Associate Creative Director

Paper Source is a premier paperie and gift retailer offering each customer an intimate, boutique-feel when they enter our stores. More than half of our products feature original Paper Source designs from our Chicago-based team — offering a unique aesthetic and exclusive color palette.

The Associate Creative Director works directly with the Head of Marketing and Chief Merchant Officer and will meet regularly with the CEO while actively collaborating with the Art Director and the Director of Store Visual. This position defines the brand voice and creates visually compelling product stories for all marketing channels with a strong emphasis on catalog. This role is responsible for all creative editorial and key word development, ensuring that messaging supports the brand objectives for the season. This position writes creative copy for all brand communications including catalog, online and print editorial, direct marketing pieces, store windows and other projects as needed. The Associate Creative Director manages a team of four, including catalog design and photography with an on-site photo studio. The Creative Director will concept stories each season and with design launches and develop compelling visual and copy to make them connect and inspire customers. This role will oversee the development of 13 inspiring catalogs as well as key messaging across social and store signage seasonally to engage customers. The role will lead the creative team to define content and present powerful, integrated ideas that are visually seductive and stimulate end state to enhance and build the brand. The product stories told through catalog, email and social media should create a compelling connection to the Paper Source brand and be brought to life across customer touch-points.

**The Associate Creative Director will:** * Act as brand ambassador ensuring all messaging aligns with brand voice and provides the necessary consistency and integration amongst all communication vehicles. * Consult cross functionally and collaborate with team on workable ideas and concepts creating the most inspiring catalog and campaign and oversee the messaging and tone of the project through print, inclusive of proofreading. * Develop strategic messaging and integrated copy for various communication vehicles which include catalog, store window taglines, banners print advertising and delivers final content that is in-line with brand strategy and tone. * Prepare an overview campaign sheet prior seasonal set that would capture key points, key products and design elements to use to best promote and sell product across all channels **Catalog Creative Direction** * Develop cadence of meetings with Chief Merchant Officer to gain clear understanding of product themes and individual key items identified for each season * Meet with Art Director to understand inspiration behind design development seasonally or tied to product kick offs (e.g., wedding, holiday, Valentines) * Lead catalog kick offs and draft catalog visual/graphic input to drive catalog to next level and truly inspire our customers, while balancing focus on growing sales in key product categories and elevating Paper Source design * Responsible for copy and seasonal campaigns that disseminates tag lines, signage and marketing copy for consistency across customer touchpoints * Own catalog copy, creating crisp and compelling headlines to further enhance product stories to customers * Craft stories, visual and written that are compelling and have clear call to actions for all new product launches and seasonal stories so that they are used in stores, emails, and catalog. * Create skus lists with merchants for each page of catalog to cohesively tell product stories, monitor stock levels and rebuys of key items linked with the CMO and buyers directly * Coordinate with buying team on all items showcased in catalog to create the most compelling assortment based on sales/inventory and store sets **Direct Marketing** * Translate catalog photo styling shoots to digital assets to be leveraged across customer touchpoints tied to compelling stories * Develop the key words and stories that connect customers to the brand to be used across emails, public relations and in social media * Write marketing copy for partnerships with other brands and direct mail pieces and subset of marketing emails * Develop compelling web content pages for both the brand as a whole as well as specific product categories (e.g., Paper Source Weddings) * Attend digital marketing meetings to drive product stories at sku and copy level for emails and social content * Own visual approvals for all digital assets **Store Visual** * Work with Director of Visual Merchandising across all table statements in stores to coordinate catalog and store table sets and how this assortment translates to the written word and copy, font, style, color and key words * Coordinate with Chief Merchant to ensure product featured is readily available in stores tied to catalog and calendar store set dates * Develop store window taglines in concert with catalog drops and coordinate messaging across channels to create connection with customers to the Paper Source brand

**Requirements** • Experience in taking a project from inception to execution, consolidating feedback from cross-functional teams, making strategic recommendations and delivering integrated on-brand copy and visually seductive product stories • Experience in devising digital and traditional campaigns that engage, inform and inspire customers • Experience in leading a creative team • BS/MS degree in fine arts or marketing communication • Minimum of 7+ years experience in concepting and executing visual/marketing campaigns. 3-5 years of experience in catalog or other print is required • Stellar writing, editing and proof reading skills writing samples required. • Retail or agency experience a plus. • Solid business acumen and exceptional project management.