Associate Creative Director

**Associate Creative Director**

**Permanent Full-Time**
- _Native Shoes is a hybrid organization with a remote-first head office team, with the option to work from the office in Vancouver when needed. However, due to the supporting nature of this role, this job will require the flexibility to work occasionally at our Vancouver office as well as on location for photo shoots and productions as needed._

**Why Native Shoes?**

It seems the heavier the world gets, the more it needs lightness. At Native Shoes, we’ve made lightness our life’s work with **our purpose: to make it easy for all to live lightly**.

To achieve this, our team is an embodiment of our values:

- **Design**: We consider aesthetics and functionality in all we do.
- **Possibility**: We explore and achieve higher dreams by leaving constraints at the door.
- **Integrity**: We do what we say we do.
- **Accountability**: We take personal responsibility for our actions.
- **Love**: Leading with kindness, we love those around us enough to have truthful conversations.
- **Light**: Above all else, we choose to live lightly.

Plus, other great perks
- Generous annual vacation entitlement
- Annual paid sick, personal and volunteerism days
- Company bonus program
- Extended health and dental benefits plus a health/lifestyle spending account
- Continuous development program to strengthen both personal and leadership skills
- and free shoes

Native Shoes strives to embody each of these words in all aspects of our brand. We engage in a fast paced, ever-evolving working environment with plenty of room for innovative thinking — encouraging honesty and challenge in a comfortable workplace. If any of the above words resonate with you, this is the place to be.

**Who is Native Shoes looking for?**

We’re looking for an Associate Creative Director (ACD) to play a crucial role in elevating the Native Shoes brand across consumer touchpoints. Entrepreneurial in spirit, you see beyond constraints, lead by example and are constantly curious about the best ways to captivate our brand muse. Balancing both tactical and leadership responsibilities, you will lead a small Creative team made up of both in-house and freelance talent and work cross-functionally to develop and execute creative concepts, strategies, and campaigns.

**Why should I apply?**

In a fast-growing Vancouver-based company, the opportunities for creativity and impact are endless. As a lean team, we are all generalists and roll up our sleeves to get the work done. In your work, you may be concepting one day, act as a producer the next and source talent the following. You understand sometimes it’s best for the consumer to invest in a photoshoot and other days, it’s best to pull out your iPhone. Your passion for serving the consumer outweighs all else.

**What would I be responsible for?**

Creative Leadership
- Collaborate with the Senior Manager, Marketing to establish the creative vision and strategy
- Lead and mentor a team of designers, copywriters, and other creative professionals
- Provide creative direction and feedback to team members to ensure projects meet quality standards

Concept Development
- Generate innovative and effective creative concepts for marketing campaigns, advertising, and other creative projects as needed
- Plan and lead photo and video shoots, with demonstrated fluency in directing motion design, video editing and sound design
- Translate marketing objectives into compelling visual creative solutions through hands-on design execution of concepts and ideas
- Integrate overall customer experience through UX/UI, systems design, customer journey mapping and asset delivery

Project Management
- Oversee the execution of creative projects from concept to completion, ensuring they are delivered on time and within budget
- Coordinate with other departments, such as marketing, product development, and sales, to align creative efforts with business goals

Team Collaboration
- Collaborate with cross-functional teams to understand project requirements and objectives
- Work closely with designers, copywriters, and other team members to bring creative concepts to life

Quality Assurance
- Review and approve creative work to ensure it meets brand standards and creative briefs
- Conduct regular quality checks and provide constructive feedback for improvement

Stay Informed
- Keep up-to-date with industry trends, creative tools, and emerging technologies to enhance creative capabilities
- The role may involve occasional travel for shoots, company meetings or consumer insights gathering._

**Preferred Experience**
- Bachelor's degree in a relevant field (e.g., Marketing, Advertising, Design, Communications)
- 5+ years of experience in a creative role, with a graphic design background and experience in a leadership or supervisory capacity
- Experience with and passion for design, fashion, apparel or lifestyle consumer brands
- Strong creative portfolio demonstrating a range of succ