Job Description

Karla Otto is a globally recognized public relations and communications agency, founded in 1982, with offices in 15 key cities across the UK, EMEA, US, and Asia. With a strong presence in fashion capitals such as Milan, London, Paris, and New York, the agency has built a reputation for representing some of the most prestigious names in fashion, beauty, and lifestyle.

In 2017, Karla Otto merged with K2 to form THE INDEPENDENTS, a global marketing, design, and communications group. This collective brings together industry leaders who share a commitment to innovation, excellence, and thoughtful collaboration across the luxury and lifestyle sectors.

At Karla Otto, our team of expert strategists, designers, planners and publicists are dedicated to delivering exceptional results and establishing long-term partnerships with our clients. We are passionate about the world of fashion, beauty, and luxury, with everyone bringing their unique expertise and insights to the table. We are driven by a shared commitment to excellence and a deep understanding of the ever-evolving industry landscape.

To help support our future growth as an agency, we are looking for an Account Manager, Design & Lifestyle to join our team based in our NYC offices. This role is a strategic, client-facing leader within Karla Otto's Design & Lifestyle team. It sits at the intersection of cultural strategy, media relations, and team leadership, acting as a trusted day to day partner to clients while ensuring excellence across communications, launches, and experiential moments.

This position is ideal for someone with strong editorial judgment, established media relationships, and the ability to translate brand ambition into cohesive, high-impact communications programs.

Key Responsibilities

Client Strategy & Leadership

• Collaborate on the development and execution of communications strategies that support clients' commercial and cultural objectives

• Serve as a day-to-day client contact, providing strategic counsel across launches, campaigns, and special projects

• Ensure all activity aligns with broader brand positioning, cultural context, and long-term goals

Media & Cultural Relations

• Maintain and grow strong relationships with key editors, writers, and cultural voices across design, lifestyle, art, culture, and business media

• Oversee the quality, consistency, and relevance of all external communications

• Identify emerging media platforms, cultural moments, and storytelling opportunities that elevate brand perception

Team Management & Development

• Support the management and development of junior team members, including oversight of workflows and deliverables

• Collaborate with line manager and senior leadership on resourcing, timelines, and performance feedback

Reporting & Measurement

• Use qualitative and quantitative insights to assess campaign performance and inform future strategy

• Guide teams on reporting frameworks that demonstrate impact, reach, and return on investment

Key Attributes

• 4-6+ years of experience at leading communications agency or luxury brand

• Established network across design, lifestyle, and cultural media

• Strong strategic thinking paired with operational rigor

• Confident, collaborative leader with high editorial standards

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills

• Strong understanding of luxury, design lifestyle, and cultural industries as well as other cultural events combined with a visionary and opportunistic approach to new business development

• Proactive, solutions-oriented mindset with strong attention to detail

• Excellent time management and ability to management multiple priorities under deadline

• Proficiency across core professional tools including Outlook, Excel, Powerpoint, and media database

What We Offer

• Salary Range: $80k-$85k

• Medical, Dental, and Vision plans

• 401K Employer Match program

• Commuter Benefits

• Paid Time Off including Vacation Days, Personal Days, Sick Days, and additional   Comp Days

• Company-wide closure last week of the year

• 10 Federal Holidays Observed

At Karla Otto, we are always looking for personalities with positive charisma who are enthusiastic, self-motivated, and have a keen sense of aesthetics.

Karla Otto embraces and celebrates diversity, inclusivity, and equal opportunity. We are committed to building a team that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills. Karla Otto provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression.

We aspire to have a diverse and inclusive workplace and strongly encourage qualified applicants from a wide range of backgrounds to apply and join our team!

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