POSITION SUMMARY
The Creative Design Lead for Mexico is responsible for creating and adapting on‑brand creative for American Eagle and Aerie across retail and digital channels. This role partners closely with Mexico Marketing and manages a small team of designers to deliver high‑volume seasonal work, including retail kits and site refreshes, as well as Mexico‑first creative for local holidays and cultural moments.
This role owns production‑ready delivery for print and digital, including OOH development (in partnership with an agency) and vendor handoff and proofing. The Associate Manager ensures all work aligns to global brand standards and is approved by the Branded Content Manager and International Creative Services lead.
RESPONSIBILITIES
- Creative Vision & Leadership
- Be the main design partner for Mexico Marketing (Branded Content Manager) across AE and Aerie.
- Partner with International Creative Services as the primary source of global toolkits, seasonal guidance, and brand standards.
- Concept and design Mexico‑first creative for local holidays and cultural moments, aligned to seasonal global direction and brand standards.
- Adapt global campaigns from the International Creative Services team for the Mexico and LATAM markets.
- Localize global assets to the Mexico buy by updating product, copy, pricing / offer messaging, legal requirements, and channel specs, while maintaining global creative intent.
- Act as Mexico’s day‑to‑day design lead across retail and ecommerce needs, partnering with internal stakeholders to deliver work that is on‑brand, accurate, and on time.
- Serve as a creative collaborator, generating authentic and impactful ideas and concepts across all channels.
- Design Execution & Standards (Print & Digital)
- Develop assets for all seasonal, evergreen, and holiday concepts across print and digital for Mexico.
- Execute deliverables across core channels: retail signage and windows, OOH, site assets (homepage and landing pages), email, paid and organic social, and app placements.
- Own versioning and resizing across formats and placements, ensuring pixel‑perfect outputs and correct specs.
- Act as the guardian of visual consistency and brand integrity, ensuring alignment with international partners.
- Apply global style guides and seasonal toolkits, and build Mexico‑specific addendums when needed (for example, local retail fixtures, vendor specs, Spanish typographic rules).
- Design and produce retail and OOH creative for Mexico, including working with an external agency for OOH development when applicable.
- Prepare production‑ready print files including correct bleeds, safe zones, vendor formats, proofing, and release documentation.
- Create and implement seasonal digital assets for Mexico across web, email, and social channels.
- Brief, manage, and coordinate the delivery of master graphic adaptations through an agency.
- Assemble and release production files and release notes (specs, filenames, versions, and delivery paths) in the team’s established tools and workflows.
- Ingest global handoffs, route for Mexico approvals, and deliver final localized assets to channel owners (retail production, ecommerce, CRM, social).
- Own end‑to‑end delivery for Mexico site refreshes: design, versioning, QA, and on‑time release in partnership with ecommerce stakeholders.
- Collaboration and Ways of Working
- Present creative work clearly to Mexico stakeholders and International Creative Services, capturing feedback and closing loops fast.
- Own day‑to‑day trafficking of creative requests, prioritization, and delivery against deadlines. Escalate risks early with options.
- Review global‑provided layouts and localized executions for brand and Mexico accuracy before release.
- Partner with Mexico ecommerce on site updates and seasonal launches, applying UX best practices within established templates and components.
- Assist in art directing photo shoots, including set design, on‑set guidance, and making photo and video cuts selections.
- Create light‑motion or simple video cutdowns when needed (social‑first), within agreed toolset and timelines.
- People Management
- Manage and mentor a team of graphic designers, providing clear direction, feedback, and prioritization to deliver high‑quality print and digital creative.
- Delegate and review work to ensure brand consistency, accuracy, and production readiness across all channels.
- Plan resourcing against seasonal peaks, balancing retail kits and site refresh timelines.
QUALIFICATIONS
- Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent experience in Graphic / Digital Design or a related field.
- 5‑8+ years of experience in a retail or agency environment (or equivalent experience and abilities).
- Expert‑level knowledge of Figma and Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign).
- Strong knowledge of print production standards and digital channel specs (email, paid social, ecommerce modules).
- Portfolio demonstrating a passion for ideas and for print & digital design and online visual communication.
- Working knowledge of UX / UI principles and ecommerce best practices; able to design within component systems.
- Excellent verbal and written advance English communication skills.
SOFT SKILLS
- Highly organized with strong prioritization and delegation skills, able to manage multiple timelines across retail kits and site refreshes.
- Detail‑obsessed and production‑minded: strong version control, specs discipline, and proofing rigor.
- Confident communicator who can translate feedback into clear next steps and keep stakeholders aligned.
- People leader: coaches designers, sets quality bars, and keeps the team moving under deadline pressure.