About Hourglass Cosmetics

Connected by creativity and driven by purpose. Hourglass Cosmetics is a vegan and cruelty-free beauty brand, redefining luxury cosmetics with high-performance products, innovative formulas, and award-winning franchises. Recognized by Forbes, Fast Company and Time Magazine as one of the most inventive beauty companies, Hourglass leads the industry with its breakthrough products and its commitment to animal welfare. Founded in 2004, Hourglass is globally available in 32 markets and nearly 4,600 doors including Sephora, Ulta, Neiman Marcus, Selfridges, Space NK and more. Hourglass became part of the Unilever Prestige division in 2017. Discover more about the Hourglass brand story and mission on our website hourglasscosmetics.com

Our in-house Creative and Content Studio is responsible for concepting industry-leading campaigns and producing a wide range of content. We are looking to add a highly engaging and strategic Art Director to join our expanding team and support our Creative Director with creative stewardship, content ideation, and creation process.

The ideal candidate will have deep experience in the luxury sector, with a strong understanding of consumer and cultural trends. In this role, you will execute and oversee the creative direction and strategy of the Hourglass brand identity across all communication and consumer touchpoints. In close partnership with the Creative Director, you will ensure that the brand maintains a clear and consistent visual representation. The role requires a strong creative thinker, who can shift between ideation and design to bring to life compelling brand stories for our audience across diverse communication channels including print, social, digital, retail, OOH and more.

You will act as a thought leader in the organization, working within the wider Creative Team and collaborating with the Brand Marketing team. It will require a strong understanding of the brand and business objectives, and the ability to think outside the box, activating new ways of exciting our consumer through visuals, video and copy that ladder up to the brand and campaign narrative.

This position requires a proactive creative thinker with an entrepreneurial mindset and passion for brand strategy, storytelling, and innovation. Superior communication skills and confidence in managing varying levels of stakeholders is essential. Strong vision, thought leadership, and emotional intelligence are a must. This is a unique career opportunity in a fast-paced, growth-stage, luxury beauty brand centered on innovation and creative excellence.

What You Do:

Act as a thought leader and strategic partner to the Creative Director in the development and evolution of brand identity, language, and visuals – demonstrating a clear understanding of brand and business priorities.
Support in upholding the creative direction and strategy for the Content and Creative teams, from concept through to execution – across the entire consumer journey and its touchpoints.
Partner with cross-functional teams to translate business and marketing objectives into ideas that are clear, compelling, engaging and on-brand.
Bring forward the most innovative creative techniques, top talent, emerging trends in art, design, fashion and culture, and current industry innovations.
Provide additional mentorship to the design team, acting as key support to the Creative Director. Review designers’ work for the highest standards of accuracy and consistency, ensuring that all creative projects are delivered on time, within budget, and to the highest quality.
Inspire and develop Creative team members through project development, coaching, and performance management.
Foster a culture of creative support, innovation, collaboration, and excellence.

You’ll Love This Job If:

You are CREATIVE: You are innovative and forward-thinking in your approach and mindset.
You are highly STRATEGIC: You are able to develop creative concepts and vision that support brand and business goals.
You are extremely ORGANIZED: You are not overwhelmed when tackling multiple tasks at a time.
You are DETAIL ORIENTED: You appreciate the importance of having detailed and precise information.
You are a strong COMMUNICATOR: You are a people person, natural leader and collaborate well with others.
You are AGILE: You adapt well to changing needs and priorities and are able to pivot easily to achieve goals and deadlines.
You are PASSIONATE about beauty: You are eager to learn and absorb all things related to beauty, creative and brand strategy.

Qualifications:

Minimum 7 years of art direction and design experience in a beauty/fashion/luxury agency or in-house environment.
Minimum 3 years of people management experience. Specifically managing designers in a direct report capacity.
Proven depth of on-set experience, commissioning and directing beauty photography and video, both on model and still life.
An exceptional portfolio of work showcasing examples of 360 concept execution across stills, video, print, physical and digital projects.
Ability to work on the full creative cycle: brainstorm, concept development, casting, photo and video pre-production, on-set art direction, retouching, design direction and campaign asset delivery.
Extensive experience in graphic design for beauty, with an exceptional eye for typography and layout.
Experience in video, including editing, motion graphics, animation and color grading.
Proficiency in social media platforms, web and digital best practices, particularly within luxury beauty retail and advertising.
Superior communication and interpersonal skills.
Strong project management, organizational and planning skills.
In-depth knowledge of the latest versions of Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, XD, Figma, Premiere, After Effects, Bridge.
Must be able to work from Office at least 60% of the time.

The expected base salary range for this position is $120,000 to $135,000 per year. The exact base salary is determined by various factors including experience, skills, education, geographic location, and budget.

This position is also eligible for participation in the company discretionary bonus plan, based on personal performance and company results.

In addition to base salary, Hourglass Cosmetics offers a competitive benefits package to eligible employees, including medical insurance, dental insurance, vision insurance, life insurance, accident insurance, critical illness insurance, disability insurance, retirement savings plans and company match, paid family leave, education-related programs, paid holidays, discretionary vacation time, and more.