Product & Design Manager

We’re looking for a highly organised Product Manager. We are not offering remote or hybrid working.

Job Purpose: Lead the day-to-day operations and creative output of the Product and Design team, turning the Creative Director’s vision and briefs into clear, resourced and scheduled plans, and delivering every project on time, on brief and on brand. Design and develop commercially viable products that generate the best return on investment, creating your own product concepts and artwork as well as managing designs from external artists and licences. Take ownership of line management, workflow planning and quality control within the team, freeing up the Creative Director to focus on overall brand direction and business priorities, while you keep delivery on track and all visual output on brand.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Leadership: hold regular 1:1s and performance reviews.
• Set and uphold team ways-of-working: brand guidelines, response times, meeting rhythms, status reporting, file-naming, proofing and sign-off etiquette.
• Planning: publish weekly priorities and critical paths.
• Ownership of resourcing and capacity planning; allocate work across Product and Design Team; escalate risks early; remove blockers.
• Catalogue and key launches: own end to end timelines, making sure catalogues and all associated product, marketing and digital deliverables are completed on schedule.
• Run quick team check-ins and weekly progress reviews, keep a simple tracker of who’s doing what and by when, and make sure each project gets the right sign-offs on time.
• Creative Design and Product Development: Create original designs and product concepts for stationery, gifts and greeting cards that are in line with Ohh Deer’s brand identity and customer expectations.
• Bring proactive ideas for new ranges, formats and collaborations, regularly sharing concepts and suggestions with the Creative Director and wider team.
• Turn ideas into clear, deliverable product briefs, including mock ups, specifications and reference material that can be used by suppliers and internal teams.
• Work with the Creative Director to refine concepts through feedback and critique, ensuring that final designs feel cohesive across ranges and seasons.
• Stay informed on design trends, competitors and customer insights, and use this knowledge to propose fresh, commercially strong product ideas.
• Ensure on-time delivery of assets and presentations.
• Communicate changes that affect timelines, budgets, or scope to Operations, Purchasing, Marketing, Warehouse.
• Able to set pace and hold standards.
• Clear, confident communicator; strong stakeholder and supplier management.
• Problem-solver with sound judgment; comfortable making decisions and escalating appropriately.
• Able to prioritise and manage time effectively; calm under pressure and deadline-driven.
• Flexible, collaborative and supportive of a small business environment; willingness to work outside office hours when required.
• Creative and innovative.

About Us: Founded by Jamie Mitchell and Mark Callaby in 2011, Ohh Deer is an independent, fast-growing start-up company selling greeting cards, stationery and gifts. In 2024, Ohh Deer became a Certified B Corp - this means that we meet high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability. Greeting Cards remain our main product but over the years we have diversified our offering and now make and sell other stationery and gift items. We have become firmly established within our industry selling to retailers across the world and direct to customers online. We’re passionate about what we do and aim to be the leaders in our craft. We source the best artists, suppliers and staff to help us meet these expectations. We continue to be ambitious and want to grow the business further which this role will play an important part in supporting. Our offices are based at The Old Art College in Loughborough Town Centre, the office has some of the best views of the local area.