Mediabistro logo
job logo

Beauty Creative Director: Digital-First Brand Vision

tms · Stamford, CT, USA ·

Job type:
Seasonal

As Creative Director, Beauty, you’ll lead the creative vision and day-to-day direction for the client's beauty storytelling — across campaigns, launches, retail, e-commerce, and a digital- and social-first content ecosystem. Reporting to the Sr Director of Creative, you’ll oversee a team of creatives, setting a high bar for concept, craft, and consistency while ensuring the work is built to perform across modern channels. This is a role for a hands‑on creative leader who can inspire teams, partner cross‑functionally, and translate business goals into compelling, trend‑aware beauty creative.

WHAT YOU WILL BRING TO THE ORGANIZATION

  • Own and evolve the creative vision for Beauty across the client's brand portfolio—ensuring distinct brand expression while maintaining a consistent standard of craft and storytelling
  • Lead, mentor, and develop a team of creatives (art directors, designers, copywriters and/or content creators as applicable); provide clear briefs, constructive feedback, and career growth opportunities
  • Set creative standards and direction across key deliverables—campaign concepts, launch toolkits, social content, retail/e-commerce assets, and brand systems
  • Champion inclusive, collaborative ways of working and create an environment where teams do their best work under fast timelines and changing priorities

Creative Strategy, Digital/Social-First & Channel Excellence

  • Translate brand and product strategy into channel-ready creative that is digital- and social-first, while still laddering up to integrated campaigns and retail moments
  • Lead concepting and creative development across launches and always‑on content—defining key messages, visual approach, and content systems that scale across formats
  • Ensure creative is platform-native and performance-aware (e.g., hooks, pacing, thumb‑stopping design, creator‑forward thinking, versioning, and testing/learning)
  • Guide teams to deliver cohesive creative across e-commerce and retail channels (PDP imagery, banners, video, education, and retailer guidelines), ensuring clarity, compliance, and brand consistency

Cross‑Functional Leadership & Stakeholder Partnership

  • Partner with brand marketing, product/innovation, social, e-commerce, sales, and retail teams to align creative direction to business goals, channel needs, and launch timelines
  • Present creative work with clear rationale; incorporate feedback while protecting the core idea and ensuring the work remains on‑brief and on‑brand
  • Collaborate with internal and external partners (e.g., studios, photographers, creators, agencies) to deliver best‑in‑class beauty creative within timelines and budget considerations

Process, Quality & Best Practices

  • Establish clear creative standards, reference points, and review cadences to improve quality, consistency, and speed across deliverables
  • Ensure craft excellence across design, copy, motion, and content—guiding teams on composition, typography, messaging, tone, and brand guidelines
  • Lead with a test‑and‑learn mindset: use insights and performance signals to refine creative systems, optimize content, and inform future work
  • Support efficient ways of working across the creative org (briefing clarity, version control, and documentation) in partnership with production and operations teams

Client & Cross‑Functional Collaboration

  • Report into the Sr Director of Creative and act as the day‑to‑day creative lead for Beauty—bringing clarity, direction, and momentum across the client's workstreams
  • Align teams and stakeholders on priorities, deliverables, and creative direction; elevate risks early and propose solutions
  • Be a strong creative partner across the organization—balancing brand ambition with practical execution across timelines and channel needs

SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE WE WOULD LIKE YOU TO HAVE

  • 10+ years of creative experience with at least 3–5 years in a Creative Director (or senior creative leadership) role, ideally within beauty, personal care, grooming, or consumer lifestyle brands
  • Demonstrated experience leading and developing creative teams across disciplines (design, art direction, copy, motion/content), including setting direction and giving actionable feedback
  • A portfolio that shows strong beauty craft and concepting—from big campaign ideas to social‑first executions, e‑commerce/retail assets, and brand systems
  • Deep understanding of digital and social best practices (platform‑native storytelling, creator/UGC ecosystems, content systems, versioning, and test‑and‑learn approaches)
  • Strong brand stewardship: ability to define and enforce visual identity, tone of voice, and creative standards across multiple brands and channels
  • Experience partnering closely with production (photo/video), e‑commerce, retail, and marketing teams; comfortable guiding creative through real‑world constraints like timelines, budgets, and channel specs
  • Confident presenter and communicator—able to influence stakeholders, navigate ambiguity, and make clear recommendations that move work forward
  • Strong collaborative mindset, high taste level, and a bias toward action—able to raise the bar while keeping teams motivated and aligned

AND WE’D LOVE YOU TO…

  • Be fluent in digital‑and‑social‑first campaigns and tactics (e.g., creator/UGC, paid social assets, short‑form video, content series, and always‑on toolkits), with strong e‑commerce instincts for PDP storytelling, retailer requirements, and conversion‑minded design.

ANY OF THE FOLLOWING WOULD BE A PLUS (BEAUTY + DIGITAL/SOCIAL + E‑COMMERCE)

  • Prior experience in beauty/hair or personal care—especially with product launches, seasonal moments, and education‑driven storytelling (how‑to, benefit‑led messaging, routines, before/after).
  • Hands‑on familiarity with social and digital‑first creative ecosystems, including paid social toolkits, creator partnerships/UGC, short‑form video, and e‑commerce/retail execution (e.g., Amazon PDPs and key retailers) with an understanding of specs, content standards, and performance levers.

Starting hourly between $135-$145.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

We are an equal opportunity employer, and we value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.

#J-18808-Ljbffr