Ronald Junior McDonald

Ron Jnr McDonald

Contact information

Ronald Junior McDonald

Cover Letter

I have had a successful career in fashion design, focused on menswear tailoring and contemporary fashion for over 20 years. I was Head of menswear for Tiger of Sweden for 9 1/2 years and the last 6 years as a consultant Creative design manager for Bestseller group.

Due to covid hitting the fashion industry so hard and travel restrictions stopping me from traveling from Stockholm to Denmark, I got paid off and I am still looking for a new exciting opportunity.

I have a great eye for design which has been focused on Contemporary Menswear and tailoring for over 20 years. Colours are so important to a collection and I focus a lot on this especially new colour combinations that can lift the collection through styling outfits to a whole other level for fashion shows and marketing campaigns. My storytelling and presentation skills are a key part of my success in convincing people to trust and believe in what I say in an honest way.

I have high-level management skills and I am used to working under pressure for big companies. I am a team player and think it’s key to enjoying your work and creating a positive work environment will lead to better work and a happier motivated team. I have strong communication skills and enjoy voicing my opinions when need in a clear and confident way at any level of management. I am a natural problem solver that can focus on the smallest detail or the big picture.

I became interested in fashion in my late Teens, keeping up with designer fashion worn in the early Rave scene. I started to read magazines like Face and Sky magazine. In my early twenties, I started to read ID magazine which changed my perspective on fashion. I started to mix high fashion with second-hand clothing to get a more unique look. I sketched and designed things for my mum to sew up for me, at the time she was a sample machinist for Paul smith. From that day I knew I wanted to be a fashion designer.

When I started my fashion journey I loved Paul Smith’s quirky take on British tailoring, bringing the suit to a younger international fashion-conscious guy while still being globally commercial. I also loved the freedom and extremeness of Vivienne Westwood’s technically brilliant designed garments.

Alexander McQueen was one of Britain’s finest, his creative mind in a combination with his world-class tailoring skills was mind-blowing and my all-time favorite designer. I also love what Phoebephilo did more so with Celine, it was so fresh and inspiring conceptually, with amazing clean garments with cool details and a luxurious pearlized retail experience.

I learned a lot in a short time working through the recession with Tiger of Sweden, that it is extremely important to truly trust your instinct. We had just modernized the Menswear with a skinny fit and a more youthful approach to tailoring aimed at the international market. The selling dropped due to the recession.

Some of the company leaders wanted to go back but the CEO, Product Manager and I Focused on the big picture and continued to push the new concept over time it lead to Tiger breaking into the international market with the likes of Selfridges and also 4 fashion shows in London fashion week. At the time it was producing 56 % of Tiger of Sweden’s total turnover. So I learned to always trust my instincts even if it gets tough.

Working in Scandinavia has helped me to find my balance as a designer, with a strong grasp of the whole process of design from start to finish. The Scandinavian market is famous for a minimal look with key detailing innovative fabrics and a fashion-forward silhouette. This is the backbone of what I love to design, with a bit of quirky Britishness thrown into the mix.

Curriculum Vitae

Work history

Premium Black (Jack & Jones) Denmark, June 2016 – Aug 2020.

Design Director (Consultant) – Premium black label (Tailored semi dressed) segment high street).

  • Product Responsible for all woven styles and jerseys and knits (all product groups). 
  • Work close with buyers for all product groups to build the collection by designing styles and choosing fabrics and colours. 
  • Coordinate with merchandisers for style, design, and colour look in retail stores. 
  • Hand-draw sketches for an assistant (who would make technical sketches and overviews). 
  • Continuously research Men’s fashion, innovative fabrics, and silhouettes.    
  • Draw technical sketches with details on freehand/Illustrator for production. 
  • Collaborate with print designs for placement prints and allover prints.

Tiger of Sweden – Stockholm, Aug 2007- April 2016.

Head of Menswear (Fashion Design Director) – Tiger of Sweden Black label (Tailored fashion premium segment).

