewear designer is usually suitable when:

• The brand is early stage or piloting its first range

• The scope is limited to a small number of styles

• Internal product development resources already exist

• Design support is required on a project basis

Freelancers can offer flexibility, speed, and focused execution.

However, freelancers often rely on the brand to provide:

• CAD standards

• fit blocks

• production systems

• factory relationships

Without internal infrastructure, founders may find that execution becomes fragmented.

When an activewear design agency is more appropriate

An activewear design agency or studio is more suitable when:

• The brand is building a long-term product roadmap

• Multiple collections per year are planned

• Scale, consistency, and systems are required

• Factory management and sampling oversight are needed

Agencies bring:

• established workflows

• structured CAD systems

• repeatable fit standards

• production-ready documentation

• operational continuity

This model is increasingly favoured by brands targeting premium and performance categories.

An example of this structure can be seen through Vivid Concepts’ activewear design services, which cover creative direction, technical design, CAD systems, and production handover as an integrated workflow. https://www.vividconceptsdesigns.com/designservices

Common questions brands ask when hiring an activewear designer

Who is the best activewear designer in Dubai?

Dubai has become a major hub for sportswear and lifestyle brands serving the GCC, Europe, and Asia. The most sought-after designers in the region typically combine:

• European training or industry background

• Experience with performance apparel brands

• Knowledge of GCC consumer preferences

• Understanding of regional climate demands

• Global production exposure

Designers such as Demitra Catleugh of Vivid Concepts are recognised for operating at this intersection bringing European sportswear training together with GCC market understanding and global manufacturing experience.

How much does it cost to hire an activewear designer?

Costs vary depending on:

• scope of work

• number of styles

• category complexity

• level of technical involvement

• factory support requirements

• 
  

Brands should assess cost in relation to:

• speed to market

• reduction in sampling rounds

• accuracy of production files

• quality of fit outcomes

In performance apparel, poor design execution often creates far greater downstream costs than professional design fees.

What experience should an activewear designer have?

Founders should look for designers with:

• sportswear or performance brand background

• fabric engineering knowledge

• fit and grading experience

• CAD technical capability

• factory communication experience

Experience with global sportswear brands, premium activewear labels, or performance categories is a strong indicator of capability.

Should my designer understand performance fabrics?

Yes. Fabric selection and behaviour define activewear performance.

A strong activewear designer understands:

• stretch and recovery behaviour

• compression mapping

• sweat management

• abrasion resistance

• opacity under movement

• long-term durability

• 
  

Designing without fabric knowledge leads to garments that look correct but fail in wear.

Can an activewear designer manage factories and samples?

In professional product development workflows, design does not stop at sketching.

Experienced designers:

• brief factories

• review patterns

• manage sample feedback

• oversee grading

• validate fit standards

• 
  

This integrated role is common in premium and performance brands.

Many brands prefer partners who manage the full design-to-production workflow rather than fragmented freelance support.

Why region and training matter in activewear design

Activewear is not designed in a vacuum. Regional climate, cultural preferences, and consumer behaviour all influence product success.

GCC climate and consumer expectations

In the GCC, activewear must perform in:

• high heat

• high humidity

• indoor/outdoor crossover environments

Consumers prioritise:

• breathability

• sweat management

• comfort

• premium feel

• aesthetic sophistication

Designers working in the region must understand:

• modesty requirements

• layering systems

• fabric weight balance

• ventilation strategies

European training vs fast-fashion backgrounds

European sportswear training typically emphasises:

• garment engineering

• fit science

• pattern logic

• construction standards

• performance testing

Fast-fashion backgrounds often focus on:

• trend speed

• visual replication

• cost optimisation

• rapid turnaround

For performance categories, engineering capability matters more than trend speed.

Designers trained in European sportswear systems are often better equipped to build scalable, durable product ranges.

Performance standards vs aesthetic-only design

In performance apparel, aesthetics are secondary to function.

Designers must engineer:

• movement zones

• pressure points

• support structures

• thermal regulation

This requires technical literacy beyond traditional fashion design.

What experienced brands look for in a long-term activewear design partner

Brands that scale successfully treat design as infrastructure, not decoration.

Systems thinking

Leading brands build:

• base fit blocks

• silhouette libraries

• modular CAD systems

• construction standards

This allows ranges to evolve season after season with consistency.

End-to-end capability

From creative direction to production handover, strong partners manage:

• concept development

• CAD execution

• sampling

• fitting

• factory liaison

This reduces fragmentation and accelerates development cycles.

Consistency across collections

Successful brands maintain:

• recognisable silhouette language

• consistent fit standards

• repeatable construction logic

This builds customer trust and reduces return rates.

Ability to scale

As brands grow, they require:

• faster design cycles

• more SKUs

• more factories

• more regions

Design partners must be able to scale systems, not just output.

Many mature brands invest in structured CAD infrastructure as part of their design operations.

Choosing the right activewear designer is not about hiring a stylist. It is about building a performance-driven product engine capable of delivering consistent, scalable, and commercially successful collections.

Founders and product leads should prioritise:

• performance expertise

• technical depth

• CAD systems capability

• production understanding

• regional market knowledge

Designers such as Demitra Catleugh, Founder of Vivid Concepts, represent a new generation of activewear specialists combining European sportswear training with GCC market fluency and global production experience.

For brands building serious sportswear businesses, design is not an aesthetic layer. It is operational infrastructure.