Director, Packaging Design (temp-perm)
Sol de Janeiro
Our Story
Launched in 2015, Sol de Janeiro is a globally recognized, award-winning beauty brand, drawing inspiration from Brazil’s beauty rituals, warmth, and spirit. Sol de Janeiro delivers a sensory experience beloved by multi-generational consumers worldwide, with clinically proven results, transformative textures, and transportive fragrances.
Headquartered in New York and launched as a digitally native brand, we have expanded globally with teams in Paris, London, and Germany. Our commitment to excellence has earned high-profile honors, including being named one of TIME100’s 2024 Most Influential Companies, Fast Company’s 2024 World's Most Innovative Companies, and WWD Beauty Inc’s Power Brands of 2024, underscoring its leadership in the beauty industry and outstanding workplace. These accolades highlight our dedication to being a leading brand in the beauty industry and an exceptional workplace.
What You’ll Do
The Director, Packaging Design is responsible for defining and delivering the global aesthetic, structural design intent, and sensorial expression of Sol de Janeiro packaging, ensuring every pack reinforces brand equity, premium cues, and consistency across categories, channels, and markets.
This role owns creative authorship of packaging not engineering, timelines, or production.
As Sol de Janeiro scales globally across categories and markets, packaging becomes one of the brand’s most powerful and enduring assets. At scale, packaging must:
- Signal quality, efficacy, and credibility instantly
- Create strong shelf and digital presence
- Translate globally without dilution
- Support franchise growth and long-term brand equity
- Balance creativity, scalability, and commercial reality
This role exists to ensure packaging remains a strategic brand system, not a series of isolated executions.
What You’ll Be Working On
GLOBAL PACKAGING DESIGN AUTHORSHIP
- Own the creative vision and design intent for all primary and secondary packaging across:
- fragrance
- body care
- skincare
- gift sets and limited editions
- Define and evolve:
- form language and silhouette
- graphic systems and hierarchy
- color, finishes, and materials (from a design POV)
- Ensure packaging aligns with the broader brand world, creative direction, and premiumization strategy.
GLOBAL PACKAGING ARCHITECTURE & DESIGN SYSTEMS
- Develop and steward global packaging architecture systems, including:
- master bottle families
- component and closure systems
- decoration standards
- franchise-level design frameworks
- Enable scale, speed, and consistency across SKUs, regions, and categories while preserving creative distinction.
- Ensure new designs reinforce not fragment existing brand equities.
STRUCTURAL & GRAPHIC DESIGN LEADERSHIP (2D + 3D)
- Lead both 2D (graphic) and 3D (structural/form) packaging design development.
- Partner with Packaging Development (Supply Chain) to:
- translate creative intent into feasible structures
- protect design integrity through engineering and tooling
- Review and approve:
- dielines
- renders
- mockups
- samples
to ensure they meet creative standards before production.
PACKAGING FOR RETAIL, DTC & PHYSICAL EXPERIENCE
- Design packaging systems that perform across:
- specialty retail (e.g., Sephora)
- DTC and unboxing experiences
- travel retail
- pop-ups and flagship environments
- Partner with Retail Experience & VM to ensure packaging integrates seamlessly into merchandising, planograms, and in-store storytelling.
- Ensure packaging translates clearly and powerfully into ecommerce PDPs, thumbnails, and social content.
CLAIMS, ICONOGRAPHY & VISUAL SEMIOTICS
- Partner with Brand Voice and Product Marketing to design:
- claims hierarchy
- iconography systems
- visual semiotics that signal efficacy, sensoriality, and positioning
- Ensure packaging communicates clearly at shelf and digitally, even when copy is limited or localized.
DESIGN AUTHORITY FOR SUSTAINABILITY EXPRESSION
- Act as the design authority on sustainability expression, partnering with Supply Chain to:
- integrate sustainable materials and solutions
- ensure sustainability is expressed in a brand-right, premium way
- Avoid generic or trend-driven “eco aesthetics” that dilute brand equity.
COST-AWARE DESIGN THINKING (WITHOUT COST OWNERSHIP)
- Design packaging solutions with a strong understanding of:
- cost drivers
- scalability constraints
- manufacturing realities
- Enable early creative decisions that balance brand ambition with commercial realism, minimizing late-stage compromises.
BRAND GOVERNANCE & GLOBAL CONSISTENCY
- Act as a brand guardian for packaging globally.
- Ensure consistency across:
- franchises
- categories
- regions
- permanent vs. promotional packs
- Partner with Creative Ops & Regional Enablement to:
- codify packaging guidelines
- support regional adaptations within global guardrails
- prevent over-localization or fragmentation.
EXTERNAL DESIGN LEADERSHIP & PARTNERSHIPS
- Lead and inspire external design agencies, vendors, and partners.
- Set a high creative bar across all collaborators.
- Position Sol de Janeiro as a design-led brand within the global packaging and creative community.
- Attract top-tier design talent and partnerships through clarity of vision and standards.
TEAM LEADERSHIP & CAPABILITY BUILDING
- Lead, mentor, and develop internal and external packaging designers.
- Build a culture of:
- craft excellence
- attention to detail
- consumer-centric design thinking
- Elevate packaging design as a core creative discipline within the organization.
WHAT THIS ROLE DOES NOT OWN
To maintain speed, focus, and creative integrity, this role does not:
- Own packaging engineering or manufacturing
- Manage production timelines or budgets
- Own sustainability compliance or regulatory approvals
- Own GTM strategy or launch orchestration
- Own PLM systems or SKU setup
- Approve regional commercial plans
WHAT DOES SUCCESS LOOK LIKE?
- Packaging is instantly recognizable as Sol de Janeiro
- Strong premium cues across all categories and markets
- Coherent franchise architecture that scales globally
- Packaging performs at shelf, online, and in-hand
- Fewer late-stage compromises due to unclear design intent
- High regional adoption of global packaging systems
Packaging strengthens long-term brand equity, not just short-term launches
Must Haves
-
- 8–12+ years of experience in packaging design (2D and 3D), ideally within beauty, fragrance, luxury, or lifestyle brands
- Strong portfolio demonstrating excellence in:
- structural packaging
- graphic systems
- materials and finishes
- Deep understanding of packaging materials, print processes, and production realities
- Proven ability to lead complex, cross-functional creative projects
- Experience partnering closely with engineering and supply chain teams
Preferred
- Global brand experience
- Experience designing for Sephora or similar specialty retail
- Familiarity with DTC unboxing and ecommerce considerations
- Experience working with international vendors and agencies
SKILLS & ATTRIBUTES
- Exceptional aesthetic judgment and attention to detail
- Clear creative POV paired with pragmatism
- Comfortable defending design intent while adapting to constraints
- Calm, collaborative, and solutions-oriented
- Structured thinker who values systems and consistency
- Curious about materials, innovation, and consumer behavior
#LI-Hybrid
Why Sol de Janeiro?
- Competitive salary and bonus program for full-time team members
- Flexible hybrid work environment with opportunities for collaboration and growth
- Inclusive culture that values diverse perspectives and celebrates individuality
- The chance to be part of a fast-growing, award-winning global beauty brand
The information contained herein is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee, as these may change or new ones may be assigned at any time.
Sol de Janeiro is committed to diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We are an equal opportunity employer and do not discriminate on the basis of race, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, protected veteran status, disability, age, or other legally protected status.
Requests for accommodation due to a disability or any other protected characteristic can be made at any stage of the recruitment process and during employment by contacting our People Experience Team at careers@soldejaneiro.com.
https://soldejaneiro.com/pages/privacy-policy-sol-de-janeiro