  • Responsible for the design direction of the Menswear department (Black label, tailored fashion).
  • Constantly communicate with country managers to get constant info to design the perfect collection.
  • Design responsible for the Suits, Blazers, Outerwear, Trousers, and shirts, creative control of Jersey and Knitwear. 
  • Collaborate with advertising dept and stylist for fashion shows and campaigns.
  • Travel to Milan and Paris to meet suppliers to choose/develop material for all woven styles.
  • Work closely with the CEO to make sure the company is going in the right direction.
  • Responsible for the design direction of all materials for collection.
  • Create seasonal trends and colour boards for the concept. 
  • Presentation of collection silhouette and trend to the company. 
  • Hand over technical sketches to pattern drafter and production. 
  • Create seasonal fashion trends and colour cards. 
  • Communicate the trends to the press. 
  • Design sketches in illustrator. 
  • Delegate design work to my assistant and other designers.

Hennes & Mauritz – Stockholm, Sept 2001 – Aug 2007.

Product Concept designer, Senior design assistant , Design assistant H&M Man (biggest Menswear department).

Product/Concept designer.

  • Product Responsible for all woven styles and jerseys and knits (all product groups). 
  • Work close with buyers for all product groups to build the collection by designing styles and choosing fabrics and colours. 
  • Coordinate with merchandisers for style, design and colour look in retail stores. 
  • Hand-drawn sketches for an assistant (who makes technical sketches and overviews). 
  • Continuously research Men’s fashion, innovative fabrics, and silhouettes.    
  • Draw technical sketches with details on freehand/Illustrator for production. 
  • Collaborate with print designs for placement prints and allover prints.

Angels the Costumiers – London, Jan 1999 – Sept 2001.

Men´s Military and Tailoring Alterations.

  • Involved in fitting men’s costumes for actors. 
  • Altered men’s costumes to fit actors’ measurements using industrial sewing machines. 
  • Specialized in military hand sewing epaulets and medals to uniforms. 
  • Repaired garments for film and theatre. 
  • Sometimes on the set of movies fix costumes for the actors.

Robert Dick, Bespoke Tailor – Glasgow, Duke street. Sept 1996 – July 1997.

Assistant bespoke tailor, placement fashion college.

  • Taught basic tailoring techniques. 
  • Learned how to Baste stitch, amf, and general hand sewing skills. 
  • Assisted customers in choosing materials and styles of suits. 
  • Worked with Jack Huston to make a bespoke suit from scratch for my final year with traditional canvas.

Curriculum Vitae

Education

UX Design Institute / Glasgow Caledonian University. May 2021 – Nov 2021.

Professional Diploma in UX Design.

London College of Fashion. Sept 1997 – June 1998.

  • 1st year BA (H) Costume Design and Make-up.

North Glasgow College. Sept 1995 – June 1997.

  • Fashion Design Technology with Production and Retail.
  • National certificate. 
  • Higher national certificate.
  • Higher national diploma.
 

Curriculum Vitae

Achievements

  • From a design perspective the journey with Tiger of Sweden from a successful Scandinavian brand to an international player.
  • Best Menswear designer award from Cafe Magazine 2014.
  • Best Menswear designer award from WGSN 2015.
  • Working together with The Hives, Mando Diao, and Håkan Hellström, styling the bands for concerts within the collection or designing custom-made clothing for the band’s concerts.  
  • Designing for the Swedish royal family for both H.RH Prince Carl Philip and H.R.H Prince Daniel.
  • Collaborating with London Cloth to design a Tartan inspired my family name tartan from Skye influenced by Scandinavian wildflowers, handwoven by London Cloth. The tartan I designed is now officially registered as a Tartan designed by me for Tiger of Sweden.

Ambitions

My ambition is to succeed at the highest level possible in my career within the fashion industry. Use the skills I learned while studying in combination with my 20 years of experience gained in the industry to continuously design collections that are innovative and relevant helping the companies I work for to grow in the right way. Just as important if not more so, is to enjoy my life and the journey as much as possible along the way with my wife and our two sons.

 

Skills

  • Fashion Design
  • Menswear Contemporary
  • Menswear Tailoring
  • Creative Direction 
  • Management
  • Trend analysis 
  • Storytelling 
  • Textiles (innovative and luxury) 
  • Fashion Styling 
  • Colour Coordination 
  • Problem Solving 
  • Big picture thinking 
  • Thinking outside the box 
  • Adobe Illustrator 
  • Adobe Photoshop

References

I have references that can be provided if required.