Associate Creative Director (Beauty) — Culver City, CA

Job Description

Fast Growing, Los Angeles–based beauty brand looking for Associate Creative Director

We are seeking an innovative, highly visual Associate Creative Director to help shape the next chapter of a fast-growing beauty brand. This individual will bring a strong creative point of view, a deep understanding of consumer-facing design, and the ability to transform business objectives into distinctive brand experiences across retail, packaging, campaigns, and digital channels.

The ideal candidate combines strategic thinking with hands-on creative execution. They understand how to build a recognizable visual identity, develop ideas that connect with today’s beauty consumer, and create compelling work that stands out in a competitive marketplace. Equally important, they are an inspiring team leader who can elevate creative talent, manage competing priorities, and bring ambitious concepts to life.

Reporting to the Creative Director, the Associate Creative Director will guide a team of 4–5 designers while collaborating with internal stakeholders and external creative partners to deliver cohesive, high-quality work from initial concept through final production.

Creative Strategy & Art Direction

• Help shape the brand’s creative vision across integrated marketing campaigns, product launches, packaging, retail environments, social content, and digital experiences.

• Translate marketing objectives, consumer insights, and emerging cultural trends into original creative concepts that strengthen brand recognition and engagement.

• Establish clear visual direction for projects, providing creative guidance on layout, typography, imagery, color, composition, and overall aesthetic.

• Develop scalable design systems and creative frameworks that allow the brand to maintain a distinctive identity across multiple platforms and consumer touchpoints.

• Collaborate with the Creative Director to identify opportunities for visual innovation and continuously evolve the brand’s creative expression.

Design Execution & Production

• Oversee the development of creative assets from early ideation through design refinement, approvals, and final delivery.

• Guide the creation of packaging, point-of-sale materials, retail displays, print collateral, and other physical brand applications.

• Review artwork, production files, color proofs, packaging specifications, and vendor submissions to ensure accuracy, quality, and consistency.

• Partner with production teams and external suppliers to troubleshoot design challenges, resolve technical issues, and maintain the integrity of the original creative vision.

• Develop and maintain practical design resources, templates, and brand documentation that support efficient execution across projects.

Team Leadership & Creative Development

• Lead and support a team of designers, providing direction, constructive feedback, and mentorship throughout the creative process.

• Set clear expectations for creative quality, project ownership, collaboration, and delivery.

• Balance team workloads and project priorities while maintaining a high standard of execution across multiple initiatives.

• Build strong working relationships with photographers, stylists, illustrators, freelancers, and other creative collaborators.

• Encourage thoughtful experimentation, fresh perspectives, and the adoption of new creative tools and techniques.

Cross-Functional Partnership

• Work closely with Marketing, Product Development, Merchandising, eCommerce, Social, and other business partners to align creative solutions with commercial priorities.

• Partner with copywriting and content teams to ensure messaging, imagery, and design work together to tell a cohesive brand story.

• Lead creative reviews and present concepts to stakeholders, articulating the thinking behind design decisions and incorporating feedback where appropriate.

• Coordinate with project managers, producers, and external agencies to establish timelines, clarify deliverables, and maintain project momentum.

• Proactively identify potential challenges and help teams navigate changing priorities without compromising creative quality.

What Success Looks Like

• A stronger, more recognizable visual identity across packaging, retail, marketing, and digital channels.

• Distinctive campaign concepts that connect with beauty consumers and translate effectively across multiple platforms.

• Consistent, high-quality creative execution from initial concept to final production.

• A collaborative, well-supported design team that delivers excellent work while continuing to develop its capabilities.

• Efficient creative workflows, productive vendor relationships, and reliable delivery against business timelines.

• A culture that values creative curiosity, thoughtful risk-taking, and continuous improvement.

Qualifications

• At least 5 years of professional design experience, with a strong background in beauty, cosmetics, fashion, wellness, or another consumer-focused industry.

• Demonstrated experience developing creative for physical consumer touchpoints, including packaging, retail displays, point-of-sale materials, or related CPG applications.

• Previous experience managing or directly supervising at least two creative team members.

• A bachelor’s degree or associate degree in Graphic Design, Visual Communication, Fine Arts, or a related discipline.

• A compelling portfolio demonstrating strong art direction, conceptual thinking, design execution, and an understanding of bran

Now we’re looking for an ambitious, trend obsessed Art Director to own and elevate our visual universe across every touchpoint — from instore displays and packaging to omnichannel campaigns and content. If you live at the intersection of culture, beauty, and design, this is your stage.

What You’ll Do

• Own the Look & Feel: Set and safeguard the visual standards for our brand across fixtures, merchandising, packaging, print, and digital. You’ll use our brand book as your North Star while pushing the edge of what’s possible.

• Shape the Future of Beauty Design: Track what’s next in beauty, fashion, and wellness — from new materials to emerging visual trends and creative tech — and translate those insights into fresh concepts and long-term creative direction.

• Lead 360° Campaigns: Drive concept development for integrated campaigns that live across social, retail, digital, print, and experiential. You’ll pitch big ideas, back them with smart rationale, and iterate based on feedback without losing the magic.

• Tell a Cohesive Story: Partner with Copy to turn product, category, and cultural insights into narratives that actually mean something to beauty lovers — ensuring every asset, from a gondola header to a TikTok cutdown, feels connected.

• Be the Bridge Across Teams: Collaborate with Marketing, eCommerce, Merchandising, Product Development, Social, and production partners to ensure creative is on-brief, on-brand, and on time. You’ll keep communication flowing and projects moving.

• Guard the Details: Review vendor drawings, proofs, and packaging mechanicals with a meticulous eye. Redline, refine, and approve final files so what hits shelves and screens is flawless — visually and technically

How You’ll Make An Impact

• Partner with the Creative Director to evolve our visual identity across campaigns, launches, events, content, packaging, and digital experiences.

• Build flexible yet distinctive visual systems (typography, graphic language, layouts, content frameworks) that other creatives can easily work within.

• Turn briefs into clear, inspiring creative direction — articulating goals, constraints, and must-haves before the team ever opens a file.

• Keep stakeholders aligned and informed, proactively flagging risks and clearing roadblocks so launches stay on track.

• Raise the creative bar by coaching designers and freelancers, giving sharp, constructive feedback, and championing smart experimentation.

Who You Are

• You have 5+ years of experience designing physical brand experiences in beauty, fashion, or wellness, with a strong track record in CPG or retail environments.

• You hold an AA or Bachelor’s degree in Design, Fine Arts, or a related field (or equivalent experience with an exceptional portfolio).

• You’ve managed at least 2 direct reports and know how to balance leadership, mentorship, and hands-on work.

• You’re a clear, confident communicator who can walk senior leaders through your thinking and bring cross-functional partners along.

• You’re fluent in Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign) and curious about using emerging tools like AI for exploration and visualization.