Partner
Betool Al Zeraie
Managing Partner
Betool majored in marketing at University, and has pursued a career in marketing ever since. She has overseen marketing and communications teams at companies operating fashion brands the likes of Maxmara, DKNY, Jimmy Choo, Kenzo, Margiela, DSquared, Ted Baker, Patek Philippe, Chopard, Harry Winston, Bvlgari and many more, with direct responsibility for all marketing and communications.
Betool’s speciality lies in her creative nature and ability to spot and leverage cultural trends. She leads the zerad marketing and creative consultancy.
Some of Our Contributing Team
Osian Batyka-Berry
Retail Design & Fabrication Consultant
Osian is an industrial designer, with a 1st class honours degree in product and furniture design from Kingston University, England. He has a highly aesthetic eye, and has executed a number of high quality retail and fashion executions. He now owns and runs his own design consultancy based in London.
Osian has also been an Ambassador for New Balance for many years, and in that time produced a number of retail executions around the world, from the UK to as far as China.
Osian is a versatile designer, who’s focus is to produce rich design work through careful thought and intuitive research. His specialties include spacial, furniture and retail installation design, as well as overseeing production and fabrication himself through his studio. His clients have included New Balance, Nicholas Kirkwood, Bombay Sapphire to name a few.
Sophy Bae
Senior Director, Asia-Pacific
Sophy, based in Seoul, Korea, brings a wealth of experience to the team, having spent eleven years with the Adidas Group for Asia Pacific across roles as varied as Head of Product Development for Reebok, Head of Group Retail Marketing and Merchandising, Reebok Brand Director China, and Senior Director of Visual Merchandising for all Adidas Group brands, overseeing 2,500 retail stores and a team of 180 visual staff across all regional offices; in the latter role her team were awarded “Best Global VM Team in Adidas Group” in 2014. Most recently and spanning five years, Sophy was Cole Haan’s Senior Director of International Marketing for every territory outside of the US domestic market, where she oversaw go-to-market strategy, all DCI and marketing activity, visual merchandising, and retail store development across the brands’ more than 80 countries of operation.
Sophy has an MA from Parsons School of Design, New York, and an MA in Visual Merchandising from Seoul, Korea, and has also held Guest Professor appointments at Beijing University, China, and Hosue University, Korea.
Feirand Kurdi
Senior Director, Europe and North America
Feirand is a commercial real estate investment professional with over 17 years’ experience covering a multitude of asset classes including retail, hospitality, offices, leisure, industrial and mixed-use. He has held senior roles with leading property developers and investors in the MENA region, franchise retailers and a management consultancy specialised in advising UHNW individuals and private equity, and has been involved in mega projects the likes of the Conrad Hotel Dubai, 360 Mall/Al Kout Kuwait and others, in the UAE, Kuwait and Jordan. His specialisms include strategy, acquisitions and divestments, valuations, portfolio management, leasing, financial feasibility studies and analysis, development consultancy and project management. Feirand has an MBA from Warwick Business School and a Bachelor’s degree with honours in Logistics & Supply Chain Management.
Yasmeen Khaja
Creative & Design Leadership
Yasmeen Khaja is a Kuwait-based multidisciplinary designer and writer. She works with creative studios like Sharaf Studio and Amna Alsalem, and has previously learned from organizations such as Aerial Futures, AIA NY, SYPartners, and more.
Yasmeen has an Honors BFA in Graphic Design with a Minor in Writing + Literature from the California College of the Arts located in San Francisco and Oakland. She also holds an MA in Design Research, Writing, and Criticism from the School of Visual Arts in New York. She has attended the School for Poetic Computation. She is the recipient of multiple awards for her culturally-driven design work and research. Her diverse background—crossing research, graphic design, code, and writing—makes context the foundation of her work.