Fashion Designer Hire from Europe for Saint Kaizen & Invicta Kuru (Saved $32K/Year)

Snapshot:

Business: Saint Kaizen & Invicta Kuru (Anime-Inspired Fashion Brands)

‍Role Hired: Fashion Designer — sourced from Europe

‍Objective: Scale product design capacity with a designer who understands anime culture and can translate it into wearable, well-crafted streetwear

‍Outcome: Direct hire placed in under 3 weeks. Enabled a founder to expand design output and launch new collections while maintaining brand authenticity

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The Challenge:

Founder runs two anime-inspired fashion brands: Saint Kaizen and Invicta Kuru. Growth means more collections and more designs.

The role of a Fashion Designer required a person who lives at the intersection of anime culture and fashion execution. Someone who understands the aesthetics deeply and can translate them into cut-and-sew garments that people actually want to wear.

U.S. Fashion Designers with anime specialization cost $75K-$85K annually. That's before benefits, payroll taxes, or PTO. Freelancers couldn't provide the consistency needed for building cohesive collections across two brands.

The goal: find a full-time designer who could own the design process while the founder focuses on brand strategy, marketing, and business growth.

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The Strategy:

Zabota ran the Direct-Hire Sprint:  

- Role Definition — Fashion Designer to handle apparel design, cut-and-sew garments, anime-inspired aesthetics, Adobe Creative Suite execution (Illustrator, Photoshop), and solid understanding of fit, materials, construction, and functionality.

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- Geo Targeting (South Africa) — We sourced for strong portfolio demonstrating anime-inspired or streetwear aesthetics, technical proficiency in design software, understanding of garment construction, and cultural fluency.

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- Signal-Based Vetting — Beyond resumes: portfolio reviews of anime-inspired work, design test tasks evaluating aesthetic translation, technical skills assessment in Adobe Creative Suite, and cultural understanding of anime.

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- Direct Hire, Zero Markup — Saint Kaizen & Invicta Kuru hired directly (no payroll middleman), backed by our 90-day free replacement guarantee.

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The Hire:

Location: Europe
Role: Fashion Designer
Time-to-Hire: Less than 3 weeks
Model: Full-time, direct hires; no ongoing % of wages

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Results:

Payroll Efficiency: $32,000/year saved vs. equivalent U.S. hire for specialized fashion designer.

Operational Velocity: Increased collection output across both brands with maintained brand authenticity and aesthetic consistency.

System Installed: A repeatable direct-hire track (niche sourcing → cultural vetting → portfolio assessment → plug-in onboarding) now used to scale additional creative roles as both brands grow.

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Why It Works:

At Zabota, we place mid-market operators, not VAs, not overpriced local hires.

By sourcing in Europe and hiring directly, fashion brands get senior, culture-fluent designers at sustainable comp. The result: capability, culture, and profit.

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