[Hiring] Art Director, Packaging @Thrive Market

Role Description

The Art Director of Packaging leads the creative strategy, quality, and consistency of Thrive Market’s Owned Brands packaging. This role manages a team of designers and production artists, collaborates cross-functionally to align packaging with brand goals, and oversees the production process from concept to print. Additionally, the Art Director drives innovation, optimizes design workflows, and ensures packaging meets industry trends and consumer expectations.

The ideal candidate is organized, process-oriented, has extreme attention to detail, and thrives in a fast-paced working environment.

Core Responsibilities

• Creative Vision and Art Direction: Drive quality and consistency across all Thrive Market Owned Brands, providing daily creative feedback to the design team and aligning with stakeholders in bi-weekly meetings. Ensure all packaging designs adhere to brand standards and contribute to a cohesive brand identity.
• Team Management and Development: Oversee a team of packaging designers, delegating projects effectively and setting team members up for success. Conduct mid-year and annual performance reviews, manage career pathing, and establish clear OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) to support growth and skill development.
• Mentorship and Skill Building: Mentor designers, helping them optimize their processes, develop creative efficiencies, and achieve high standards in their work. Inspire team members through constructive feedback and fostering a collaborative team environment.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner with teams in photo, content, and merchandising marketing to define creative objectives, packaging style, and strategic approaches. Interpret and follow Creative Briefs closely to ensure packaging aligns with broader brand and product objectives.
• Editorial and Content Alignment: Collaborate with the Content team to define the editorial direction for packaging, ensuring that brand storytelling aligns seamlessly across all packaging touchpoints.
• Brand Style Guides: Build, manage, and update brand style guides, including packaging standards (such as substrates, design elements, and typography) to maintain a strong visual identity across all Thrive Market brands.
• Production Oversight: Manage the production process from design to printing, identifying and flagging any design inconsistencies and ensuring quality through all production stages. Collaborate with production teams on mechanicals and printing best practices.
• Proofing and Press Checks: Review proofs and lead press checks (on-site or remote), approving or rejecting against brand standards and printer specifications.
• New Product Development: Provide creative support for product development, particularly for new categories like home goods, textiles, and specialty products, ensuring alignment with the overall brand aesthetic.
• Market and Competitive Research: Conduct ongoing competitive research to stay informed about industry trends and consumer preferences, bringing innovative ideas to enhance Thrive Market's presence in the packaging space.
• Process Optimization: Develop and implement operational efficiencies to streamline the packaging design process, reducing unnecessary revisions and improving productivity.
• Presentation and Leadership Communication: Create presentation materials, including packaging mockups and competitive landscape analysis, for leadership review, ensuring clear communication of strategic decisions and design rationale.
• Photography and Retouching Oversight: Guide the on-pack photography process, providing direction and retouching feedback to ensure consistency and quality across all product images.
• Innovation in Packaging: Identify new opportunities to elevate the Thrive Market brand within the packaging industry by staying current on best practices in design, printing, and branding.

Qualifications

• 5+ years in packaging design and art direction, with a strong background in brand development, preferably within the CPG, food, or wellness industries.
• Proven experience managing a creative team, including mentorship, performance reviews, and project delegation, with a minimum of 2 years of direct people management experience.
• Proficiency in Adobe Creative Suite (Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign) and knowledge of print production processes, packaging substrates, and materials.
• Proven experience building, documenting, and maintaining scalable packaging design systems (templates, modular layouts, typography, color, substrates, and component libraries) that keep multiple product lines and brands cohesive and speed up production.
• Hands-on experience with proofing workflows and on-site or remote press checks, including color-matching, evaluating print quality, and approving or rejecting proofs against brand standards and printer specs.
• Experience evaluating and implementing AI tools to increase team efficiency, including assessing fit, quality, and risk, and integrating approved tools into design and production workflows.
• Experience directing on-pack product photography and giving retouching feedback to maintain consistent image quality.
• Strong eye for design, typography, and color; ability to create cohesive brand identities and maintain quality standards across multiple products.
• Demonstrated ability to work with cross-functional teams, including content, photography, product development, and merchandising, to align packaging with overall brand and product goals.
• Excellent organizational skills to manage multiple projects, timelines, and deadlines in a fast-paced environment.
• Understanding of current trends in packaging, sustainability, and consumer behavior, with the ability to conduct competitive research and apply insights.
• Strong verbal and written communication abilities for presenting design concepts and rationale to stakeholders.
• Skilled in identifying and addressing design inconsistencies and production issues, with a proactive approach to improving design processes and workflows.

Benefits

• Comprehensive health benefits (medical, dental, vision, life and disability)
• Competitive salary (DOE) + equity
• 401k plan
• 9 Observed Holidays
• Flexible Paid Time Off
• Subsidized ClassPass Membership with access to fitness classes and wellness and beauty experiences
• Ability to work in our beautiful office in Playa Vista
• Free Thrive Market membership with exclusive employee discount
• Coverage for Life Coaching & Therapy Sessions on our holistic mental health and well-being platform