Associate Director, Creative (Retail & Experiential Interiors)

A Soho design collective that has been quietly shaping how people shop, eat, and spend their downtime for years.

The client list reads like a high street you would actually want to walk down: global luxury and fashion groups, premium watch and jewellery retail, tech brands, and some of the UK's best-loved restaurant names. Some of those relationships have run for well over a decade, which tells you most of what you need to know.

Retail, pop-up, and branded experiences sit at the heart of the work, with hospitality and leisure alongside. The team cares about good ideas, good delivery, and good people, in roughly equal measure.

About the Role

The studio is looking for an Associate Director to lead the creative side of its retail and experiential work.

You will own the creative direction on a portfolio of schemes, from the first spark of a concept through to a built space that still looks like the idea. Depending on where your strengths sit, the balance will lean towards retail (flagships, roll-out concepts, store design) or experiential (pop-ups, brand activations, immersive spaces). Ideally you are comfortable in both.

This is a senior seat. You will be in the room with clients, shaping pitches, and setting the standard for the designers around you. Still very hands-on, just with more say in where things go.

Your Days Will Look Something Like This...

• Leading the creative direction on retail and experiential projects, from brief and concept through to delivery
• Building concepts and narratives that work hard commercially as well as looking the part
• Presenting to clients with clarity and confidence, and becoming a trusted creative voice for them
• Working with studio leadership on pitches, new business, and project strategy
• Guiding and mentoring designers across the studio, and keeping the quality of output consistent
• Reviewing design development and technical packages so the finished space matches the intent
• Keeping several projects moving at once without losing sight of the detail

You Might Be Our Perfect Match If...

• You are in a senior creative role within an interiors, retail design, or multidisciplinary studio (Associate, Senior Associate, or a very strong Senior ready to step up)
• Your portfolio shows retail and/or experiential brand environments, with clear concept, narrative, and execution
• You have led projects and clients from first idea through to completion
• You can inspire a team and roll your sleeves up when needed
• You are commercially aware and understand that a store has a job to do
• You know materials, finishes, and how things get built, not just how they render

Why This One...

• A senior creative role with real influence over the work and the studio's direction
• A client list of global brands, many of them long-standing
• Variety across retail, pop-up, experiential, and hospitality projects
• Soho studio with hybrid working
• A team known for putting its people first

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