JUAN HERRERA

Creative Director | Brand & Marketing Leader

📍 Chicago, IL | 📱 847.644.1136 | 📧 herrera.juanm@gmail.com

PROFILE

Creative Director with deep experience leading high-performing in-house and agency teams across healthcare, CPG, and lifestyle brands. Expert in integrated brand storytelling, experiential activations, and building impactful partnerships—from global sports leagues to niche influencers. Proven success driving brand transformation, campaign effectiveness, and operational excellence. Known for blending creative vision with business strategy to build brands that resonate and perform.

CORE EXPERTISE

Creative Leadership Campaign Development  Sports & Sponsorship Marketing In-House Agency

Management  Experiential Strategy Cross-Functional Collaboration Brand Identity Digital & Social Team Building & Operations

EXPERIENCE

ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR, STRATEGIC MARKETING
Horizon Therapeutics – Deerfield, IL | 2021 – 2024

- Built Horizon’s internal creative agency, delivering 100+ cross-functional campaigns and generating $7MM+ in annual savings through operational efficiency. Led brand, digital, and partnership strategy—elevating corporate visibility and patient-centric storytelling.

- Spearheaded the full creative execution and oversight of Horizon’s $25MM+ global sports partnerships, including UEFA Champions League and U.S. Soccer, delivering world-class brand activations across digital, print, and live experiences.

- Led creative development for global campaign assets supporting sports sponsorships: digital banners, in-stadium signage, broadcast content, hospitality branding, and athlete-led social campaigns.

- Developed experiential and hospitality concepts to engage internal stakeholders, HCPs, and patients at major sporting events, aligning with Horizon’s values and therapeutic focus areas.

- Negotiated new partnership opportunities and helped shape the creative vision for activation strategy, ensuring consistency across consumer and corporate brand touchpoints.

- Launched Horizon’s first corporate campaign with integrated assets across TV, OOH, digital, and social, collaborating closely with Comms, Legal, and C-Suite stakeholders.

ASSOCIATE CREATIVE DIRECTOR
Jack Morton (Molson Coors) – Chicago, IL | 2018 – 2020

  • Reimagined 20+ branded destinations across U.S. markets for Molson Coors brands including Miller Lite, Coors Lite, Vizzy, etc.

  • Built immersive consumer experiences around music and sports partnerships, aligning brand tone across live events and digital.

  • Worked cross-functionally with client leadership to elevate the presence of challenger brands such as Peroni, Blue Moon Light Sky and Vizzy.

ASSOCIATE CREATIVE DIRECTOR
The Escape Pod (Skil, Fireball) – Chicago, IL | 2017 – 2018

  • Conceptualized and executed the digital launch campaigns for Skil and Skilsaw, pioneering the first-ever consumer tool launches exclusively with Amazon. 

  • Was the creative lead for Fireball Whisky’s debut marketing campaign driving $1MM+ in multi-channel ad spend and leveraging digital influencer strategies to amplify reach.

SENIOR ART DIRECTOR
Cavalry/Y&R – Chicago, IL | 2016 – 2017

  • Directed social and digital strategies for The Laughing Cow’s Cheese Dippers, streamlining content creation processes and leveraging Instagram and Pinterest influencers for impactful, snackable content.

  • Led the strategic development and execution of Hillshire Farm’s integrated “Closer To The Farm Than You Think” campaign, ensuring seamless process alignment across channels.

ART DIRECTOR
Digitas (Molson Coors) – Chicago, IL | 2012 – 2016

  • Developed Miller Lite’s social presence into a best-in-class brand. Led creative initiatives to enhance national campaigns achieving Super Bowl-level impressions at a fraction of the cost.

  • Elevated Miller Lite’s Twitter strategy, establishing a brand voice that positioned it as the #1 beer on the platform.

  • Spearheaded cross-agency collaborations to enhance Agency of Record work, including "It’s Miller Time" and activations at SXSW and ACL.

EDUCATION

Miami Ad School – Creative Direction & Advertising

The Ohio State University – B.A., Political Science & International Relations

SKILLS

Adobe Creative Suite • Creative Strategy • ClickUp & Project Management

Sponsorship Activation • Google Analytics • Fluent Spanish • Proficient French