Custom Apparel Sales & Graphic Design Associate

Custom Tees is a custom apparel retail store located in both the Poughkeepsie and Middletown Galleria Malls. We build and personalized merchandise for retail fun and for local businesses; specializing in custom T-shirts, sweatshirts, team apparel, family designs, business apparel, events, and specialty orders.

We are looking for a Graphic Artist who combines creativity with organization, customer relationship skills, and an understanding of marketing. This position will play an important role in both the creative side of our business and our continued growth.

The ideal candidate enjoys designing, spotting trends, developing new ideas, connecting with businesses and organizations, and turning creative concepts into opportunities for the store.

What You’ll Do

Graphic Design & Production

Create custom graphics and designs for T-shirts, sweatshirts, jerseys, bags, signs, displays, and other personalized products
Work with customers to understand their ideas and turn them into polished designs
Edit and clean up customer-provided artwork, logos, photographs, and graphics
Remove backgrounds, clean up images, vectorize artwork, and prepare files for production
Prepare artwork for DTF, vinyl, sublimation, and other printing methods
Resize and format artwork according to product and production requirements
Create customer proofs and make revisions as needed
Recreate or modify existing artwork when necessary
Maintain organized digital artwork and customer files
Communicate with the production team to ensure artwork is prepared correctly

Marketing & Store Promotion

Develop creative marketing concepts to promote Custom Tees and its products
Monitor apparel, design, seasonal, and social media trends for new ideas
Develop concepts for in-store displays, window displays, promotional areas, and seasonal merchandising
Create displays and promotional materials around holidays, events, community activities, and current trends
Help keep the store visually fresh and give customers new reasons to stop, look, and shop
Develop creative concepts for new products, collections, promotions, and specialty merchandise
Assist with social media content and other marketing initiatives
Help identify opportunities to showcase Custom Tees within the local community
Develop relationships with local businesses, organizations, teams, schools, event planners, and other potential partners

Business Development & Client Relationships

This position will also have an opportunity to contribute directly to the growth of Custom Tees.

Build and maintain relationships with businesses, organizations, teams, schools, events, and other potential clients
Follow up with prospective clients and maintain professional communication throughout the sales process
Help develop custom apparel and promotional solutions based on a client’s needs
Maintain accurate records of outreach, prospects, follow-ups, and client activity
Document business development activity in Trello and the company’s CRM
Keep client information, notes, follow-up dates, and project details organized and current
Communicate with internal team members regarding new opportunities and active accounts

Marketing-Based Commission Opportunity

Employees in this role may be eligible for commission on qualifying new business they personally develop and bring to Custom Tees. Commission eligibility is based on the origin and development of the business opportunity and does not apply to standard incoming store inquiries or existing business.

Organization & Creative Asset Management

Our creative library is an important part of the business. This position will help keep our design resources organized and current.

Responsibilities include:

Maintain and update the Custom Tees font book
Organize current graphics created by yourself, logos from new clients, templates, and other creative resources
Maintain organized digital folders for marketing materials and displays
Properly name and file newly clients and their downloaded graphics
Keep files easy for the team from both stores to locate
Archive outdated materials while preserving useful artwork and templates

Store Displays & Creative Development

We want our stores to constantly feel fresh and relevant.

You will be encouraged to:

Watch current apparel and design trends
Identify upcoming holidays, events, seasons, and community activities
Develop display themes and concepts
Create mockup sample apparel specifically for displays
Develop coordinated display graphics and signage
Refresh displays throughout the year
Experiment with new product combinations and visual merchandising ideas
Bring creative ideas to management for consideration and implementation

If you see a trend and think, “We should put that on a shirt,” we want to hear it.

What We’re Looking For

The ideal candidate is:

Creative and highly detail-oriented
Comfortable working directly with customers and clients
Confident communicating with businesses and organizations
Naturally curious about design, fashion, apparel, and marketing trends
Able to turn an idea into a finished visual concept
Organized and comfortable maintaining digital records
Comfortable learning and using CRM and project-management systems
Self-motivated and willing to seek out new opportunities
Able to manage multiple projects and deadlines
Professional, friendly, and relationship-focused
Comfortable working independently while also being part of a team

Required Skills

Graphic design experience
Strong understanding of typography, layout, spacing, and composition
Ability to work with PNG, JPG, SVG, PDF, and other common artwork formats
Understanding of image resolution and print-quality requirements
Ability to remove backgrounds and clean up artwork
Basic understanding of vector artwork
Strong computer skills
Strong written and verbal communication skills
Excellent organization and follow-through

Preferred Experience

Experience with any of the following is a plus:

Adobe Illustrator
Adobe Photoshop
Canva
CorelDRAW
DTF printing
Vinyl cutting
Sublimation
Heat pressing
Screen printing
Vectorizing artwork
Apparel design
Social media marketing
Digital marketing
CRM systems
Trello or similar project-management software
Retail merchandising
Business-to-business relationship building

Experience with apparel printing and production is preferred, but we are willing to train the right candidate who has strong graphic design and marketing skills.

What Makes Someone Successful in This Position?

The right person will be able to move comfortably between creative work, marketing, organization, and relationship building.

You’ll be expected to:

CREATE IT → MARKET IT → ORGANIZE IT → BUILD RELATIONSHIPS → GROW THE BUSINESS

This is a great opportunity for someone who doesn’t want to sit behind a computer designing all day and would rather have a position where their creativity can directly contribute to the growth of a business.

Physical & Work Requirements

Ability to sit and work at a computer for extended periods
Ability to stand and move around the retail and production environment
Ability to occasionally lift and move boxes or supplies
Ability to work evenings, weekends, and during busy seasonal periods as needed
Ability to meet deadlines in a fast-paced retail environment

Why Work With Custom Tees?

Creative, hands-on work
Opportunity to build your graphic design and marketing portfolio
Learn apparel decoration and production
Work on a wide variety of custom projects
Develop real-world marketing and business-development experience
Opportunity to earn additional income through qualifying new business
Work with local businesses, organizations, teams, events, and community groups
Opportunity to develop your own creative ideas and see them become products
Room for growth as Custom Tees continues to expand

How to Apply

Please submit a resume and, if available, a portfolio or examples of your graphic design, marketing, apparel, or creative work.

Applicants with experience in graphic design, apparel decoration, marketing, retail merchandising, social media, or business development are encouraged to apply.

Job Types: Full-time, Part-time

Pay: $16.00 - $18.00 per hour

Benefits:

Employee discount
Flexible schedule

Shift:

4 hour shift
8 hour shift
Day shift
Evening shift

Ability to Commute:

Poughkeepsie, NY 12601 (Required)

Work Location: In person