Creative Director

The Opportunity Hub UK Ltd; Manchester; Hybrid; GBP 55,000 - 73,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity in the business

Hybrid working from Manchester

Learning and development budget

Remote-friendly culture

Job summary

The Opportunity Hub UK Ltd is hiring a Creative Director for a Manchester-based startup studio. You will own the creative vision across brand, campaigns and digital work, leading pitches directly to clients and mentoring a growing team.

Hybrid work from Manchester offers flexible hours and equity in the business. You’ll push back on weak briefs, shape stronger ones with strategy and account leads, and steer the studio’s direction as the market evolves, ensuring high-quality output and audience

Qualifications

• Must have a strong portfolio spanning brand, campaigns and digital work.
• Experience leading creative output at mid to senior level in agency or in-house.
• Confidently present ideas to clients and defend concepts under pressure.

Responsibilities

• Own the creative vision across campaigns from concept to delivery.
• Lead pitches and present ideas directly to clients with no layers of approval.
• Build and mentor a small creative team as the studio grows.
• Set visual and tonal standards across brand, digital and campaign work.
• Push back on weak briefs and shape better briefs with strategy and accounts.
• Keep abreast of Creative & Marketing direction and bring it into the studio.

Skills

Strong portfolio

Senior-level experience

Client presentation

Multi-hat team

Attention to detail

Curiosity about trends

Job description

Join a startup Creative & Marketing company as a Creative Director in Manchester.

Brands don't wait anymore. A campaign that felt fresh in January can look tired by March, and small creative teams live or die by how quickly they can turn a good idea into something a client actually wants to run. This is an early-stage studio building brand, campaign and content work for a growing roster of clients, and it needs a Creative Director who can set the tone before the tone sets itself. The work moves fast. So does the decision-making.

Here’s what you'll be doing:

• Own the creative vision across campaigns, from first concept through to final delivery
• Lead pitches and present ideas directly to clients, no layers of approval in between
• Build and mentor a small creative team as the studio grows around you
• Set visual and tonal standards across brand, digital and campaign work
• Push back on weak briefs and shape better ones with the strategy and account leads
• Keep an eye on where Creative & Marketing is heading and bring that thinking into the studio

Here are the skills you'll need:

• A strong portfolio showing range across brand, campaign and digital creative work
• Solid experience leading creative output at a mid to senior level, agency or in-house
• Confidence presenting to clients and defending ideas under pressure
• Comfort working without a big structure around you. You'll wear more than one hat here
• An eye for detail that doesn't slow the work down
• Genuine curiosity about where Creative & Marketing is going next, not just where it's been

Key perks and benefits:

• £54,500 to £72,500, depending on experience
• Equity in the business, so growth actually means something to you personally
• Hybrid working from Manchester, with real flexibility on hours
• A learning and development budget you're expected to use
• Remote-friendly culture and a flat structure where your voice carries weight

Why pursue a career in Creative & Marketing?

Manchester has quietly become one of the UK's strongest cities for creative talent outside London, with agencies and in-house teams competing for people who can think as well as they design. Creative & Marketing rewards people who can hold a big idea and still sweat the small details, and that combination doesn't go out of fashion. A Creative Director role like this one gives you the room to shape a studio's output, not just contribute to it.

This Creative Director opportunity in Manchester is brought to you by The Opportunity Hub UK.