Freelance Bricks Designer (3D & 2D) — Dongguan, China

Freelance Bricks Designer (3D & 2D) — Dongguan, China Location: On-site / hybrid at or near our Dongguan office Type: Freelance / contract (project-based and retainer capacity) Reports to / works with: UNGA design team (Netherlands) and our Dongguan production & QA team About us UNGA develops and manufactures collectible loyalty-campaign products for major grocery retailers worldwide. A core part of our range is LEGO-compatible brick sets, which we take from first concept all the way through to production-ready artwork. Our design direction sits with our team in the Netherlands; our production, sourcing and QA run out of our Dongguan office, close to our brick suppliers. The opportunity We are expanding our brick design capacity in China with freelance 3D and 2D designers. The role supports our schedule in two ways: • Concept — building our inventory of pitch-ready brick concepts ahead of demand. • Project — executing the design work on won campaigns, which our NL designers then finalise and add the final touches to. A freelancer may focus on one stream or flex across both depending on the pipeline — concept work fills the time between live projects, so there is steady, varied work. Being based near our office is important: it puts you alongside our production and QA colleagues and close to our brick suppliers, which speeds up problem-solving and keeps designs grounded in what is actually manufacturable. What you'll do Concept stream — building the inventory • Develop original conceptual brick models — characters, objects, vehicles and themed sets — in BrickLink Studio, GoBricks-compatible. • Turn themes, briefs and market trends into buildable, recognisable and cost-aware designs. • Produce clean pitch visuals (Studio visualisations and renders) for the sales team to take to clients. • Build and maintain a reusable library of concepts and parts so good ideas can be re-used and adapted. • Work ahead of demand to keep a strong bank of ready-to-show ideas. Project stream — executing won work Once a campaign is signed, execute the design work following our standard process: • 3D shape modelling in BrickLink Studio, and identifying sticker positions. • Parts colour scheme, working from the GDS standard palette (always the first option). • Sticker and brand artwork, laid out to the supplier's confirmed dielines and to brand/licensor guidelines. • Build instructions. • Packaging artwork preparation — flowpack, colour box and outer carton. You prepare the files to a clear, consistent standard; our NL designers finalise them and add the final touches. You iterate against client sign-off gates at each stage. What we're looking for Essential • Proven brick / MOC design experience using BrickLink Studio (Studio 2.0) — modelling, parts management, rendering and instruction generation. • Strong grasp of LEGO-compatible / GoBricks part systems — connection geometry, buildability and structural stability. • 2D graphic design skills (Adobe Illustrator / Photoshop) for sticker decoration and packaging artwork, including working to dielines and placing brand assets accurately. • A good eye for form, proportion and recognisability — making a subject read clearly at a low part count. • Awareness of mass-production constraints (injection moulding, part minimisation, cost) and how design choices affect them. • Organised file management and version control. • Working English for day-to-day collaboration with the NL team (bilingual support is available via our China team). Nice to have • Experience designing for licensed IP or branded campaigns. • Background in the toy, premium or promotional-product industry. • Strong rendering skills for marketing-quality pitch visuals. • Familiarity with the GoBricks colour system and brick part sourcing. Tools you'll use BrickLink Studio 2.0 · Adobe Illustrator / Photoshop · rendering tools · shared drives for file delivery. How the role works • Freelance / contract, with a mix of project-based and retainer capacity depending on the pipeline. • Based at or near our Dongguan office — on-site or hybrid preferred, for close collaboration with production, QA and suppliers. • Flexible across both streams — concept work between live projects, project execution when deals are signed. • You hand off to our NL design team for finalisation, so clear, well-structured files matter. What success looks like • A growing, high-quality library of pitch-ready concepts that helps the sales team win work. • Faster, cleaner project execution that lets the NL team focus on finalisation rather than rebuilding. To apply Please send: • A portfolio of your brick designs (Studio files and/or renders) and any 2D / packaging artwork you've produced. • A short note on your experience with BrickLink Studio and any LEGO-compatible / GoBricks work. • Your availability and freelance rate. Engagement terms (rate, weekly capacity, contract length) to be confirmed