Creative Director

SUMMARY

Reporting to the President, the Creative Director is responsible for conceiving and implementing furniture concepts, guidelines, merchandising displays, showrooms, events, and strategies in various creative projects and overseeing them to completion. The Creative Director also directs, leads, and motivates teams of internal and external art directors, designers, content strategists, graphic designers, and illustrators. 

JOB DESCRIPTION

You will be leading an efficient team in an entrepreneurial company. Leveraging the team resources, you will have the opportunity to make a meaningful impact on the business and your colleagues. 

The ideal candidate must prefer, and excel at, wearing several hats and juggling multiple priorities. As an entrepreneurial organization, we function in an environment with moving parts, evolving priorities, and tight timelines – you will need to handle these situations with efficiency, a calm demeanor and a knack for critical thinking/problem solving on the fly. 

The Creative Director plays a lead role in all aspects of the American Leather brand including creative marketing, and visual display. Successful candidates will have the unique ability to inform and engage American Leather’s different audiences (employees, retail customers, and end users) by translating business objectives into meaningful, brand-elevating, actionable marketing, and merchandising strategies across internal (employees) and external (retailers, consumers) touch points. 

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Develops marketing campaign from concept to execution across mediums (i.e., Print/Digital ads, moving graphics (video, gif), flyers, etc.)
• Develops social media graphic content that harmonizes our message across medium. 
• Develops catalog and hygiene (making sure they are accurate and up to date). 
• Develops sales collateral (one pagers, spec sheets, etc.)
• Creates visual merchandising at trade shows. 
• Develops and mentors a bench of junior team members so that creative is person agnostic (meaning everything looks similar whether it is the creative director or a junior graphic designer who did it). 
• Supports moving graphics material (manage video execution)
• Build, lead, and review work of the creative team in the production of all web, print, and digital marketing collateral
• Collaborate with the marketing and sales departments in developing marketing plans, analyzing results, and identifying opportunities.
• Lead and develop retail build outs and points of sale. 
• Develop internal marketing campaigns that translate marketing objectives across business units into clear and motivating creative strategies.
• Analyze brand tracking, market trends, consumer need, and the competitive landscape.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & ABILITIES

• Ability to evaluate and discern data analytics to make marketing/business decisions.
• Broad functional experience in areas of strategic planning and marketing, business and market development, communications, market research, and promotions/advertising
• Results-oriented and proactive, self-motivated with an innate drive to win.
• Problem analysis and problem resolution at both strategic and functional levels
• Assess the bigger picture and implications, act accordingly.
• Support ideas, recommendations, and feedback with data and clear rationale
• Strong conceptual thinking and flawless execution
• Proven record of generating business-building and brand-building ideas, turning them into integrated marketing strategies/tactics, and bringing them to market
• Passion for creative marketing and storytelling
• Superb written, verbal, and editing skills – along with a strong sense of narrative and storytelling.
• Adept at creating compelling graphics, videos, PowerPoint presentations, and other visuals/messaging to help tell a story. 
• Leadership style that motivates and partners with others to achieve business goals, including direct reports and those whom you influence without authority.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, and good judgment – capable of communicating with a diverse range of individuals.
• Solid leadership, presentation, and relationship skills – a true collaborator with customer orientation 
• Meet commitments and demonstrate excellent follow-through.
• Able to juggle multiple priorities at the same time, with grace under pressure.
• Independently manage time – prioritize, organize, and deliver upon multiple priorities within tight timelines.
• High level of professional integrity and the ability to handle sensitive issues and situations with discretion. 
• Genuinely passionate about the high-end furniture, fashion, and/or interior design world
• Ability to travel for trade shows (approximately 30%)

MINUMUM REQUIREMENTS

• Bachelor’s degree in Marketing, Merchandising or related field
• 10+ years’ experience in marketing leadership role(s) in the consumer products, apparel, furniture/interior design, or retail industry
• Minimum of 5 years creating integrated marketing campaigns with elements of digital marketing, product marketing, and internal/external communications.

American Leather