Do you have a bold, design-led vision for children’s books that delight and inspire the youngest readers?

Are you excited by working with world-class children’s brands, developing innovative novelty formats, and shaping stories for ages 0 to 7 in fresh and commercially minded ways?

If so, DK+ is recruiting a Senior Designer to join our talented and collaborative Preschool team, a growing and ambitious list that partners with leading licensors and brands including Disney, Gabby’s Dollhouse, Sesame Street and many more to come. This is an opportunity to set the visual direction for a vibrant new publishing programme, commission top creative talent, and mentor junior designers, all while overseeing complex projects from concept to print. You will report to the Art Director and work closely with them to define the look and feel of our Preschool list.

Your responsibilities:

Lead the creative vision in direct collaboration and alignment with the Art Director for the DK+ Preschool list. Originate treatments, present concepts at project meetings and develop commercially positioned design solutions that work across novelty and gift formats for licensed tie-ins.
Commission and brief designers, illustrators, photographers and other contributors. Negotiate terms, raise POs and manage budgets and schedules to deliver high-quality work on time and on budget.
Oversee multiple projects from concept to delivery, supervising junior and project designers, delegating tasks appropriately and ensuring quality at every stage.
Elevate design standards across the list, setting up templates, maintaining technical and brand guidelines, and ensuring approvals are secured where required.
Research trends and competitor activity in the preschool and children’s markets to inform fresh ideas and treatments. Work with sales and marketing to support launches, fairs and promotional campaigns.
Work with licensors and agents to interpret brand guidelines and translate briefs into standout products that have strong appeal in a global market.

About you

Strong typographic and visual sensibility with meticulous attention to detail.
A compelling portfolio demonstrating exceptional design proficiency across preschool and children’s book covers, novelty formats and interiors.
Proven experience commissioning and managing external talent, such as designers, illustrators, photographers and studios.
Background in children’s publishing, ideally with experience in novelty formats for ages 0 to 5.
Strong global market awareness and commercial instinct for positioning books in competitive markets.
Experience handling budgets, negotiating fees, and working with multiple stakeholders including licensors and agents.
Deep technical knowledge of print production processes.
Proven ability to mentor junior team members and elevate the creative output of a list.
Experience liaising directly with clients or commissioners (freelancing experience welcome).

While the role will be strategic and collaborative rather than purely hands-on, you should be comfortable stepping into hands-on styling when needed, as well as guiding others.

Why you will love this role

This is an extremely varied position that offers the chance to work with a number of top children’s licensors. You will have the opportunity to shape the look and feel of a new and ambitious Preschool publishing programme, within a creative environment where innovation and design elevation are encouraged.

This role is office-based a minimum of three days a week. During the onboarding phase, the successful candidate will be expected to work from the office Monday to Wednesday to align with the Art Director’s schedule and ensure close collaboration during initial projects.

If you are excited to shape DK+ Preschool with fresh, inspiring ideas and a new design perspective, we would love to hear from you.

To apply, please submit a PDF portfolio of your best work, your CV and a short covering letter explaining why you would be great for the role by midnight on 17th February. Applications without a PDF portfolio and CV will not be considered.

We are eager to see your own unique voice and talent, not the words generated by an AI tool. Please refrain from using AI in this application.

Closing date for applications: Tuesday 17th February

We have a range of benefits to reflect our commitment to our people, some of which are:

25 days paid holiday entitlement in year one, plus bank holidays
Generous pension scheme
Volunteering policy and charity matching
Employee assistance programme
Cycle to work scheme and discounted gym membership
Shopping discounts
Flex Fridays (1pm Finish*)
Up to 30 days remote working from abroad*

*Subject to certain criteria being met.

And we plant a tree for every new employee to our business

DK is committed to building a diverse workforce that reflects the varied communities that read our books across the world. We encourage applications from all individuals, regardless of age, religion, gender, ethnicity, disability, sexuality or social background. DK is proud to announce that we have adopted The Halo Code.

DK is a member of the disability confident scheme. We guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the vacancy/ies.

DK supports flexible working and has introduced a new ‘smart-working’ policy with a hybrid approach of working weekly from home and in DK’s office. This is a hybrid role requiring a minimum of 3 days per week in our Pimlico office. As this is non-negotiable, please ensure you are within a reasonable commuting distance of London before applying.

The Book Trade Charity offers financial support to people looking to enter the book trade, but who may struggle to afford the costs of attending interviews or undertaking internships. For more information, visit www.booktradeentrysupport.org

About our Company:

We believe in the power of discovery. That's why we create books for everyone that explore ideas and nurture curiosity about the world we live in. From first words to the Big Bang, from the wonders of nature to city adventures, you will find expert knowledge, hours of fun and endless inspiration in the pages of our books.

We are the world's leading illustrated publisher and a member of the Penguin Random House division of Bertelsmann, creating cutting-edge design and stunning visual books for the whole family. We are passionate about inspiring curiosity and bring people to books through their thirst for knowledge. With a global book loving community of over 800 colleagues in the UK, US, Germany, India, China, Spain and Australia, we produce books in over 100 countries and over 60 languages. Find out more on dk.com.

Dorling Kindersley

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Senior Designer, Preschool - DK+