More Information

SIMONE HEUMAYER

email: simonehdesign@gmail.com
tel: 917-972-7400

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
2009-Present
IPPOLITA FINE JEWELRY, New York, NY
Art Director
Manage the art direction, production, sourcing and budgets of all printed marketing materials for an internationally recognized, privately owned luxury jewelry company.
• Art direct seasonal ad images, beauty and product photography.
• Manage the internal and outsourced photo retouching process.
• Designed and sourced overseas production of jewelry boxes, packaging and shopping bags, cutting cost by over 50% per unit.
• Design all seasonal Ippolita branded advertising, direct mail pieces, marketing collateral, signage, web graphics and sales support materials for Bergdorf Goodman, Saks, Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, Bloomingdale’s and Harrods department stores, as well as over 80 Independent jewelry boutiques.
• Concept interior designs for Ippolita boutiques at flagship Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus and Bloomingdale’s department stores. Provide visual direction and graphics for seasonal interior and window changeouts.
• Source, negiotiate and manage the production, press checks and delivery of all printed materials, both domestically and overseas.

Ongoing
INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR, New York, NY
Art Director
Build brand identities and strategically market clients in their competitive industries for increased business. Client specialties include jewelry, fashion and product retail, publication, event production, executive recruiting, restaurant and architecture.
• Companies include Nautica, O&Co., Soma Intimates, Newsweek, The Zalben’s Event Productions, Karen Harvey Consulting Group, Stone Architecture and Casper Jones Restaurant & Bar.
• Present a variety of targeted concepts, and facilitate clients through the decision-making process by weighing budget, timeline and brand marketing needs.
• Hire and manage vendors/sub-contractors for printing and packaging production, web development, copywriting, photography and illustration.

2007-2009
CHICO’S RETAIL STORES, New York, NY
Senior Graphic Designer
Conceived and designed national ads, monthly campaign collateral, hangtags, window and sign packages. In addition, developed complete marketing promotional packages for special product launch events in over 600 nationwide with annual revenue of $1.7B.
• Teamed with creative and cross-functional partners to spearhead rebranding efforts.
• Explored and recommended alternative paper, fabric and production techniques that closely matched ideal, high-end outcomes, in order to stay within tight budget requirements.
• Managed freelance designers and print producers to finalize designs for implementation.
• Increased sales of pants by more than 20% as a direct result of creating collateral, windows and signage for annual in-store Pants Event, marketing the unique attributes of four distinct fits.
• Overhauled the visual presentation of in-store messaging and created sign library master templates, thereby allowing for efficient execution of signage requests.

2001-2006
ANN TAYLOR STORES, New York, NY
Senior Graphic Designer
Designed all branded marketing materials, including seasonal mailers, billboards and bus kiosks, window graphics, packaging, hangtags, look books and style guides for over 500 Ann Taylor and Ann Taylor Factory Stores, an annual $2.5B specialty retailer for women’s clothing.
• Collaborated with account executives, apparel design team, merchandisers, store visual designers,
copywriters, production team and outside vendors to drive brand directives.
• Saved millions of dollars in printing and shipping costs (and time) by spearheading the design of branded in-store sale graphics to be reused each season, thus allowing stores to react immediately to business needs.
• Assisted Creative Director with photoshoots and film editing.
• Contracted and managed illustrators, designers and production artists through various projects.
• Promoted to Senior Graphic Designer after assuming responsibilities for film editing, work-print ordering and markups, managing retouches and monitoring press approvals.

2000-2001
SHOOK KELLEY, INC., Charlotte, NC
Perception Designer
Developed corporate identities, designed advertising layouts and updated menu designs for various clients of Shook Kelley, a branding agency specializing in urban, retail, and restaurant design.
• Prepared appropriate presentation materials in response to Request For Proposals (RFPs).
• Conducted client and competitor research prior to development of brand identities.
• Art directed photoshoots for series of still-life images to be used in press kit and website for major law firm client, and presented design concepts directly to clients.
• Conducted print pricing negotiations with vendors and managed press approvals.

EDUCATION
FIT New York, NY
Web Design Program

PORTFOLIO CENTER Atlanta, GA
Graduate studies in Graphic Design

DUKE UNIVERSITY Durham, NC
Bachelor of Science in Psychology

PUBLICATIONS AND AWARDS
GRAPHIS NEW TALENT DESIGN ANNUAL 2001
Odyssey Spa logo

CMYK, FALL/WINTER 2000
E. Lynn Harris bookjackets

SHOW SOUTH 1999
Merit award for E. Lynn Harris bookjackets

DIGITAL SKILLS
{Mac platform} Adobe InDesign CS4, Adobe Photoshop CS4, Adobe Illustrator CS4, Adobe Flash CS4, Adobe Acrobat, QuarkXpress, Dreamweaver, HTML