Junior Graphic Design and Illustrator

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.

An incredible opportunity for a talented, ambitious creative talent to learn and grow alongside the experienced designer/illustrators of Paper Source product. The Junior Graphic Designer and Illustrator position is responsible for contribution to the concept, design and illustration of new gift wrap, greeting card and stationery products. This can include calendars, rubber stamps and other paper related items that fundamentally have the Paper Source aesthetic and results in salable designs for our store, catalog and web businesses. Additionally production work on layouts, templates and product packaging. The position works closely with the Design team, Design Art Director, Product Buyers and GMM, as well as, the CEO of the company.

* Creates, designs and develops in collaboration and partnership with the Design and Merchandising team, Paper Source product from conception through production that delivers the true aesthetic of our brand. * Support the Design team throughout the development and production of creative projects, to help the team develop the best work possible. * Demonstrates exceptional organizational and time management skills that are guided by self-discipline, personal accountability and participation/partnership; can prioritize and handle multiple projects to meet tight deadlines while maintaining a professional and positive attitude within a team environment. * Strong written and verbal communication skills: Offering input at creative meetings and sharing ideas, communicating with senior team members to receive feedback. Willingness to listen to feedback and use it to improve work. * A love of paper, color, craft, fine art, fine craftsmanship and all the associated tools & supplies from pencil to paint brush to calligraphy pen to glitter and wacom tablet. * Create original artwork - painting, drawing, hand-lettering and digital illustration and typographic treatments, to be applied to the design development of proprietary Paper Source stationery, greeting cards, wedding invitations, rubber stamps, stickers, calendars, and gift wrap & bags, textiles and hard goods. * Present product concepts, at various working stages of development, for review and direction, first from the Design Art Director and GMM, in preparation for and prior to all product line reviews. * Manage the development of these products, maintaining provided schedules. * Design all PS product packaging and labeling, with any necessary instruction sheets, die lines, and templates, keeping consistent with design standards. * Keep current with trends in Design, stationery, home goods, fashion and related industries, taking time quarterly to participate in inspiration outings with team. * Participate in seasonal Inspiration/Trend Meetings with team, presenting examples of inspiration and trend for discussion, review and relevance to brand. Prepare inspiration summary to present to Buying team.

* Bachelor’s degree in Graphic Design or Illustration. * Ability to draw, paint and create realistic interpretations, and create patterns in repeat. Desired background in fine art, painting, drawing or sculpture. * Demonstrated passion for Paper Source, our products, and a desire to design products that result in the ability to engage our customers in our motto: Do Something Creative Every Day, and the ability to keep up to date on current trends. * Proficiency in Adobe Photoshop, InDesign and Illustrator, with knowledge of various paper printing processes. * Knowledge of prepress process to prepare files for print, and build final files for output. * The motivation to maintain and improve design standards. * Determination to achieve, succeed and be a team player in a fast paced entrepreneurial environment within a small growing organization.