Product Designer (Temporary Contract) in London

Knife & Fork is a fast-growing membership, media and technology business for people who love hospitality. Through our two brands - CODE Hospitality and Good Food Guide – we build products and communities that help hospitality professionals and food lovers discover the best of the industry through trusted recommendations, member benefits, content and events.

We’re looking for a Product Designer to own the look, feel and flow of our digital products; the CODE app and Good Food Guide. This is a hands-on, end-to-end role: as our first in-house designer you’ll work closely with our Product Lead to take features from rough idea to shipped, design the system everything is built on, and work shoulder-to-shoulder with our developers to get it right in the build. You'll be joining established products with engaged communities, helping shape the next generation of features, UX and design systems.

This role would suit a designer who enjoys operating with autonomy, wants to influence product direction, and is excited by the opportunity to build a design function from the ground up. We use AI extensively across research, design, development and delivery, and every product team member receives a budget for AI tools. This is primarily a product design role. We expect approximately 70-80% of your time to be focused on our digital products, with the remainder supporting brand, marketing and commercial design. If the idea of splitting your week between a Figma design system and a launch campaign sounds energising, you’ll fit right in.

Day-to-day you'll work closely with the Product Lead on digital products, while partnering with the Creative Director and wider team on brand and marketing initiatives.

• Design UI for the CODE app (Flutter, iOS and Android), CODE website (WordPress) and Good Food Guide (web, PWA), from concept through to developer-ready designs in Figma.
• Build and maintain the design system across both products - components, tokens and patterns - keeping it consistent, scalable and on-brand.
• Work collaboratively with developers throughout the build: efficient handoff, design QA, and the iteration that gets things pixel-right.
• Use data and qualitative feedback to guide decisions, advocating for the user and for UX best practice (including mobile and accessibility) across the business.
• Present and rationalise design decisions to stakeholders, and fold their feedback back into the work.
• Create marketing and campaign assets across email, social and print, keeping CODE and Good Food Guide’s identity sharp and consistent.
• Design pitch decks and sales presentations that help win partners and commercial clients.
• Build templates so the marketing and commercial teams can self-serve on routine assets, keeping you focused on the work that needs a designer’s eye.

Requirements:

• 3–5 years of professional design experience, with a strong core in digital product/UI design.
• A portfolio demonstrating strong end-to-end product design work across mobile products and web.
• Advanced Figma skills, including design systems, prototyping and developer handoff.
• Exceptional UI craft, including interaction design, typography, visual hierarchy and accessibility.
• A human-centred approach - you advocate for the user, identify meaningful problems to solve, and use data and feedback to inform decisions.
• Experience working closely with developers and a strong understanding of component-based systems and the realities of building for web and mobile.
• Comfort working autonomously - you’ll be the only designer in the room most days, so you need to be self-directed, organised across competing priorities, and confident in your creative decision making & stakeholder management.
• Experience in hospitality, food & drink, events, lifestyle or membership brands, and a genuine interest in the industry.
• Strong visual design skills and experience working within brand systems.
• Strong brand and marketing design instincts.
• Canva proficiency and the ability to turn around marketing assets quickly.
• Familiarity with Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign).
• Familiarity with user research and usability testing.
• Motion design skills (After Effects, Lottie) for in-app micro-interactions and social content.

Benefits:

• Full ownership of the design function, with direct access to leadership.
• The opportunity to shape products that a passionate community actively uses and cares about.
• A hybrid setup: 3 days a week in our London office and 2 days remote.
• A CODE membership - access to the best restaurants and bars in London at genuine industry rates.
• 25 days holiday plus bank holidays and a Christmas office closure.
• Your birthday off.
• Employer pension contribution.
• £100 annual learning budget, with additional training support available subject to business need.
• Cycle to work scheme.