Fanatics · 2 days ago
Social Media Associate Creative Director (Freelance to Full-Time)
Irvine, CA
Full-time
Hybrid
Senior Level, Lead/Staff
$110K/yr - $166K/yr
8+ years expFanatics is a global leader in licensed sports merchandise and fan culture, seeking an Associate Creative Director to shape social storytelling for their commerce business. The role involves leading creative initiatives across social platforms, developing engaging content, and mentoring a team while collaborating with various departments to enhance brand presence and drive engagement.
eSportsManufacturingRetailSporting GoodsSports
Responsibilities
Set the creative vision across our commerce-first everyday social and campaigns - including product drops, launches, brand and athlete collaborations and championship merch
Develop ideas that flex across platforms — while also driving best-in-class performance within platform-specific behaviors on Meta, TikTok, X, and more
Lead and elevate a team. Mentor a dynamic group of designers, writers, editors, and creators, building a high-performing culture obsessed with sports, creativity, and craft
Blend storytelling + fashion. Make product releases feel like entertainment — building hype, shaping demand, and driving conversation
Partner closely with strategy, production, marketing, and e-comm teams to deliver work that drives relevance and social KPIs
Bring a strong creative POV grounded in experience of how fashion brands best show up on social media
Push Fanatics into new creative territories — new formats, new aesthetics, new ways of earning attention
Champion creative standards across the org: conceptual rigor, impeccable taste, and scroll-stopping craft
Qualification
Required
Minimum of 8 years of creative experience in advertising, social, content and specific expertise in fashion and sports — with at least 4 years leading teams
A conceptual thinker with an art/design background
A self-driven leader who can independently move projects from concept to execution while keeping partners aligned
Highly hands-on with the practical skills to execute an idea from scratch when needed — from concept to design to finished social-ready execution
Deep understanding of social media, fashion moments, and e-commerce storytelling
A portfolio full of ideas that have resonated in culture, that showcase your socially native thinking, and are beautifully crafted
Comfortable collaborating with talent, athletes, creators, and cross-functional partners
A leader who raises the bar, pushes teams, and builds environments where ideas can go from cool to cultural
Highly skilled at using Adobe Creative Suite to deliver highly crafted post-ready assets
Preferred
Recommended Bachelor's degree in a related field (e.g. communications, arts, graphic design)
Knowledge of, and passion for AI creative tools
Industry recognized / Awarded work
Benefits
Employees at Fanatics' corporate entity can work remotely for up to four weeks per year, which can be taken in daily or weekly increments
Company
Fanatics
Fanatics is a sports merchandise retailer that manufactures fan gear and jerseys across retail channels. It is a sub-organization of Kynetic.
10001+ employees
Funding
Current Stage
Late StageTotal Funding
$4.9BKey Investors
Clearlake Capital GroupNational Football LeagueAlameda Research
2022-12-06Private Equity· $700M
2022-03-02Private Equity· $1.5B
2022-01-01Series Unknown· $10M
Leadership Team
J
Joseph Bozich
Advisor to Chief Executive Officer
Michael Mahan
CEO
Recent News
Rochester Business Journal
2025-12-24
2025-12-24
Company data provided by crunchbase