Packaging Designer – Consumer Products

Responsibilities: You will be responsible for developing packaging for new Hydrapeak products, sets, seasonal assortments, and licensed programs from concept through production.

Responsibilities include: Concept and develop original packaging directions for Hydrapeak products, gift sets, and seasonal assortments. Translate product and merchandising strategies into packaging that is compelling, commercial, and retail-ready. Create packaging appropriate for major retail environments, including off-price, mass, specialty, and department-store channels. Develop dielines, die cuts, folds, scores, glue areas, bleeds, safe areas, windows, openings, and structural packaging components. Create clean, organized, factory-ready Adobe Illustrator production files. Prepare final artwork with proper layers, linked assets, fonts, color specifications, print instructions, and production notes. Specify Pantone, CMYK, HEX, and other appropriate color standards. Select and develop typography systems appropriate for the product, package, and Hydrapeak brand. Develop layouts with a strong understanding of visual hierarchy, information architecture, product visibility, and shelf impact. Develop package messaging, product benefits, feature callouts, headlines, icons, and supporting copy. Understand how to organize information so the shopper quickly understands what the product is, its key benefits, and why they should purchase it. Create realistic 3D product and packaging renders/mockups for internal reviews, sales presentations, and buyer presentations. Present multiple creative directions and quickly revise concepts based on management, merchandising, buyer, sourcing, or production feedback. Develop packaging systems that can scale across multiple SKUs, colors, sizes, configurations, and assortments. Work with product development, sourcing teams, factories, and vendors to resolve production issues and ensure artwork is executable. Review packaging proofs, production samples, color, print quality, positioning, and other production details. Maintain organized files and consistent naming, layering, versioning, and production standards across projects.

Qualifications: The successful candidate must have real-world packaging experience for consumer products that have been produced and sold at retail. We are looking for someone with: A strong portfolio demonstrating consumer-product packaging that has reached retail shelves. Professional experience in packaging design, preferably within consumer products or CPG.Expert-level Adobe Illustrator skills. Strong Adobe Photoshop skills. Demonstrated experience creating production-ready packaging artwork and dielines. Strong knowledge of printing, substrates, color specifications, coatings, foils, embossing, windows, finishes, and other common packaging techniques. Excellent understanding of typography, composition, color, branding, and visual hierarchy. Ability to develop both structural and graphic packaging solutions. Ability to take a rough concept or creative direction and turn it into a polished, commercially viable package. Experience creating realistic product and packaging renders for sales or buyer presentations. Strong communication and presentation skills. Excellent attention to detail. Ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously. Ability to work quickly and accurately under pressure and within aggressive retail and production deadlines. Ability to accept feedback and execute revisions quickly without sacrificing design quality. Retail Packaging Experience Is Required We will not consider candidates whose portfolios do not demonstrate packaging or consumer-product work that has been commercially produced and sold at retail. Concept-only work is not sufficient. Candidates should be able to identify examples in their portfolio that they personally helped take from concept through production. Experience designing products sold through major retailers, mass merchants, off-price retailers, specialty retailers, or department stores is strongly preferred. Additional Skills That Will Set You Apart Candidates with additional creative capabilities will receive strong consideration, especially experience in: Surface and pattern design Illustration Seasonal print and pattern development Lifestyle graphics Icon development Art direction Product photography 3D modeling and rendering Key Shot, Blender, Cinema 4D, Adobe Substance, or similar rendering software Packaging copywriting and product messaging Retail merchandising and assortment development Presentation and buyer-deck design Strong pattern-development and surface-design skills are especially valuable, as Hydrapeak develops coordinated collections across multiple products, colors, prints, and seasonal assortments. How We Work Hydrapeak moves quickly. Our designer must be comfortable working in an entrepreneurial environment where priorities may change and deadlines can be aggressive.