Gift Design Manager

Contract: 15-month fixed-term contract
Hours: 18 - 24 hours per week, can be flexible on days
Salary: £48,000 - £58,000 annually, pro-rata

• 25 days holiday plus bank holidays
• 6 months of full pay for parental leave (primary caregiver must qualify for SMP)*
• Enhanced paternity leave*
• Bonus scheme
• Day off for weekday birthdays
• Holiday purchase scheme
• 50% discount on Lush products and spa treatments
• Cycle to work scheme
• Discounted rail and bus season tickets 
• Employee assistance programme
• There’s a big difference between "Flexible Working " (the legal minimum) and working flexibly. What that looks like varies from role to role and location to location. We actively welcome conversations about what working flexibly could mean and look like for you. 
• We’re 10% Employee Owned - all colleagues play a role in protecting our ethics, our independence, contributing ideas for the future and share in the rewards of success when the company is doing well.
• Wellbeing & mindfulness sessions
• Access to employee-led Community Networks, including Disability and Chronic Illness, Family Support, Global Majority (Race and Ethnicity), LGBTQIA+, Menopause and Neurodiversity communities.
• Tailored gender affirming care*

Qualifying period/hours required*

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Who we are
You might know us as the inventors of the bath bomb, but there's more to this great-smelling, partly employee-owned, family-run company than pioneering cosmetics. We believe our business should put more back into the world than it takes and demonstrate that capitalism can be a force for good.

The Living Wage Foundation's statement 'a hard day's work deserves a fair day's pay' is one that we are proud to commit to in the UK. As an accredited Living Wage employer, we put our people first and fight cruel practices like animal testing, promote regeneration, and show that it is what's inside that counts - whether that's an ingredient in a product, or the minerals in a smartphone.

The role
The Design Manager is responsible for leading and developing the Gifts Design Team, ensuring a high-performing, collaborative and creatively ambitious environment. The role provides day-to-day leadership, supports creative excellence, manages workflow, and develops the team's capability, enabling designers to deliver outstanding work that advances the Gifts strategy.

Team Leadership & People Management

• Line manage, coach, and develop the Gifts Design Team through regular feedback, clear objectives, and structured career development.
• Lead recruitment, onboarding, holiday/sickness processes, and team capacity reviews alongside the Category Lead.
• Maintain an inclusive, highly collaborative culture focused on continuous learning and creative ambition.

Creative Operations & Workflow

• Oversee 18-hour part-time workflow planning and resource allocation in partnership with Creative Operations and the Lead Designer to eliminate project blockers.
• Ensure design briefs are prioritised, clear, and delivered efficiently from inception to final sign-off.
• Manage administrative creative processes, including budgets up to £1,500, design proofing, and copyright/licensing approvals (including cultural holiday projects and internal talent pool assignments).

Poole Community & External Artist Outreach

• Build and maintain relationships with local Poole artists and creative communities to source fresh talent aligned with brand values.
• Drive local collaborative projects by creating briefs, visiting local groups, and integrating community insights into collection developments.
• Oversee external artist submissions and identify local and global internship opportunities.

Creative Direction & Quality Governance

• Uphold design excellence and consistency across all gift outputs, stepping in with creative direction in the absence of the Creative Lead.
• Support design workshops, internal events, and inspiration trips, contributing hands-on design work for collections when capacity allows.
• Partner with Creative Operations to manage event logistics involving Gifts team representation.

• Leadership & People Development: Proven track record in line management, coaching creative teams, and nurturing talent within a fast-paced design environment.
• Creative Operations & Project Management: Exceptional organisational skills with experience balancing design schedules, managing part-time capacity, and collaborating with operational leads.
• Design Excellence & Direction: Strong eye for visual design and collection development, with the confidence to provide constructive feedback, maintain brand standards, and direct work.
• Community Engagement & Sourcing: Passion for local arts outreach with experience networking, commissioning local talent, and managing creative partnerships/licensing.
• Commercial & Operational Acumen: Comfort managing small project budgets (up to £1,500), handling basic HR admin, and navigating copyright and licensing agreements.
• Adaptability & Communication: Excellent stakeholder management skills to represent the Gifts team at internal events, workshops, and global open calls.

We'd love to see your work! Please include any portfolio or website links in your personal summary.