McDill — Design Manager

McDill Associates was a full-service marketing and design agency on the Central Coast, deeply embedded in the fresh produce and agricultural industry. Clients included California Giant Berry Farms, Tanimura & Antle, Litehouse Foods, and Martinelli's — brands with national retail distribution and real trade-show presence at PMA Fresh Summit.

As Design Manager, I led a team of designers across campaigns that spanned packaging, retail POS, trade-show graphics, direct mail, and microsites. The work was integrated — a produce launch might involve a PMA booth, a retail display system, a direct mail piece, and a microsite all hitting simultaneously — so keeping creative consistent across deliverables and deadlines was the job.

I managed designer assignments, reviewed work against brand standards, coordinated with print and production vendors, and served as the day-to-day creative point of contact for clients. The produce industry moves fast — seasonal campaigns have hard windows — so the team had to be organized and the work had to be right the first time.