Senior Designer/Art Director

OLIVER Agency; Hull and East Yorkshire; Hybrid; GBP 40,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading creative agency in the UK seeks a Senior Designer/Art Director to lead a team in creating compelling visual narratives for food brands. The successful candidate will leverage both traditional design skills and generative AI tools to craft innovative and engaging content. The role requires strong conceptual thinking and a deep understanding of social media platforms. Join a dynamic team committed to creativity and sustainability.

Benefits

Sustainability training

Collaborative work environment

Qualifications

• A portfolio demonstrating exceptional social-first design thinking for consumer brands.
• Experience directing creative teams to produce content at scale.
• Proven ability to lead designers and content creators.

Responsibilities

• Lead a talented team of designers and content creators.
• Develop strong conceptual ideas for social environments.
• Art direct food photography and video shoots.
• Pioneer the integration of generative AI tools in content creation.

Skills

Social-first design thinking

Understanding of social platform behaviors

Visual storytelling

Leadership

Generative AI tools

Tools

Adobe Creative Suite

Canva

Figma

Job description

Established in 2004, OLIVER is the world’s first and only specialist in designing, building, and running bespoke in‑house agencies and marketing ecosystems for brands. We partner with over 300 clients in 40+ countries and counting. Our unique model drives creativity and efficiency, allowing us to deliver tailored solutions that resonate deeply with audiences.

As a part of The Brandtech Group, we're at the forefront of leveraging cutting‑edge AI technology to revolutionise how we create and deliver work. Our AI solutions enhance efficiency, spark creativity, and drive insightful decision‑making, empowering our teams to produce innovative and impactful results.

Role:

Senior Designer/Art Director

Location:

Kingston, London, United Kingdom

About the role:

Your creative vision will bring food brands to life, based in our Kingston studio and working in partnership with the Foods Content, Media and Commerce (CMC) team, you'll lead a team of designers and content creators to craft compelling visual narratives. Your design expertise and conceptual strength will transform how consumers connect with food brands in the moments that matter. You'll be the visual storyteller behind appetite‑inducing ideas that makes food brands irresistible in crowded feeds. Working at the intersection of brand strategy and creative execution, you'll translate consumer insights into mouth‑watering visuals designed. We're looking for someone who champions social‑first thinking while guiding designers and content creators, leveraging traditional skills alongside generative AI tools to find innovative approaches that perform. Success means creating conceptually strong work captures attention, drives engagement, and delivers measurable business results.

What you will be doing:

• Lead a talented team of designers and content creators developing assets that can flex across other touchpoints
• Develop strong conceptual ideas that shine in social environments and differentiate food brands
• Champion conceptual thinking throughout the creative process, from briefing to execution
• Pioneer the thoughtful integration of generative AI tools to enhance content creation
• Art direct food photography and video shoots
• Spearhead platform‑specific design initiatives that leverage the unique strengths of each social channel
• Build and mentor designers and content creators, fostering a culture of social‑first excellence and collaborative innovation
• Collaborate with strategists, copywriters and marketing teams to develop integrated campaign assets
• Transform brand guidelines into distinctive executions that resonate with target audiences
• Stay ahead of social platform algorithms, features, and user behaviours to maintain competitive advantage
• You will be open and willing to attend sustainability training relevant to your role and soak up recommended research and reading about sustainability issues
• You will contribute towards Oliver’s drive for sustainability and change. We’d hope anyone joining our team would share our motivation to do better in terms of sustainability. We are always learning, so we look forward to you bringing your own creative approaches to the tackling the industry's sustainability problem

What you need to be great in this role:

• A portfolio demonstrating exceptional social‑first design thinking and execution for consumer brands
• Deep understanding of social platform behaviors, algorithms, and content performance factors
• Visual storytelling skills with the ability to adapt across multiple platforms
• Strong conceptual ability to develop big ideas that flex across multiple touchpoints.
• Experience with generative AI tools and their strategic application in social content creation
• Proven ability to lead both designers and content creators
• Expertise in creating native content for key social platforms (Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest)
• Experience directing creative teams to produce content at scale
• A talent for presenting concepts with clear rationale and enthusiasm
• The ability to manage multiple projects with varying timelines and platform requirements
• An eye for emerging social media trends and the agility to quickly capitalise on platform opportunities
• You prioritise environmental responsibility, social equity, and economic viability and how that translates into your day‑to‑day role

Req ID: 14370

#LI-LE1 #LI-senior #LI-Hybrid

Our values shape everything we do:

Be Ambitious to succeed

Be Imaginative to push the boundaries of what’s possible

Be Inspirational to do groundbreaking work

Be always learning and listening to understand

Be Results‑focused to exceed expectations

Be actively pro‑inclusive and anti‑racist across our community, clients and creations

OLIVER, a part of the Brandtech Group, is an equal opportunity employer committed to creating an inclusive working environment where all employees are encouraged to reach their full potential, and individual differences are valued and respected. All applicants shall be considered for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, neurodivergence, disability status, or any other characteristic protected by local laws.

OLIVER has set ambitious environmental goals around sustainability, with science‑based emissions reduction targets. Collectively, we work towards our mission, embedding sustainability into every department and through every stage of the project lifecycle.