Senior Director, Creative

About the Role

IPSY is seeking a Senior Director, Creative to own creative strategy - the visual language, tone and storytelling approach that brings the brand to life - and manage and inspire the in-house team, spanning photography, graphic design and copywriting, that brings it to execution across every touchpoint.

This role works in close partnership with Brand Strategy, which oversees brand positioning, identity and narrative. Brand Strategy sets what the brand stands for; the Senior Creative Director sets how that gets expressed creatively.

The Senior Creative Director will be a trusted partner to executive leadership, helping to elevate the brand and cut through the noise in the beauty landscape.

The ideal candidate is a strong people manager and leader first and foremost - someone who knows how to build high-performing creative teams, nurture talent, and create clarity, momentum, and accountability, while delivering exceptional creative output.

This Senior Creative Director reports to the Head of Brand Marketing and is preferably based in Los Angeles, with a hybrid schedule of 2 days per week in our Santa Monica office.

What You'll Be Doing

• Own Creative Strategy & Vision: Define IPSY's creative strategy, the visual language, tone and storytelling approach that brings Brand Strategy's positioning to life across every channel.
• Manage & Inspire the Creative Team: Directly lead a multidisciplinary in-house team across creative strategy, photography, graphic design, and copywriting, fostering a culture of collaboration, excellence, and innovation.
• Own Visual & Written Identity Execution: Ensure cohesive visual and tonal expression - including campaign and creative copy - across all channels. Long-form editorial (blog, collateral) is applied by Content against the voice and tone standards set jointly by the SCD and Brand Strategy, and is not owned directly by this role.
• Unify Brand Expression Across Plans: Partner with Brand Strategy to determine what creative and copy elements are consistent across IPSY and which are distinct and differentiated by program, developing a clear architecture and applying it consistently.
• Modernize Storytelling: In partnership with the Content team, drive the development of thumb-stopping, community-driven creative for digital- and social-first formats that authentically reflects Gen Z and Millennial beauty culture.
• Partner with Brand Strategy: Maintain a close, clearly-scoped partnership with Brand Strategy. Own creative strategy and execution with authority over decisions that don't require new brand positioning; escalate when creative direction implies a shift in what the brand stands for.
• Partner Cross-Functionally: Work closely with Marketing (Growth, CRM, Content), Product, Merchandising, and Brand Partnerships to ensure creative and copy strategy supports business objectives, including acquisition, engagement, and retention.
• Elevate Creative Operations: In partnership with Marketing Operations, implement strong processes for briefing, feedback, and execution that enable and empower the team to deliver world-class work efficiently and at scale.
• Champion Innovation: Thoughtfully adopt new tools, workflows, and emerging technologies to enhance creative and copywriting quality, speed, and impact-without losing the human creative spark.
• Build Executive Trust: Act as a key creative partner to the Head of Brand Marketing, CMO, CEO, and executive leadership team, clearly communicating creative strategy, rationale, and results.

What We Are Looking For

• Creative Visionary & Strategist: A senior creative leader with a proven ability to define and lead creative strategy - visual language, tone, storytelling - for a complex, consumer-facing brand, operating in partnership with a separate Brand Strategy function.
• Exceptional People Manager: Demonstrated success managing, mentoring, and scaling multidisciplinary creative teams; known for developing talent and building strong, healthy team cultures.
• Hands-On Creative Leader: Comfortable setting direction while empowering teams across photography, graphic design and copy to execute at the highest level.
• Brand Identity Expert: Deep experience in visual and written identity systems, maintaining consistency across multiple platforms and consumer touchpoints.
• Digital-First Mindset: A digital native who understands social, content performance, and modern storytelling formats.
• Cross-Functional Leader: Strong collaborator who works seamlessly with marketing, product, growth, and executive stakeholders.
• Innovative & Curious: Energized by change and open to experimentation, new ideas, and evolving creative tools.
• Industry Experience (Nice to Have): Background in beauty, wellness, fashion, or lifestyle brands is a plus, but not required.
• Executive Presence: Confident communicator with the ability to influence and build strong relationships at the executive level.

What We Offer

• Competitive base salary & bonus program
• Medical, dental & vision insurance
• 401(k) plan with company match
• Paid Time Off
• Work from home flexibility
• Free IPSY Extra subscription
• Learning & development programs

Salary Range

$175,000—$235,000 USD