Art Director

Art Director – Kidsbooks Publishing

Employment Type: Full-time

Department: Creative

Reports To: Creative Director

Work Structure: Hybrid; at least three days per week in office and up to two remote. In-office requirements may change with business needs.

Location: Chicago, Illinois

Company Overview

Kidsbooks Publishing creates innovative children’s books and educational products to spark curiosity, inspire learning, and support meaningful moments as children grow. Our mission is to foster a lifelong love of reading and learning, and each product is designed to support parent and child interactions. We develop products for libraries, schools, and for major U.S. retail and e-commerce channels, including Costco, Sam’s Club, Amazon, TJ Maxx, Ross, Burlington, Walmart, Target, and Cracker Barrel.

Position Summary

Report to the Creative Director and lead day-to-day art direction and design execution for children’s books and novelty publishing products. The Art Director is the operational creative leader for the design team: translating the Creative Director’s vision into clear briefs, assigning and reviewing work, mentoring designers, maintaining visual continuity, and ensuring projects move efficiently from concept through production.

Key Responsibilities

Day-to-day creative leadership

· Translate the Creative Director’s approved vision, brand standards, and product priorities into actionable briefs, design direction, templates, and review criteria.

· Direct and mentor Children’s Book Designers; assign work, establish priorities, review progress, and provide clear, constructive feedback.

· Conduct routine design reviews and resolve day-to-day creative and technical decisions within established direction; escalate significant creative, brand, or product decisions to the Creative Director.

· Maintain accountability for the quality, consistency, and timeliness of designer deliverables before they reach Creative Director review.

Series, brand, and design continuity

· Develop series design systems and templates that establish consistent typography, composition, color, illustration style, covers, interiors, and packaging.

· Review titles together to maintain continuity across covers, interiors, formats, and product extensions while preserving each title’s individual appeal.

· Maintain practical brand guidelines, reference files, approved examples, and reusable design systems.

Art direction and product development

· Develop detailed illustration briefs and guide illustrators from sketches through final artwork.

· Collaborate with the Creative Director on new concepts, visual direction, illustrator selection, line reviews, and major design decisions.

· Support development of novelty and specialty formats, ensuring design solutions work with mechanisms, materials, embellishments, packaging, and manufacturing requirements.

Cross-functional collaboration

· Partner with Editorial on content, age appropriateness, storytelling, and design requirements.

· Partner with Production on templates, dielines, materials, mechanisms, specialty finishes, proofs, manufacturing constraints, corrections, and schedules.

· Partner with Sales and Marketing on channel requirements, product presentation, retailer needs, competitive positioning, and promotional assets.

· Partner with Operations on priorities, timelines, workflow, approvals, and capacity.

· Help prioritize design work and track milestones across a high-volume publishing program.

Production and quality

· Review layouts, production files, prototypes, and proofs for design quality, consistency, and technical accuracy; coordinate corrections with Designers and Production.

· Identify creative or production risks early and bring solutions or clear recommendations to the Creative Director and appropriate cross-functional partners.

Required Experience and Skills

· 10+ years of professional design experience in children’s publishing, including demonstrated art direction and leadership of designers or creative projects.

· Outstanding portfolio showing children’s book covers, interior design, cohesive series, brand continuity, packaging, and novelty formats.

· Expert proficiency in Adobe InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, and Acrobat, with strong hands-on design and production skills.

· Strong command of typography, composition, color, illustration, visual storytelling, and age-appropriate design.

· Experience developing art briefs, selecting illustration styles, and collaborating with illustrators and outside creative partners.

· Strong knowledge of board books, picture books, activity books, sound books, tactile formats, lift-the-flap books, die-cuts, pop-ups, and specialty finishes.

· Thorough understanding of prepress, printer templates, dielines, proofs, manufacturing constraints, and production-ready files.

· Experience with novelty and specialty finishes including sound buttons/modules, touch-and-feel, embossing/debossing, spot UV, glitter UV, foil, specialty inks, and related production considerations.

· Strong understanding of design requirements for Kidsbooks’ primary channels: Costco, Sam’s Club, Amazon, TJ Maxx, Ross, Burlington, Walmart, Target, and Cracker Barrel.

· Ability to manage multiple projects, provide useful feedback, and balance creative quality with deadlines, budgets, manufacturability, and retail requirements.

· Strong communication and collaboration skills across Creative, Editorial, Production, Sales, Marketing, and Operations.

Job Requirements

· Chicago-based full-time position with a hybrid schedule of at least three days per week in the office and up to two remote; in-office requirements may change with business needs.

Mindset and Work Style

· Collaborative, approachable leader whom the Creative Director and Designers can rely on for clear direction and practical problem-solving.

· Strong creative judgment, attention to detail, and a practical approach to solving problems.

· Comfortable giving and receiving feedback, making recommendations, and working within an established creative vision.

· Proactive communicator who flags risks early and keeps cross-functional partners informed.

Preferred Experience

· Experience designing for Costco, Sam’s Club, Amazon, TJ Maxx, Ross, Burlington, Walmart, Target, and/or Cracker Barrel.

· Experience working directly with printers and manufacturers, including overseas manufacturing partners.

· Experience improving creative workflows, templates, and review processes in a high-volume publishing environment.

Compensation & Benefits

· Annual Salary Range: $110,000 USD

· Performance Incentive: Eligible for an annual performance-based incentive plan with a target incentive of 15% of base salary, prorated for FY2027 and subject to individual and company performance.

· Benefits Include:

o Health insurance with employer contributions toward monthly premiums.

o 401(k) retirement savings plan with employer matching contributions.

o Three weeks of paid vacation annually, planned during the first year of employment.

o Paid sick leave.

Why Join Kidsbooks Publishing

Help bring books and products to life that inspire curiosity, spark imagination, and are enjoyed by families across the United States. Work with a collaborative and creative publishing team where you can contribute ideas and develop your skills. At KidsBooks Publishing, creativity meets commercial success with a diverse product program that values creative quality, practical execution, strong retail performance, and a shared commitment to creating products that inspire a love of reading.