Curious Universe UK
Freelance Structural Packaging Designer
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Role: Structural Packaging Designer / Dieline Specialist
We’re looking for an experienced Structural Packaging Designer / Dieline Specialist to support our toy and consumer product ranges on a freelance or long-term studio basis.
Key Requirement
The key requirement is the ability to take a photo, sketch, rough concept or AI-generated visual and turn it into a fully production-ready packaging structure and dieline.
Responsibilities
You will be expected to:
- Develop bespoke, production-ready carton structures from rough concepts
- Understand different paperboard and packaging substrates, and clearly specify materials, thicknesses and structural requirements within dieline documents
- Design appropriate fold/score lines and reinforcement features so packs do not crush, tear or fail during transport
- Understand where glue flaps and glue areas are required, and design structures that can be efficiently machine-glued and supplied flat where needed
- Consider retail security, including appropriate seals, closures and tamper-resistant features to reduce packs being opened on shelf
- Arrange and orient dielines intelligently on a print sheet to avoid unnecessarily large sheet sizes and excessive material usage
- Understand manufacturing constraints such as why certain structures need to fold flat for automated production
- Make sensible structural choices based on the product and brand positioning — for example, balancing thinner premium materials with supporting inserts versus using a heavier board where that provides a simpler, more cost-effective solution
- Review existing packaging and recommend practical structural improvements where required
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What We’re Looking For
- Strong experience in structural carton packaging and dieline construction
- Good understanding of substrates, folding, scoring, gluing, inserts, closures and production methods
- Able to develop structures from rough visual concepts, not only existing technical drawings
- Strong understanding of how packaging moves from dieline → production → assembly → transport → retail
- Comfortable learning our product, brand and manufacturing requirements and applying that judgement independently
- Experience in toys, consumer products or retail packaging is highly desirable
- Proficiency in Adobe Illustrator and/or structural packaging CAD software
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Who We Are
Curious Universe is a fast-growing UK creative product company based in Bath, developing innovative and accessible products across toys, arts & crafts, books, stationery and more. We work across a wide range of formats and materials, with a strong focus on creativity, trend-led innovation and commercially scalable product development.
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