journal / creative leadership and career record
I am Shona Neary, a creative director, product builder and founder working at the intersection of creative culture, technology, business and globalization. I have owned an entire startup creative remit, founded and built cultural infrastructure, and delivered institutional retail and production work. My record includes Rebel Tech Labs, Countercult, MoMA and Tommy Hilfiger.
By Shona Neary
I am available as a fractional Creative Director or Head of Creative for growth companies, founder-led businesses, agencies and venture-backed teams. I set creative direction and carry it through brand, digital product, marketing, retail, customer experience and production. I work alongside founders and executive teams, with responsibility agreed across the disciplines the brief needs.
Bring me in when a launch needs one direction across the company story, product and customer experience; when an established brand needs its digital and physical work to operate together; or when a team is entering a new market and needs cultural context alongside commercial and creative decisions. My Rebel Tech Labs work connects brand and launch to a built retail environment. MoMA and Tommy Hilfiger show retail and production delivery, while Countercult demonstrates product, software and founder ownership.
Sources: Rebel Tech Labs: brand, launch and retail delivery ↗ MoMA: retail and customer experience ↗ Countercult: founder-built product and infrastructure ↗
Creative culture shapes how people understand and participate in a business. Technology changes what can be made and how people encounter it. Commercial realities affect what can be sustained. Globalization asks which ideas travel, which need translation and who has the local knowledge to make that translation responsibly. I move between these conditions because a useful creative direction has to hold up across them.
I am listed as a host for Creative Tech & Business Exchange Day with Countercult × The Delta at The Delta Campus in Berlin on 6 October 2026. The programme is described as a curated working day for artists, engineers, founders and funders.
Sources: Open the public event listing ↗
I have continued independent creative direction and experience-design work since 2016 across brand, retail, digital and cultural settings. I expanded this practice through Countercult Studios in 2026. Selected work includes MoMA, Tommy Hilfiger and Ann Taylor. The Ann Taylor cashwrap design was featured at GlobalShop in Las Vegas. GlobalShop has since been integrated into the Retail Innovation Conference & Expo (RICE).
Sources: Read the MoMA wayfinding and retail project record ↗ Read the Tommy Hilfiger rollout record ↗ Read the P.A.V.E. and Ann Inc. cashwrap record ↗
My agency experience includes Social Chain in Berlin, MAVRIX in Dublin on virtual production, and LDJ Productions in New York.
Fendi was a client in 2022; project details are confidential under NDA. In 2026, I helped design and produce Sunday Natural’s retail launches on Berlin’s Ku’damm and in Hamburg.
My MoMA work included wayfinding and environmental graphics, retail product mechanicals, window and in-store installation support, and partner decks. Those deliverables connected visual decisions to visitor movement, products, partner communication and the practical needs of an installation. I value experience work that is thoughtful at the concept level and specific enough to be made and used.
Sources: MoMA wayfinding and retail project record ↗ MoMA retail wayfinding case study PDF ↗
For Tommy Hilfiger, I worked on retail experience design within a standardized system spanning more than 500 U.S. touchpoints. My work included production-ready mechanicals, documentation, supplier handoffs and 3D mockups.
Sources: Tommy Hilfiger rollout project record ↗ Tommy Hilfiger rollout case study PDF ↗
From 2022 to 2024 I worked full time at Berlin venture-backed hard-tech company Rebel Tech Labs, with creative and brand leadership and CMO responsibilities. I owned all creative across the brand, website, creative strategy, marketing, go-to-market, retail, customer touchpoints and production. I co-developed investor materials with the CEO and joined investor meetings. For the Ku’damm store concept, I used Blender and Rhino in AI-assisted spatial exploration, developed the floor plan and led engineers and builders through the physical build within a constrained budget.
Sources: Read the Rebel Tech Labs brand and GTM record ↗ Rebel Tech Labs brand and GTM case study PDF ↗
I started testing Countercult in November 2023 and moved into full-time founder work in mid-2024. I founded it as cultural infrastructure, developing a public discovery layer, software and product direction alongside editorial, operations, local relationships, cultural intelligence and commercial models for paid creative work. Countercult Studios began in 2026 to bring my creative and strategic work together and extend delivery for clients. The founder record includes cultural curation, a rural place pilot, local culture business growth and product infrastructure.
Sources: Read the Countercult founder case studies ↗ Read about the Martha’s Burgers budget brief ↗ Read how building Countercult shaped my approach to data and design ↗
My experience also includes work across New York and European contexts, New York Fashion Week and exhibitions. With Sende, I co-created Border Fanzine from old recipes from the Galician and Northern Portuguese border. In 2025 I completed two Rural Hackers residencies in Spain and participated in the Grace Berlin Accelerator. These experiences keep globalization grounded in people and place: a market is not just a destination for a message, and local context should shape the work rather than appear as decoration.
Sources: Read Border Fanzine ↗ Read the Rural Hackers programme ↗ Open my Grace Berlin Accelerator alumnae profile ↗
I hold a BFA in Experience Design from the Fashion Institute of Technology, earned in 2018, and an AAS in Fine Arts from FIT, earned in 2016. English is my native language, my German is near-fluent and my Spanish is conversational. I work between NYC and Berlin, remotely and with travel.
“Along with her undeniable talent, Shona has been a joy to work with. I highly recommend Shona to join your organization.” Melissa Overton, Creative Director, Museum of Modern Art Retail. “I thoroughly enjoyed my time working with Shona and came to know Shona as a truly valuable asset to my team.” Derek Watson, Senior Manager Creative Services, Tommy Hilfiger. “I am pleased to recommend Shona Neary, the creative leader behind CounterCult, for the AvantNow program. Shona has showcased remarkable creativity, impactful initiatives, and a global mindset.” “Their startup, based in Berlin, has demonstrated forward thinking changes in the creative, sustainability, and startup industries, and is successfully organizing methods of connecting professionals and creatives, strengthening the social and economic sustainability of these areas. Shona is well-equipped to leverage the resources and network provided by AvantNow.” “While participating at The Break Fellowship for Women Entrepreneurs, Shona demonstrated to be a key member of the community, always up to contribute and help others with creative solutions and leadership focused on values.” “I'm sure Shona will bring valuable contributions to your program, making the most of it as well.” “Thank you for considering this recommendation.” Cristina Pan García, Program Coordinator at The Break Fellowship, 15 January 2024 (recommendation for the AvantNow programme).
Sources: Read Cristina’s original recommendation ↗ Open the F6S recommendation ↗
We begin with the situation, the people involved, what needs to change and when it needs to be ready. We agree the remit, decision rights, time commitment, deliverables and working relationship with the team before starting. That may be an ongoing fractional leadership role, a fixed-term embedded engagement or a focused launch across brand, product and customer experience.
My two-page CV sets out the chronology, ownership, selected work, education and recommendations. The recruiter profile is the shorter hiring overview, and the linked project records show the work behind the claims. Contact me on LinkedIn or by email with the role or brief, team context, timing and budget if known so we can discuss the fit.
Sources: Download my two-page CV ↓ Read the recruiter profile ↗ Discuss a creative leadership role on LinkedIn ↗
work, references and next steps
