Assaf Ziv is a branding, image and marketing consultant to leading fashion companies. The book Stylemakers: Inside Fashion dubbed Ziv “The Wizard” in selecting him as one of the most influential fashion luminaries today. He brings an extensive background in the worlds of fashion, editorial and branding, and a reputation as one of the world’s most influential stylemakers. Ziv has years of experience as an art director and fashion director for countless international fashion magazines, advertising campaigns, catalogs and runway shows, as well as an interior designer and set designer for film productions.

His work is driven by a strong conceptual vision. He draws ideas from a wide range of sources—art, music, vintage markets, foreign travel, graphic design and architecture. A personal passion is art, both as a collector and an artist: his own paintings and photographs have been shown in galleries around the world.

ACT 1: STYLEMAKER

Born in Tel Aviv, Israel, Assaf Ziv gained wide recognition in his home country for his pioneering work in fashion journalism and art direction. He began his career working at a variety of Israeli magazines including LaIsha (“For Women”), Olam Haisha, and the style magazine Yedioth Ahronoth. He moved to Paris for two years early in his career, where he became an acclaimed makeup artist whose clients included ID Magazine, Depeche Mode Magazine, Chantal Thomass, Alain Mikli, Véronique Leroy and YSL.

Returning to Israel, he became Head Fashion Editor for the Maariv Group, where he provided art direction and styling at AT Magazine (a women’s fashion monthly), Style Magazine and Weekend Magazine. He soon achieved status as the number one fashion stylist in Israel. His clients included Castro, French Connection, Marks & Spencer, Gottex, Bagir, Comme il Faut, Triumph, Mashbir, Stefanel and many others.

Ziv did costume design and styling for the film The Time of the Cherry Tree; numerous television commercials for clients such as Israel’s National Gardens, German Lottery, Eden Mineral Water, Macabi Beer and others; and video clips for Aviv Gefen and Eti Ankari—the latter nominated for Best Video Clip. He did design and styling for many record albums, shows, ballet performances and television fashion events such as the Fashion World’s Salute to Peace. During this time he was also a guest instructor and lecturer at Tel Aviv’s Shenkar School of Fashion and Technology, Camera Obscura School of Art, and others.

Ready to expand his style influence in the United States, he moved to New York and served as Fashion Stylist for the Ennis Agency, styling magazine photo shoots and ad campaigns for clients including Nikon, Bacardi, Elle Magazine, Self Magazine, Shape Magazine, AT&T, Bloomingdales, Castro Catalog, Health Magazine, Silhouettes, Elie Tahari, Target, and Baccarat.

He later became Partner and Creative Director at the FEED Gallery in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. It was his experience at the gallery and as an art director and fashion editor at Paparazzi Magazine, E.P. Editorial Photo Magazine, and AT Magazine that led him to his next venture, partnering with Elie Tahari and Tal Lanchman in cofounding ZAO Store and Gallery, a mixed-media boutique and art gallery in New York’s Lower East Side.

ZAO was a groundbreaking retail concept that masterfully blended high design, fashion and art. As Creative Director, Ziv conceived the space’s innovative design; oversaw product selection; developed creative strategies for the store’s branding and identity; and helped organize exhibits by photographers, sculptors, painters and fashion designers. ZAO was featured in New York Magazine, Vogue, The New York Times, Paper and many other publications. Among the boutique’s regular clients were Calvin Klein, Susan Sarandon and Lenny Kravitz.

ACT 2: BRAND WIZARD

Most recently, Ziv was Executive Creative Director for Bellevue, Wash.-based Topline Corporation, where he established and grew the corporate identity and image for Topline and its REPORT footwear lines. Here he furthered his reputation as a design-minded, innovative executive with a strong ability to identify and translate key fashion trends.

Topline’s brands include REPORT, chic, versatile shoes for women and girls in the know; REPORT Signature, fashion-forward footwear worn by savvy celebrities; and R2, trend-oriented footwear for stylish girls and teens. Ziv turned around REPORT footwear from $5 million in sales in 2002 to sales of over $65 million in 2010, and Topline’s corporate private labels and licensees from $20 million in 2002 to over $130 million in 2010.

Through Ziv’s efforts, REPORT Signature was established as a creative, fast-growing high fashion footwear brand. Today, REPORT Signature collections appear in major department stores and key fashion directional retailers such as Nordstrom, Macy’s, Diavolina, Fred Segal, Madison and Intermix. The brand’s influential celebrity customers include Paris Hilton, Fergie, Cameron Diaz, Christina Aguilera, Courtney Cox, the Kardashian sisters, and Lindsay Lohan.

Among Ziv’s accomplishments and responsibilities at Topline were planning and executing brand platforms for Topline, REPORT, REPORT Signature and R2, including creative vision, direction and design concepts. He built the brands by identifying and researching key current and future trends, materials, color themes and seasonal moods through his trips to global markets and trade shows.

Ziv provided trend direction for the product development team, and translated the company’s sales objectives into customized marketing solutions and visual presentations for sales meetings, internal events, client meetings, trade shows and more.

On the marketing, advertising and promotional front, he oversaw the execution of all initiatives. Ziv conceptualized and directed award-winning REPORT catalogs and ad campaigns, including concept, art direction, photography, pre-production, production and post-production, retouch, color correction, model/talent casting, locations, styling, and editing. He directed media buying for national, regional and trade advertising, including budget planning. And he managed the Media and Public Relations group for comp visuals, footwear shows, special events, marketing budgets, planning and training, and Fashion Week celebrity outreach.

Additionally, Ziv designed the company’s 38,000-square-foot West Coast corporate headquarters, as well as its sleek 3,400-square-foot New York City showroom, covering all planning, production and buying.

HONORS