Brian Piper Email & Phone Number

Seattle, WA, US

Seattle, WA

Seattle, WA

• Led industrial design & engineering teams to bring durable consumer electronic accessories to market for Brenthaven, Gumdrop, and Vault brands.
• Hired, managed & coached team members through an acquisition and headquarters relocation. Responsible for establishing a new design studio space.
• Built detailed project schedules (via Asana and Smartsheet) to bring over 25 products per year to market.
• Oversaw North American dual sourcing to onboard 2 new injection molding factories. Achieving a 16% reduction in cost of goods, lowering carbon emissions, and improving product quality.
• Spearheaded sustainability, reducing packaging by 15%, saving 25K square meters of cardboard annually.
• Responsible for product testing, Failure Mode & Effects Analysis (FMEA), QA Plans, and warranty support.

Kent, WA

• Created original designs of molded & sewn travel goods for Ricardo, Skyway, and private label brands.
• Managed design process from concept through production for >$50M in products with major retailers such as Costco, Macy’s, Kohls, Nordstrom, Dillard’s, Amazon.
• Generated strategic product roadmaps, design briefs, and project timelines in collaboration with sales team.
• Worked extensively with Asian factories to meet stringent price, quality, and timeline objectives.
• Managed design and launch of Pendleton travel goods in collaboration with the iconic brand for the centennial anniversary of the national parks.
• Competed and won Costco Kirkland Signature private label luggage program, an industry benchmark.

Kent, WA

• Responsible for design of ~$30M of the company’s highest visibility projects
• Designed benchmark Costco Kirkland Signature luggage that produced 100K units/yr
• Launched Pendleton licensed product line in partnership with the iconic brand
• Aided in company relocation, hiring a new design team, and revitalizing the brand

Lawrence, MA

• Designed bags and packs for promotional and private label customers
• Traveled 2-4 times per year to Asia to work directly with sample rooms
• Analyzed sales and competitive assortments to map out product opportunities
• Ensured products met stringent target costs and margin objectives
• Leveraged global trend research to competitively differentiate within the industry
• Implemented a design innovation library as a lean improvement initiative

• Developed a line of custom, domestically manufactured bicycles featured in WIT Alumni magazine and Core77.com
• Lead the creation and management of a design intern program

• Competed as a professional mountain bike athlete and brand ambassador
• Offered technical support at events to local and world-class athletes
• Provided product testing, graphic and apparel design

Seattle, Washington, United States

Refined bicycle frame design concept as the company transitioned from aluminum to carbon fiber manufacturing. Collaborated with engineers to package the concept around specified geometry and suspension kinematics.

Boston MA

• Designed Special Make Ups footwear for key account requests.
• Collaborated with an international team in a fast paced environment.
• Responsible for trend research, color analysis, and material selection.