THE ROLE & THE TEAM
We’re looking for Art Directors across different creative departments at Zalando Studios — each with a unique focus but united by one goal: shaping the visual storytelling of the Zalando brand. Whether your passion lies in fashion, beauty or sport, you’ll help bring ideas to life through bold concepts and high-quality execution across multiple channels.
As an Art Director, you’ll collaborate with senior creatives and cross-functional partners to craft cohesive visual worlds that feel contemporary, vibrant, and relevant. You’ll have the opportunity to direct campaigns, photoshoots, and life experiences, ensuring each project reflects Zalando’s creative identity while pushing the boundaries of style and innovation.
We’re looking for Art Directors to join our Sports, Fashion, Beauty and Event teams. Please indicate your preferred team with one word only (“Sports,” “Fashion”, “Event” or “Beauty”) in the comment field and ensure your portfolio reflects your relevant experience.
Sports: With a strong connection to sport and performance culture, you understand both the technical demands of athletic products and the cultural context that surrounds training, running, and outdoor performance. You’re able to translate biomechanics, motion, and function into expressive visual narratives that feel precise yet emotionally charged. Your work captures the rhythm, intensity, and mindset of performance, bridging technical storytelling with contemporary sport culture to create visuals that feel authentic, relevant, and deeply rooted in movement.
Fashion : As an Art Director on our Core Fashion team, you’ll work across campaigns for global powerhouses like Levi’s, Lacoste, and Tommy Hilfiger, ensuring every campaign aligns with our core Zalando brand vision. In this client-facing role, you will leverage your agency background and deep cultural fluency to craft bold, social-first stories that captivate European Millennial and Gen Z audiences. We need a trend-obsessed creative who can seamlessly bridge the gap between brand DNA, current fashion & cultural trends to deliver fresh results.
Beauty: You understand the cultural shifts redefining the beauty industry, recognizing that the new standard is defined by diverse representation and radical individuality. Drawing on your beauty experience and a sharp instinct for contemporary culture, you will craft bold narratives that thrive across digital and social platforms. You possess the ability to create intimate and sensory-driven work, translating products into playful visuals that viewers can almost feel. We are looking for a storyteller who can guide our audience through empowering narratives without instructing them, delivering creative that is as authentic as it is aspirational
Event: As an Art Director specializing in experiential/event creative, you will design immersive, event-driven campaigns for global fashion partners that seamlessly align with the core Zalando brand identity. Leveraging your agency expertise and deep cultural fluency, you’ll transform brand DNA into fresh, memorable experiences and out-of-the-box activations tailored for a social-first Millennial and Gen Z audience. We are looking for an original thinker who is "dialed in" to current fashion movements and knows exactly how to bridge the gap between physical events and digital relevance to deliver high-impact results.
WHAT WE’D LOVE YOU TO DO (AND LOVE DOING)
Develop and execute 360° creative campaign visuals across digital, print, and experiential formats in line with Zalando’s brand and visual guidelines.
Champion innovative creative approaches, including the use of AI
Collaborate with strategists, copywriters, producers, designers, stylists, and other team members to bring cohesive and bold ideas to life.
Lead small to medium-scale photo and film productions, guiding visual tone, energy, and storytelling on set.
Build and present creative concepts, moodboards, and storyboards that merge fashion, design, and culture.
Work independently on mid-sized creative briefs and support senior team members on larger campaigns.
Collaborate closely with Senior Creatives and Creative Directors to evolve Zalando’s visual identity across lifestyle, performance, and cultural expressions.
Partner with internal and external talent — including photographers, directors, stylists, athletes, and creators — ensuring creative excellence, authenticity, and innovation.
Maintain awareness of trends in social media, fashion, culture and sport, to ensure relevance and originality in all creative output.
WE’D LOVE TO MEET YOU IF
3–5+ years of experience as an Art Director or in a comparable creative role within a fashion, lifestyle, beauty, or creative agency environment. Experience working with global brands is a plus.
Strong conceptual thinking combined with hands-on execution skills — from early idea development to final delivery — across digital, print, video, and social media.
Experience with photography, film, and production workflows
Experience with using AI for content generation and creative workflows is a plus
Demonstrates a refined visual sensibility and a deep understanding of contemporary culture, design, and emerging aesthetic trends.
Excellent communication and presentation skills, confident in articulating and selling creative ideas to internal teams and external partners.
Brings a strong eye for storytelling, detail, and craft — ensuring high-quality, consistent outcomes across mediums.
Organised and reliable, with the ability to manage multiple projects and deadlines in a fast-paced creative environment.
Holds a degree in Visual Communication, Design, Advertising, Fashion, or equivalent practical experience.
Fluent in English, with an understanding of cultural nuance and creative collaboration across diverse teams.
OUR OFFER
Zalando provides a range of benefits, here’s an overview of what you can expect. Ask your Talent Acquisition Partner to learn more about what we offer.
Employee shares program
40% off fashion and beauty products sold and shipped by Zalando, 30% off Zalando Lounge, discounts from external partners
2 paid volunteering days a year
Hybrid working model with up to 60% remote per week, actual practice is up to each team to best support their collaboration
Work from abroad for up to 30 working days a year
27 days of vacation a year to start
Relocation assistance available (subject to prior agreement)
Family services, including counseling and support
Health and wellbeing options (including Gympass)
Mental health support and coaching available
Drive your development through our training platform and biannual peer-to-peer review
INCLUSIVE BY DESIGN
At Zalando, our vision is to be inclusive by design. And this vision starts with our hiring - we do not discriminate on the basis of gender identity, sexual orientation, personal expression, ethnicity, religious belief, or disability status. You are welcome to leave out your picture, age, or marital status from your application. We only assess candidates on their qualifications and merit.
We want to provide you with a great candidate experience. Feel free to inform us of any accommodations you may need, so we can best support you throughout the hiring process.
do.BETTER - our diversity & inclusion strategy: https://corporate.zalando.com/en/our-impact/dobetter-our-diversity-and-inclusion-strategy
Our employee resource groups: https://corporate.zalando.com/en/our-impact/our-employee-resource-groups
