Art Director
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About Campus Ink:
Rooted in education, Campus Ink is a leading collegiate apparel company specializing in licensed merchandise and athlete partnerships. With a commitment to creating higher earning opportunities for students, Campus Ink’s unparalleled design program trains students in design, marketing & sales while The NIL Store (Name, Image & Likeness) empowers student-athletes to recognize their potential and elevate their brand through merchandise sales.
Position Overview:
Campus Ink is seeking a skilled and hands-on Art Director to execute and oversee artwork production across our apparel and merchandise lines. This is a player-coach role built for someone who wants to stay close to the craft while shaping the people and process around it. You'll turn brand direction into finished, production-ready designs that show up on real products worn by real fans and athletes nationwide. Working closely with the accounts and production teams, the Art Director will manage day-to-day artwork execution, lead a team of designers and illustrators, and build workflows that keep creative output moving efficiently without sacrificing quality. A successful candidate is a strong craftsperson, a proactive problem solver, and someone who thrives on balancing hands-on design work with team leadership. If you love making things, coaching people, and seeing your work land in the hands of customers, this role was built for you.
Key Responsibilities:
Apparel Design Management: Oversee the design process for apparel products from concept through final production, ensuring creative decisions align with brand standards and manufacturing capabilities.
Graphic Design Management: Direct the creation and refinement of graphic assets across product lines, maintaining visual consistency and craft quality from initial concept through final production files.
Production Support: Support the concept-to-tech-pack process for jersey and private label products, working closely with the executive team and manufacturers to ensure design accuracy and product quality.
Team Management: Lead a team of designers and illustrators, ensuring appropriate delegation of projects based on team strengths, managing workload, and providing day-to-day mentorship and craft feedback.
Workflow Ownership: Own and continuously improve the creative production pipeline that includes intake, revisions, approvals, and handoff to production, to reduce bottlenecks and minimize turnaround time.
Quality Control: Maintain strict quality control on all artwork output, catching issues before files move to production.
Cross-Team Coordination: Partner with business development and account management to keep creative timelines aligned with partner and licensing deadlines.
Requirements
Bachelor's degree in a related field (Graphic Design, Apparel Design, or similar) preferred but not required with sufficient portfolio strength.
Proficiency in Apparel design. Preferred in screen printing, embroidery and digital decoration technique.
5+ years of experience in art direction or senior design roles, including at least 1-2 years managing designers or a creative team.
Portfolio showcasing production-ready apparel, merchandise, or licensed product artwork.
Proficiency in Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator) and production file prep for print/embroidery.
Strong project management skills with the ability to manage multiple concurrent projects and hard deadlines.
Excellent communication skills, particularly in giving clear creative feedback to a team.
Self-motivated, highly organized, and detail-oriented.
Lives in the Chicagoland area and able to be in office 3 days per week.
Benefits
START DATE:
As soon as possible.
BENEFITS :
401(k) matching
Paid time off
Paid training
Health insurance
Dental insurance
Vision insurance
Life insurance
Why Campus Ink:
At Campus Ink, we are committed to fostering a creative, educational, and innovative environment where collaboration is celebrated and employees can thrive. We offer competitive compensation packages, opportunities for professional growth, and the chance to make a significant impact in the NIL & officially licensed merchandise industry. Join our team and help shape the future of Campus Ink & the NIL Store.
Campus Ink is an equal-opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.