About
My name is Chris Thomas and I am a California based Art Director, creative, strategist, wilderness explorer and resident Star Wars nerd. I spend my time slaying pixels, exploring the great outdoors, and looking for new opportunities to grow and collaborate.
Please feel free contact me for inquiries great and small.
2022 - Current
Gel | Creative Director
Collaborated directly with stakeholders from major companies like OpenText, P&G, and Sony, as well as emerging startups such as Florax, Freebreathe, and Pancho's, to ensure they achieved their brand goals and succeeded in their marketplace. Notably, Pancho's saw a 200% increase in distribution following our rebrand. Led teams of freelancers and internal teams in brand research, naming, brand identity, packaging, and product design and development.
2021 - 2022
Frank Collective | Associate Creative Director
Led a team in understanding and communicating client needs, managing and delegating workloads, and building creative briefs for emerging and legacy brands. Developed brand identities, positioning, and strategy, while spearheading concept development, product design, campaign design, and prototyping. Also led presentations, presentation design, team management, marketing design, copywriting, logo sketching, and research.
2019 - 2021
La Visual | Art Director
Oversaw a creative team of 8+ designers, strategists, and copywriters, leading client presentations, workload delegation, and the development of brand strategies, identities, and creative briefs. I spearheaded brand concept development and research, product and campaign design, prototyping, copywriting, logo sketching, and research.
Spire | Cofounder / Director of Development
Organizational Development, Partnership Engagement, Sponsorship, Member and Student Engagement, Outreach, Event Management, Experiential Design, Managing of Student Ambassadors program, Academic Outreach, Business Outreach, Branding, Project Management, Print Design, Copywriting
2015 - 2021
La Visual | Contract Graphic Designer
Identity, Brand Positioning, Concept Development, UI/UX, Web design, Campaign Design, Prototyping, Presentations, Marketing Design, Copywriting, Research
2018 - 2019
2017 - 2019
Azusa Pacific University | Adjunct Professor of Design
At Azusa Pacific University, I taught in a design program that emphasized brand-centered tracks, design thinking philosophies, and UI/UX principles. I instructed courses in Senior Design Thesis, Senior Design Theory, and web/product design, contributing to an 85% job placement rate for my students. I also led design strategy sessions and bootcamps to enhance their industry readiness.
DISTINC_ | Graphic Designer
Participated in identity and brand positioning projects, driving concept development and client management. Developed editorial design, campaign concepts, and presentations, producing successful marketing campaigns for Scripps College, The Jean Autry Museum, Turning Point School, Scott Johnson, and Occidental College, which exceeded its fundraising goal by raising $252M across four initiatives.
2017 - 2018
ONDIGO | Creative Lead
Identity, Brand Development, Brand Positioning, Packaging, UI/UX, Web Design, Prototyping, Interactive Design, Presentations, Marketing Design, Print Design, Copywriting, Research
2016 - 2017
NCompass | Graphic Designer
Experiential Marketing Design, Event Design, Interior Design, Print Design, Branding, Concepting, Presentations
2015 - 2016
Wipit, Inc. | Creative Intern
Mobile Design, Print Design, Advertising, Marketing Design, Campaign design, UI/UX, Wire-framing, Storyboarding
2014
Evoke: a print Studio | Graphic Assistant to Graphic Supervisor
Print Design, Print Production, Customer Service, Workflow managing, Team managing, Screen Printing, Color Separation, Retail
2013 - 2015
Defiant Youth | Design Intern
Print Design, Print Production, Apparel Design, Concept Development, Customer Service, Managing Shipment
2013
Education
Azusa Pacific University | Azusa, CA
Bachelors of Arts in Graphic Design with a Studio Art Minor
2010 - 2014
Expertise
Applications: Adobe Creative Cloud (.ai, .psd, .indd, .aep), Sketch, Sketchup, Microsoft Word, Powerpoint, Keynote, Acrobat, Excel, Google Drive
Skills: Art Direction, Branding, User Experience, User Interface, Concepting, Content and Copy Writing, Print Production, Prepress, Web/Mobile Design, Wireframing, Storyboarding, Photography, Illustration, Iconography, Event Coordination, Team Building, Project Management, Instruction and Teaching