I Help Founders Build Brands That Tell the Truth

Brand strategist and designer based in Tokyo, working globally.

I've spent over 10 years building brands for companies from Harman/Samsung to venture studios backed by Mitsui & Co. My work has stayed relevant for 7+ years, earned Behance features, and helped founders build businesses they're proud of.

But what makes my work different isn't technical skill or industry experience. It's something I learned long before I became a designer: I can spot bullshit instantly. And in branding, that's everything.

Where I’m From

Where I Learned to Question Everything

I grew up in Rostov-on-Don, Russia — a criminal capital known for its mafia background and complicated relationship with truth.

My father was part of that world. I watched him and his hustler friends craft elaborate stories to justify their actions — matching their criminal behavior to a hypocritical code of honor where everything they said to each other had to be "true," even as they lied to everyone else. I remember analyzing how they spoke. Seeing the fragile connection between their words and reality. Realizing that one simple question could break their entire story apart.

That environment taught me something I couldn't unlearn: I learned to spot the gap between what people said and what was actually true. To question everything. To see through surface stories to underlying reality.

It was survival then. It's my superpower now.

Because in branding, I see the same patterns everywhere: companies crafting stories to justify their choices, copying competitors while claiming to be different, building identities on borrowed ideas. Beautiful brands with hollow centers.

The skill I developed to navigate that world became the foundation of how I work: strip away the surface story and find what's actually real.

How I Got Here

The Accidental Designer

I never planned to become a designer. I studied journalism in Moscow because I felt it was one of the few fields where honesty mattered more than performance.

While studying, I took on freelance work designing newspaper layouts. That's when I had a realization: visuals could support true stories in ways words alone couldn't. The right typography, layout, and imagery could make truth more accessible, more compelling, more memorable.

That realization changed everything. Design wasn't just decoration — it was communication. It was meaning-making. I fell in love with the craft. Within months, I knew: this was the only thing I wanted to do for the rest of my life. Not because I loved making things look beautiful (though I do). But because design gave me a tool to help stories — true stories — reach people more powerfully.

That realization took me from Moscow to Shenzhen, where I was scouted by Harman International to work on premium audio brands. I became Art Director, leading packaging and brand systems for Harman Kardon, JBL, and Cleer Audio. Then to Tokyo, where I worked with Moon Creative Lab (a Mitsui venture studio) and eventually Accenture Song.

At every stop, colleagues noted the same thing: my designs were thoughtful. I didn't chase trends. I looked for meaning first.

Why I went Solo

Why I Do This Now

After 10+ years at agencies and in-house, I got tired of the game.

I watched brands get built on buzzwords and competitor analysis. Beautiful identities disconnected from reality. Strategies that sounded good in meetings but fell apart in market.
I got tired of spotting these disconnects — watching how the gap between what brands claimed to be and what they actually were made them identical, meaningless, and ignored.
I went solo to work only with founders ready to stop pretending and start building brands that tell the truth.

Because the brands that actually work — the ones customers remember and choose — aren't the prettiest or most on-trend. They're the realest.

What I Stand For

My Philosophy

I believe:

Authentic brands don't just look different — they ARE different. And customers feel it.
Copying competitors is the safest way to fail. Following trends is how you become invisible.
The best brands are built on uncomfortable truths, not comfortable aspirations.
Strategic design isn't about making things pretty. It's about making things mean something.

I'm allergic to:

Surface-level design that doesn't communicate anything real
Buzzwords and borrowed positioning
Brands that pretend to be something they're not
"Best practices" that make everyone look the same.

I'm here for:

Founders who want truth, not trends
Businesses building something meaningful, not just profitable
Brands willing to own their difference, even when it's uncomfortable
Work that matters more than work that's safe.

How I Work

What Working With Me Looks Like

I start every project by questioning everything you think you know about your brand. What are you trying to be? Why? Is it true?

This can be uncomfortable. Some clients expect a designer to just make things look good. I'm not that designer.

I dig into your business, your competitors, your real differentiation. I challenge assumptions. I push back on borrowed ideas. I help you find what's authentically different — even if it's not what you expected.

Then I build your brand identity, messaging, and visual systems around that truth.

You'll get:

  • Strategic clarity on what makes you actually different

  • Brand identity rooted in reality, not aspiration

  • Visual systems that express your truth clearly

  • A brand that attracts the right customers and repels the wrong ones

I work best with:

  • Founders who value authenticity over polish

  • Startups/scaleups ready to invest in strategic branding (projects start at $3k)

  • Clients willing to hear hard truths about their positioning

  • People building something meaningful, not just chasing money

I don't work with:

  • Businesses that just want something "pretty"

  • Clients who want to copy competitors

  • Anyone looking for the cheapest option

  • Projects that need to be done yesterday

Life Outside Work

When I'm Not Working

I'm based in Tokyo, where I live with my husband. We run a small hospitality business (Tanimachiya — coming soon to this portfolio) in Osaka's Tanimachi district.

I came to Japan for its culture of intentional aesthetics — the way traditional design finds beauty in simplicity and truth in minimal material expression. Japanese architecture, interiors, and packaging design show that you don't need excess to create impact. You need clarity and purpose.

I'm also deeply influenced by anime and manga, where the best stories are built on unfiltered truth about their characters — showing all the contradictions, flaws, and complexity without trying to hide or beautify who they really are. That narrative honesty resonates with how I approach brands.

Beyond that, I spend time in museums analyzing how conceptual artists communicate meaning. I read obsessively about brand strategy, positioning, and creative business. I'm inspired by designers who refuse to compromise: Yohji Yamamoto's commitment to craft over commercialism, Rick Owens' uncompromising vision, Chris Do's philosophy that personal brand isn't marketing — it's who you actually are.

Because the moment you think you know everything is the moment you stop seeing the truth.

Ready to Build Something Real?

Let's talk about what makes your brand actually different — and how to express that honestly.

Currently booking: February 2026 and beyond. 

I only take on 6-8 strategic projects per year to ensure quality and focus.