Creative Artworker

Who We Are

Boomkat is a specialist online music retailer and record label group established in 1998, focused on independent and underground music. Our website has a strong visual emphasis and we put a lot of effort into the presentation of the music we feature. We also have several inhouse record labels for which we design and manufacture physical formats, with a strong focus on vinyl.

The Job

We're looking for a candidate based in Manchester, UK, to join our small and dynamic artworking team. The job is a demanding combination of product photography, layout design, technical artworking, idea generation and art direction.

The position includes studio-based photography and digital design for product mailshots on a daily basis, as well as creating, preparing and checking artwork files for print for a number of in-house record labels.

We’re also in the early stages of designing a new printed publication so there’s an opportunity to help shape its visual direction.

You’ll be working alongside an established creative artworker as a team of two - an excellent opportunity to learn new skills and expand your visual repertoire in a highly creative environment.

The job involves:

- Checking and pre-flighting artwork to produce accurate, print-ready files

- Studio/product photography and work on product mailshots

- Producing short videos for Instagram

- Helping record labels and artists translate their ideas into finished designs

- Typographic design work

- Layout and design work on special projects such as books, magazines, merch

- Creating artwork for both print and digital

- Design support for clients/record labels and artists

Skills Required

You’ll need to have good working knowledge of Adobe Creative Suite and know how to maintain consistency in colour profiles, archiving of assets etc.

You'll be shown how to create and follow a detailed set of print pre-flight checks for every production so you’ll need to have impeccable attention to detail and a meticulous, organised approach to your work.

Importantly - we’re looking for someone who has good communication skills, a positive, friendly attitude, and mature visual literacy

You should have:

- At least two years experience in full-time industry-related employment.

- Experience with Adobe Creative Suite, in particular Indesign, Illustrator and Photoshop, preferably Mac-based

- A good eye and Impeccable attention to detail

- An ability to work under pressure and to tight deadlines

- Good visual vocabulary and cultural awareness

- A love of typography and layout

And ideally also:

- A good working knowledge of colour profiles and printing guidelines

- Experience self-checking and pre-flighting artwork

- Experience maintaining consistency in font usage, filename conventions and archiving of assets

- An understanding of studio based photography and studio lighting

- Publishing layout experience a plus

Salary dependent on experience.