Industrial Designer
Santa Barbara, California | Full Time | In Studio
About lifestyledesign
lifestyledesign is an independent design and innovation consultancy based in Santa Barbara, California.
We work with leading global brands and emerging companies across consumer technology, lifestyle, health and wellness, mobility, sporting goods, housewares, emerging technologies, and a broad range of design-driven consumer categories.
Our work often begins before there is a clearly defined product to design. We help clients identify new opportunities, rethink categories, establish design languages, build product collections, reposition brands, and define what should come next.
Our approach brings together industrial design, strategy, innovation, cultural insight, technology, and emerging AI-enabled creative tools to create work that is relevant, differentiated, and commercially meaningful.
We are looking for an exceptional Industrial Designer to join our Santa Barbara studio.
The Role
This position is for a designer with strong creative instincts, excellent craft, and a sophisticated understanding of contemporary design and culture.
You will work across a broad range of programs, from early strategic exploration and concept development through detailed design, visualization, prototyping, and production.
The role requires the ability to move comfortably between big-picture thinking and highly resolved execution.
We are looking for someone who can see the broader opportunity, generate compelling ideas across products, categories, collections, and experiences, articulate a clear point of view, and develop those ideas with precision.
Because of the nature of our work, we value designers who are curious beyond industrial design itself and maintain a strong awareness of fashion, technology, architecture, art, materials, brands, consumer behavior, and global cultural trends.
The Work
Our projects range from individual products to broader innovation and brand-defining programs.
One project may involve creating a new product. Another may require defining an entirely new collection, design language, category opportunity, consumer experience, or future vision for a brand.
The common thread is thoughtful design that connects with people, creates meaningful differentiation, and delivers real value for the companies we work with.
We are particularly interested in work where design, culture, technology, consumer behavior, and business opportunity intersect.
What We’re Looking For
We are interested in designers with a strong portfolio and demonstrated ability across many of the following areas:
Exceptional industrial design and concept development skills
Strong sense of form, proportion, detail, material, and color
Excellent sketching and visual communication
Advanced 3D modeling, surfacing, rendering, and visualization capabilities
Strong understanding of product development and manufacturing
Experience with hard goods, soft goods, or both
Ability to identify and articulate meaningful consumer and market opportunities
Strong presentation and communication skills
Awareness of contemporary design, lifestyle, technology, fashion, and culture
Ability to work collaboratively while maintaining a clear creative point of view
Curiosity and fluency with emerging creative technologies, including AI
High levels of initiative, judgment, and attention to detail
We are open to designers at different stages of their professional careers. The quality of the work, depth of thinking, and relevance of experience will be the most important considerations.
We are looking for people who are passionate about design, highly engaged in the world around them, and motivated by the opportunity to create work that can genuinely move a category or brand forward.
The Studio
lifestyledesign is a small, highly collaborative studio.
Designers are closely involved in the work and have direct exposure to clients, strategy, concept development, decision-making, and product realization.
Our environment is fast-moving, hands-on, and highly engaged. It is particularly well suited to designers who want to expand their capabilities, contribute meaningfully to important programs, and continue developing their own point of view.
We are also actively exploring how AI and emerging technologies are changing the design process, from early exploration and visualization through innovation, development, and storytelling.
For the right designer, this is an opportunity to do ambitious work, grow quickly, and have a meaningful influence on both projects and outcomes.
Santa Barbara
Our studio is located in Santa Barbara, between the Pacific Ocean and the mountains.
The location is closely connected to many of the categories and cultures we work within, including lifestyle, wellness, outdoor, sport, mobility, travel, and contemporary California design.
Santa Barbara offers a rare combination of creative energy, natural beauty, and quality of life, and we see the location as an important part of the studio experience.
This is an in-studio position, and candidates should be genuinely interested in living and working in Santa Barbara.
What We Offer
Major medical PPO insurance
Short and long-term disability insurance
Paid holidays and paid time off
Performance-based bonuses
401(k) program
Exposure to a broad range of significant design and innovation programs
Direct involvement with clients and senior decision-makers
Opportunities for professional growth and increased responsibility
A collaborative studio environment in Santa Barbara, California
How to Apply
Please send your portfolio or portfolio link and résumé to Info@lifestyledesign.com.
Subject: Industrial Designer
Along with your application, please include:
Current role and location
Salary expectations
Earliest available start date
Current U.S. work authorization status
Your interest in living and working in Santa Barbara
Portfolio links are preferred. If submitting attachments, please keep the total email size under 5 MB.
Please note: This is a full-time, in-studio position based in Santa Barbara, California. Applicants must be currently authorized to work in the United States. We are not offering visa sponsorship for this position.
Please apply only if your experience, portfolio, and interests are closely aligned with the role and the type of work described above.
We are looking for designers with exceptional taste, strong ideas, deep curiosity, and the ability to turn insight into meaningful products, experiences, and opportunities.