Natalie Vaccaro Wiik

<p>Hi, I'm Natalie and I'm from the Charlotte, NC area. I attended NC State University in Raleigh, NC where I received my B.S. degree in Fashion & Textile Management with a concentration in Brand Management & Marketing. After graduating, I moved to Augusta, GA, where I started my first full time position in February 2016 as an Assistant Merchandiser for Augusta Sportswear. At the start of 2018, I transitioned into a new position as Designer/Product Developer for the Off Field category, which included training tops/bottoms, polos, and fanwear apparel products. Day to day I worked on all product development aspects making fabric and trim decisions for an extensive product line. My favorite part about being a designer was watching my designs come to life from a flat sketch to physical samples. I got to make most of the design and construction decisions for these garments and present to the internal teams how to best showcase their features.</p><p></p><p>In April 2019, I moved to Southern California, where I started as an Assistant Merchandiser for BB Dakota based in Costa Mesa, California. I assisted the JACK brand designer and technical designer by communicating daily with our vendors to ensure samples arrived on time, helped build tech packs, and prepared for product presentations to management. Unfortunately due to the unparalleled times of COVID-19, my time with BB Dakota came to an end. Quickly after, in July 2020, I made a career shift to the mortgage industry and started as a Loan Coordinator for a private money lender called Equity Wave Lending in Irvine, CA where I drew loan documents. A few months later, I was promoted to Loan Processor where I managed 10-20 loans simultaneously and facilitated their fundings.</p><p></p><p>I decided to leave the mortgage industry and return to the fashion/apparel development world, where my passion lies. In November 2021, I started a contract position as Merchandising Operations Coordinator at Vans, where I managed approximately 1,000-1,500 styles per season across multiple seasons for the Women's & Girl's Apparel & Accessories categories in our Enovia PLM database. I also analyzed seasonal buys, SKU counts, and line plans by utilizing pivot table, V lookup, etc. in Excel, and organized all team salesmen samples. Once my contract lapsed, I started as a Designer/Product Developer for Style Lab HQ, a company started by a former Augusta Sportswear colleague. Style Lab provides a full service package of brand strategy, design, development, manufacturing, merchandising, etc. to apparel companies to get their products from concept to shelf.</p><p> I'm open-minded which allows me to work well with others and I love seeking new opportunities. My interests include reading, traveling, sewing, spinning, hiking, and yoga. </p>