About this role
King Features is seeking a passionate, proactive, and creatively driven Brand Marketing Manager to help steward and grow some of the most iconic character brands in the world. Reporting to the Senior Brand Marketing Manager, this role is a key contributor on a small but highly collaborative Brand Marketing team responsible for building, protecting, and evolving a portfolio of beloved intellectual property with century-long legacies, including POPEYE, OLIVE OYL, FLASH GORDON, THE PHANTOM, MOOMIN, CUPHEAD, and more.
This is a dynamic role for someone who takes initiative, thinks strategically, and brings strong follow-through to everything they do. Our work is opportunity-driven by nature, and priorities can shift quickly when new business opportunities arise. We are looking for someone who is adaptable, resourceful, and energized by contributing to meaningful brand growth. The team operates in a fast-paced, collaborative, and lively culture where creativity, curiosity, and a sense of shared ownership are valued.
If you are excited by character brands, pop culture, and the opportunity to strengthen and elevate iconic IP for future generations, this role offers a rare chance to do just that.
WHAT YOU’LL DO
Brand Strategy and Marketing Execution:
-Partner with the Senior Brand Marketing Manager to support long-term brand planning and day-to-day brand stewardship across the full King Features IP portfolio
-Serve as a brand expert across all King Features brands, ensuring consistency in positioning, voice, and messaging across licensing, publishing, gaming, experiential, entertainment, marketing, and press
-Proactively identify and propose brand marketing initiatives that drive awareness, cultural relevance, and revenue opportunities
-Research trends, insights, and marketplace opportunities to inform strategic recommendations
-Lead the planning and execution of approved marketing initiatives and special projects from concept through completion, including timelines, budgets, vendors, creative development, logistics, and reporting
-Prepare post-campaign recaps and performance summaries for internal stakeholders
Public Relations Leadership:
-Act as the first point of contact for public relations, managing the external PR agency relationship
-Own PR calendars and timelines, ensuring alignment with brand, licensing, and partner -priorities
-Conduct first reviews of press materials and manage internal feedback loops
-Oversee press distribution and track coverage to deliver internal PR performance summaries
Marketing Support for Licensed Partners:
-Serve as the primary marketing contact for licensing partners, working closely with the Licensing team to track key launches
-Coordinate and lead marketing support for key licensing launches, including press, social, and marketing tie-ins
Management of Brand Assets and Tools:
-Support the creation and ongoing maintenance of external sales decks and one-sheets used to drive licensing opportunities
-Develop and update internal brand tools such as brand story decks and brand bibles on a quarterly basis
-Oversee Popeye.com, KingFeatures.com, and other portfolio brand sites as needed, including monthly content updates, blog posts, and coordination with digital teams on SEO strategy
-Manage relationships with costume character partners
Brand Reviews and Creative Development:
-Act as the first point of contact for story-driven submission reviews across publishing, gaming, experiential, and other categories, partnering with the Brand Marketing Coordinator to execute reviews
-Assist with general product approvals as needed and escalate when deeper brand guidance is required
Boosting Industry Visibility:
-Curate and distribute quarterly newsletters, highlighting brand activity and performance
-Manage and oversee award submissions across brands and categories
Operations and Team Support:
-Track departmental expenses against budget and submit invoices in partnership with Finance and AP
-Assist with vendor setup and internal operational processes
And More:
-Participate in ad-hoc projects as needed. At King Features, teamwork is core to how we operate, and flexibility is essential to meeting shared goals
WHO YOU ARE
You are a motivated and thoughtful brand marketer who brings both strategic perspective and hands-on execution to your work. You take ownership, communicate clearly, and approach challenges with a solution-oriented mindset. You enjoy collaborating across teams and contribute positively to an energetic and respectful work environment. You care deeply about brand integrity and are excited by the opportunity to help iconic properties continue to grow and resonate in modern culture.
Qualifications and Skills
Required:
-Bachelor’s degree
-5+ years of experience in brand marketing, brand management, or related fields
-Demonstrated experience building or managing brands; character IP or licensing experience strongly preferred
-Exceptional project management, organizational, and communication skills
-Ability to manage multiple priorities and adapt quickly in a fast-paced environment
-Strong relationship-building and account management skills
-Comfort presenting to partners and internal senior leadership
-Advanced proficiency in PowerPoint and Canva with a strong understanding of design principles
-High proficiency in Microsoft Office, including Excel, PowerPoint, Word, Outlook, as well as Google Workspace, Dropbox, and Teams
Nice to Have:
-Experience working with PR agencies or managing press initiatives
-Familiarity with licensing, product development, or partner marketing workflows
-Experience in entertainment, media, publishing, gaming, or experiential marketing
-Working knowledge of Adobe Creative Suite, WordPress, and emerging AI tools
-Strong awareness of pop culture, consumer trends, and the evolving brand landscape
-Candidates should be prepared to provide work samples demonstrating brand thinking, presentation skills, and creative execution.
Compensation and Work Environment
The salary range for this role is $70,000 to $75,000, dependent on experience, transferable skills, and other factors permitted by law. This role is based in New York, NY and requires an in-office presence three days per week.
About King Features
King Features is a premier producer and distributor of the world’s most iconic intellectual properties and a leader in classic character licensing and franchise development. With one of the longest-running consumer products programs in the industry, King Features’ portfolio includes world-renowned pop culture brands such as Popeye®, Cuphead, Flash Gordon™, The Phantom™, Hägar the Horrible, Moomin, Prince Valiant® and Mandrake the Magician. King Features produced the Emmy-nominated series The Cuphead Show! with Netflix Animation, which debuted in 2022. As content syndication specialists, the company distributes beloved comics such as Blondie, Beetle Bailey®, Mutts™, and dozens of others as well as columns, editorial cartoons, and puzzles across multiple platforms and content providers around the globe. King Features is part of Hearst Newspapers, which publishes 24 dailies and 52 weeklies, including the Houston Chronicle, San Francisco Chronicle, and Times Union (Albany, New York), and operates local digital marketing services and directories.
Other facts
About Hearst
As one of the nation’s largest global, diversified information, services and media companies, Hearst has been leading with purpose and integrity and innovating for more than a century. With a mission to inform audiences and improve lives, the company’s portfolio includes global financial services leader Fitch Group; Hearst Health, a group of medical information and services businesses; Hearst Transportation, which includes CAMP Systems International, a major provider of software-as-a-service solutions for managing the maintenance of jets and helicopters; 35 television stations; 24 daily and 52 weekly newspapers; more than 200 magazine editions around the world and ownership in cable television networks A&E, HISTORY, Lifetime and ESPN.
Leading with purpose, Hearst is always moving forward. With a commitment to the highest quality in our products and services, we’re investing in healthcare solutions to help improve patient outcomes and technology that curbs emissions. Our brands are providing vital analysis, data and software to the global financial services industry; delivering important service and investigative journalism; and inspiring audiences with sports and entertainment programming. And we are dedicated to serving the communities it operates in, both civically and philanthropically.
What you'll do
- The Brand Marketing Manager will support long-term brand planning and day-to-day brand stewardship across King Features' IP portfolio. They will lead the planning and execution of marketing initiatives and manage public relations efforts.
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