Design Director

MacKenzie-Childs, LLC; Town of Aurora (NY); On-site; USD 110,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

MacKenzie-Childs, LLC invites applications for a Design Director to lead design direction, manage concept-to-completion, and deliver two robust annual collections plus capsule lines. You will foster a collaborative, highly engaged culture and work cross-functionally with Product Development, Planning, Sales, and Production to grow the brand.

Reporting to the Chief Brand Officer, this role requires strategic oversight, strong systems thinking, and a commitment to evolving the brand toward a

Responsibilities

• Directing Designers
• Creating Conditions for Innovation
• Directing the Design Process
• Developing a Commercial Mindset
• Producing Design Briefs
• Designing New Products
• Building Design Assortments
• Drive alignm

Job description

DescriptionCompany Overview: MacKenzie-Childs is a leading home furnishings retail company known for its unique design, high-quality products and exceptional customer service. We specialize in offering a wide range of kitchen, entertaining, decor and furniture items that cater to various styles and preferences, ensuring our customers find exactly what they need to make their homes joyful and stylish.Position Summary:The Design Director is responsible for overall design concept, creative direction, and the execution of the design process. This role oversees designs from concept through completion, ensuring the team delivers two robust, timely, and cohesive collections each year, along with additional capsule collections as needed. This is achieved by establishing and maintaining streamlined processes that create the conditions for team success.The Design Director serves as a leader within a collaborative environment, fostering a creative, productive, and highly engaged culture among a skilled and motivated team. Working cross-functionally with Product Development, Planning, Sales, and Production, the Design Director helps deliver compelling product assortments that support the organization's revenue growth objectives.This position reports directly to the Chief Brand Officer / Creative Director, Rebecca Proctor. Essential Job Duties and Responsibilities: (Additional duties may be assigned)
Directing Designers

• Lead the Design Team's workload, output, throughput, and professional development.
• Foster strong relationships, provide ongoing feedback, and advocate for the team across the organization.
• Coach prioritization and time management to ensure timely, high-quality delivery aligned with the Design & Development Cadence Calendar and budget.

Creating Conditions for Innovation

• Enable experimentation and cross-functional collaboration within a structured design process.
• Balance creativity with delivery deadlines and business priorities.
• Scale processes thoughtfully as the business grows, increasing efficiency and focus amid added complexity.

Directing the Design Process

• Continuously refine and evolve the design process to improve efficiency and effectiveness.
• Adjust workflows, milestones, and cross-departmental interfaces to maintain a dynamic and productive environment.
• Provide strategic oversight with strong big-picture and systems thinking.

Developing a Commercial Mindset

• Inspire a commercially driven approach while preserving the brand's creative identity.
• Conduct market and competitor research to identify whitespace and growth opportunities.
• Equip the team with tools and frameworks that strengthen commercial awareness in design decisions.

Producing Design Briefs

• Partner with the Chief Brand Officer, Design Assets Manager, and Design team to create two annual Design Briefs, plus additional capsule briefs as needed.
• Develop overarching themes, storyboards, mockups, and proprietary in-house artwork to guide seasonal storytelling and execution.
• Ensure briefs inspire internal teams, vendors, and agents across future seasons.
• Oversee development of in-house proprietary artwork that reinforces seasonal narratives and a distinctive brand aesthetic.

Designing New Products

• Lead the Design team in developing two annual collections plus additional capsule collections aligned to the Master List.
• Ensure all deliverables follow the Design & Development Cadence Calendar.

Building Design Assortments

• Support the Chief Brand Officer and Product Development team to build two annual product plans.
• Ensure assortments balance commercial performance, thematic cohesion, and the ongoing evolution of the brand toward a more modern MacKenzie-Childs aesthetic.
• Participate in Edits, Product Previews, New Product Meetings, and other key decision forums.
• Drive alignm