Lead Art Director at Next Plc

Enderby, England, United Kingdom -

Full Time

Start Date

Immediate

Expiry Date

18 Jun, 26

Salary

77500.0

Posted On

20 Mar, 26

Experience

5 year(s) or above

Remote Job

Yes

Telecommute

Yes

Sponsor Visa

Skills

Creative Vision, Art Direction, Team Leadership, Pre-production, Post-production, Creative Strategy, Stakeholder Presentation, Project Timeline Management, Budget Management, Brand Alignment, Commercial Acumen, Mentoring, Trend Insight, Collaboration, Communication, Organization

Industry

Description

As our Lead Art Director, you will be the creative heart of the Fashion Art Direction team, giving clarity to our high-profile campaigns, whilst leading our talented team of womens, mens, and childrens Art Directors. This is a senior creative leadership role where you’ll make a tangible difference by ensuring our visual identity remains cohesive, elevated, and commercially impactful across every platform. Based from our Premier Park Studios, London —with opportunities for UK and global travel—you will lead a talented team of Art Directors, championing their growth while collaborating closely with senior leaders in Brand Marketing, and Buying. From your first day, you’ll be supported by a collaborative environment that values innovation, giving you the platform to evolve our imagery and inspire the next chapter of NEXT’s visual story. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What You’ll Take On * Define and champion the creative vision for photography at Next, ensuring all content aligns with our wider brand purpose and business objectives. * Lead end-to-end art direction for both studio and location shoots, acting as the key creative voice from pre-production through to the final edit. * Oversee, guide and mentor a team of Art Directors and creatives, ensuring consistency, innovation, and brand alignment. * Direct brand-defining campaigns, working with high-profile models and top-tier production teams to deliver industry-leading content. * Translate commercial goals into compelling creative strategies, presenting your ideas confidently to senior leadership and stakeholders. * Manage project timelines and budgets effectively, partnering with Booking and Production teams to ensure every shoot is resourced and executed to the highest standard. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What You’ll Bring * Extensive experience (7+ years) in art direction within a fast-paced retail or editorial environment, with a portfolio that showcases high-end commercial retail and editorial work. * Proven leadership skills, with the ability to guide and develop a creative team while managing multiple large-scale projects simultaneously. * A strategic mindset, possessing a deep understanding of brand strategy and how content performs across digital, e-commerce and print channels. * Natural collaboration and communication skills, with the ability to influence at all levels and build strong relationships across the business. * Trend-focused insight, bringing a sharp eye for cultural shifts and a passion for all NEXT product categories, from Fashion to Home. * Resilience and organisation, remaining solutions-focused under pressure and holding a full UK driving licence for travel between locations. You know Next, but did you know we’re a FTSE-100 retail company employing over 35,000 people across the UK and Ireland. We’re the UK’s 2nd largest fashion retailer and for Kidswear we’re the market leader. At the last count we have over 500 stores, plus the Next Online and it’s now possible to buy on-line from over 70 countries around the world! So we’ve gone global! * 25% off most NEXT, MADE*, Lipsy*, Gap* and Victoria's Secret* products (*when purchased through NEXT) * Company performance based bonus * Sharesave scheme * On-site Nursery available; OFSTED outstanding in all areas * 10% off most partner brands & up to 15% off Branded Beauty * Early VIP access to sale stock * Access to fantastic discounts at our Staff Shops * Restaurants with great food at amazing prices * Access a digital GP and other free health and wellbeing services * Free on-site parking * Financial Wellbeing - Save, track and enhance your financial wellbeing * Apprenticeship - Grow and develop on the job whilst gaining a qualification * Direct to Work - Discount online and instore, collect your items the next day for free from your place of work or local store * Support Networks - Access to Network Groups to empower and celebrate each other * Wellhub - Discounted flexible monthly gym memberships, with apps, PT sessions and more Conditions apply to all benefits. These benefits are discretionary and subject to change. We aim to support all candidates during the application process and are happy to provide workplace adjustments when necessary. Should you need support with your application due to a disability or long-term condition, feel free to get in touch with us by email headoffice_careers@next.co.uk (please include 'Workplace Adjustments' in the subject line), or call us on 0116 284 2486 and leave a voicemail.

Responsibilities

The Lead Art Director will define and champion the creative vision for photography, leading end-to-end art direction for studio and location shoots, acting as the key creative voice from pre-production through to the final edit. This role involves overseeing, guiding, and mentoring a team of Art Directors while directing brand-defining campaigns and translating commercial goals into compelling creative strategies.