Creative director/art director

Creative Director / Art Director — Multi-Brand Agency Work (Ecom, DTC, B2B) — Long-Term Potential Read this whole post before applying We get a high volume of applications. Most of them get rejected in under ten seconds because the applicant didn't read the requirements. If you follow the application instructions at the bottom, you'll immediately stand out. Who we are DE is a full-service creative and marketing agency. We work across a wide range of clients and categories — ecommerce and DTC brands, B2B companies, real estate, food and beverage, professional services, and startups building a brand from zero. That variety is the job. In a given month you might move from a paid social creative sprint for a DTC skincare brand, to a brand identity system for a B2B SaaS company, to a print and environmental package for a restaurant concept. If context-switching between categories and tones drains you, this isn't the right fit. Our work leans bold and editorial: strong typographic hierarchy, high contrast, confident use of space. We are not looking for someone who makes safe, templated, "agency-default" work. What you'll actually be doing Setting creative direction for client projects — concept, art direction, visual language, and the rationale behind it Building and extending brand identity systems: logo, type, color, grid, photo/illustration direction, and the guidelines that keep it consistent Directing and producing paid social creative for Meta and TikTok — static, motion, and UGC-style concepts built to test and scale, not just to look good Designing conversion-focused assets: landing pages, PDPs, email design, ad units, sales collateral Print and packaging work when the project calls for it — you should know your way around production specs, bleeds, and press-ready files Presenting and defending work: clear rationale, tied to the client's business objective, in language a non-designer stakeholder understands Art directing photo and video shoots — shot lists, references, on-set direction Reviewing and elevating work from other designers on the team, with feedback that's specific and actionable Working inside existing brand guidelines when the client has them, and building them when they don't Required qualifications Please do not apply if you don't meet all of these: 7+ years of professional design experience, with at least 3 years in a Creative Director, Associate CD, or Art Director role where you owned the direction, not just the execution Agency or multi-client experience. You've handled several brands at once with different voices, audiences, and constraints Expert-level in Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, After Effects) and Figma Demonstrable performance/paid social creative experience — you understand hooks, creative testing, iteration off of results, and platform specs for Meta and TikTok Brand identity experience with at least two full systems you built end-to-end that you can walk us through Strong typography fundamentals. This is non-negotiable and we will be evaluating it closely in your portfolio Fluent, professional written and spoken English, and the ability to communicate directly with clients when needed Reliable overlap with US Eastern Time business hours and responsiveness within the workday Comfortable with direct feedback and fast turnarounds. We move quickly and we say what we think Nice to have Motion design and short-form video editing (After Effects, Premiere) Webflow, Shopify, or front-end familiarity — enough to design for what can actually be built Copywriting instincts, or at least the ability to write a headline that isn't filler Experience with email platforms (Klaviyo, Mailchimp, GoHighLevel) Photography or retouching skills Experience presenting to executive-level stakeholders Who this is not for Junior or mid-level designers hoping to grow into the role. We need someone who can already direct Agencies, staffing firms, or anyone subcontracting the work to a team we can't see. We're hiring an individual Anyone whose portfolio is primarily template-based, stock-driven, or AI-generated with no craft behind it Anyone who needs a fully written brief to start moving. You'll often get a rough goal and have to shape the rest Anyone applying with a generic proposal Details Type: Contract, project-based to start, with strong potential to become an ongoing retainer Hours: Flexible, project-dependent. Expect anywhere from 10–30 hrs/week depending on the workload Rate: Include your hourly rate and your typical project rate for a full brand identity. Do not skip this Location: Remote, anywhere — as long as the US Eastern overlap works Process: Portfolio review → 30-minute call → a small paid test project → ongoing work How to apply Applications that don't follow this format will not be reviewed. Start your proposal with the word ECLIPSE so we know you read the post. Then include: Your portfolio link. Live site or PDF. Do not send a Behance/Dribbble page of unattributed visuals — we want case studies with context. Three projects, briefly described. For each one: what the client's business problem was, what you did, and what the result was. Two to three sentences each. We care more about your thinking than your rendering. Your role, specifically. For each project above, tell us what you did versus what your team did. Be honest — we ask about this on the call. Your answer to this: A DTC client's paid social has been running the same creative angle for six months and performance is declining. They have no new product and no budget for a shoot. What's your approach? Keep it under 150 words. Your rate, hourly and project-based. Your time zone and your typical working hours. Your tools — what you use daily and what you're rusty on. We read every proposal that follows these instructions, and we respond either way.