Brand Designer

About the Role

Little Plains is seeking a Brand Designer to oversee visual identity, brand systems, and design strategy for early-stage startups. This contract-to-full-time position offers New York or remote work (preferably EST). The role is centered on developing brand systems that extend beyond static assets, creating scalable visual languages across products, websites, and physical applications. The designer will contribute both individually and collaboratively to define modern brand system standards that work seamlessly for humans and machines alike.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead brand design projects from concept through execution.
• Build comprehensive brand worlds encompassing strategy and visual systems, not just logos.
• Establish brand DNA including typography, color, layout, motion, and architectural structure for consistent yet adaptable brand expression.
• Design systems that function across multi-channel platforms including digital and real-world environments.
• Think systemically rather than focusing on isolated outputs.
• Leverage AI tools to expedite visual exploration and concept development while maintaining design judgment.
• Initiate broad explorations rapidly and make definitive, confident design decisions.
• Collaborate closely with strategists to ensure narrative and visual consistency.
• Work alongside developers to verify build fidelity of the design systems.
• Translate detailed design work into scalable and enduring systems.

Who We Are

Little Plains is a progressive brand and product studio focused on early-stage companies, particularly from pre-launch through Series A stages. We partner deeply with founders and senior teams navigating constraints to build brands, products, and go-to-market strategies that are coherent and scalable. Our clients span sectors such as healthcare, biotech, SaaS, and consumer products.

Work Philosophy

We create design in context, integrated with strategy, product, and interaction considerations. Our outputs are live, evolving systems rather than static presentations. AI is embedded in our processes, valuing the designer's decision-making over automation.

Required Expertise

• Proven skills in building brand systems, not limited to logos or basic assets.
• Strong intuition and mastery of typography, layout, and visual hierarchy.
• Ability to balance high-detail precision with broad visionary thinking.
• Experience facilitating exploration while maintaining organized production workflows and handoffs.
• Comfort working in iterative, sprint-based cycles.
• Proficiency in Figma and Adobe Creative Suite; motion design and art direction experience advantageous.
• Willingness to embrace AI-driven workflows without compromising design discernment.
• Experience collaborating across strategy, design, and system development.
• Background with early-stage or fast-growth companies.
• 3 to 5 years of relevant brand design experience.
• A blend of curiosity for new tools and solid traditional design craft.
• Self-driven approach to ownership and advancing projects.

Benefits for Full-Time Employees

• Quarterly profit-sharing linked to studio performance.
• Equity options available for loyal team members.
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance with employer covering 50% of premiums.
• 15 days paid time off in the first year, increasing by 2 days annually.
• One week paid office shutdown every summer.
• Paid holidays during Christmas to New Year's break.
• Parental leave: 12 weeks for birth parents, 6 weeks for non-birth parents at full pay.
• Prenatal leave offering 20 paid hours per year.
• An annual $1,000 stipend for craft and tools.
• A $200 monthly coworking space stipend.

Additional Information

The position starts as a contract with potential to transition to full-time. The contract hourly rate ranges from $80 to $125 per hour. Full-time base salary offers between $85,000 and $125,000 annually. Candidates should submit a resume, portfolio exhibiting brand system work across multiple applications, and a brief note expressing the brand challenges they wish to tackle next.

Equal Opportunity Statement

Little Plains is firmly committed to equal employment opportunity, prohibiting discrimination based on race, religion, sex, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital or veteran status, and other protected characteristics under federal, state, or local laws. Applicants with criminal histories will be considered in compliance with the NYC Fair Chance Act, with background checks performed only after conditional offers.

Closing

We sincerely appreciate all applications and aim to respond within a few business days. We look forward to potentially collaborating with ambitious designers who want to create meaningful, scalable brand systems.