FASHION ILLUSTRATION
www.traffic-nyc.com info@traffic-nyc.com t. 1 212 734 0041
ILLUSTRATION PHOTOGRAPHY *Art Fashion Still Life Lifestyle Portraiture Interiors Motion/Animation
*Print Digital Social Media
BRANDING STRATEGY DESIGN COPY WRITING
CLIENTS: ADK AMAZON AMERICAN EXPRES ARTEMUS ASSOULINE ASTROLOGY ZONE A BARON BARNEY’S NEW YORK BATH & BODY PUBLISHING BLOOMINGDALES BREATHE MA NYSON BON POINT BULFINCH PRESS BYRON CHRISTIANE CELLE CATHERINE MALANDRINO TICAL CLINIQUE CLUB MONACO COCA COLA CFDA CLINIQUE DELTA AIRLINES DEPARTURE PUBLISHERS DURST ORGANIZATION EDELMA SENCE ESTEE LAUDER EURO RSCG FAIRCHIL STORES GO SMILE GREY ADVERTISING GUES COLLINS HANRO HENRI BENDEL HUGO BOSS AZINE J BRAND LAIRD & PARTNERS LANCOM NETT USA LIZ CLAIBORNE LLOYD & CO. L’ORE LINE MARCEL SCHURMAN MATRIX MCCANN HOTEL GROUP MS FOUNDATION FOR WOMEN NINE WEST NORDSTROM NOXZEMA NEW YO KINDS LANE PANACHE MODE PAPYRUS PARA KEN REVLON RIZZOLI ROBERT LEE MORRIS RO ING ROSEWOOD HOTELS ROYAL PROMOTION LECT COMMUNICATIONS SELF MAGAZINE SEP MORRISON SMASHBOX COSMETICS SONY SP KNOLL STETSON ST. REGIS HOTEL SUNDARI & CO. TWINNINGS TEA TROJAN TBWA CHIAT WANG VICTORIA’S SECRET VIRGIN VOGUE WA WWD WW NORTON & CO.
SS ANN TAYLOR ANN TAYLOR LOFT ARAMIS AVEDA AVON AWAKE COSMETICS BARON + WORKS BIGELOW BLACKDOG + LEVENTHAL AGAZINE BROADWAY BOOKS BROGAN TENN PRESS CALYPSO CHAMPALIMAUD DESIGN O CHANEL CHIC SIMPLE CHRISTIAN ROTH OPA CONCRETE BRANDING CONDE NAST COTY ES MAGAZINE DESIGN BOP DISTRIBUTED ART AN ARTS EILEEN FISHER ELLE MAGAZINE ESLD PUBLICATIONS FEDERATED DEPARTMENT SS HAMMITT LA HARLEQUIN BOOKS HARPER S HUNTER DOUGLAS INK & CO. INSTYLE MAGME LAURA MERCIER LILLY PULITZER LEO BUREAL LOWE MAC COSMETICS MATRIX MAYBELN ERICKSON MCDONALDS MODCO MORGAN N MY HABIT NEIMAN MARCUS NEUTROGENA YORK TIMES MAGAZINE NISSAN NYLON ONE ACHUTE PUBLISHING RANDOM HOUSE REDOCKWELL GROUP RODALE CUSTOM PUBLISHN GROUP SAKS FIFTH AVENUE SEAGRAMS SEPHORA SHISEIDO SIMON SCHUSTER SIGERSON PA MAGAZINE STARWOOD HOTELS STEPHEN SVEDKA SVEDKA VODKA TARGET TIFFANY AT DAY THE LIMITED VENDOME PRESS VERA ALLPAPER WELEDA WSJ WETSEAL WOOLITE
We believe that BRANDING is all about YOU. We are a collaborative collective of creative individuals – an evolving group of people – with a spectrum of perspectives on this ever-expanding space. We know the rules. We also know how to break them, We’re here to help you refine, define and express your point of view on beauty and branding. We’re the voice who can help you communicate your vision – through stories, words, faces, and illustrations – that make you unique.
OUR CLIENTS Run the gamut from start-ups to established international brands and Fortune 500 companies. With a 360 degree view and a multicultural perspective, we offer expertise, seasoned and groundbreaking guidance in branding and strategy, creative direction and design. We also work with multimedia and multi-channel advertising, and influencer and idea-oriented, content development, licensing, publishing, along with invaluable referrals for public relations. Given our wide array of clients across diverse sectors of the market we can facilitate co-branding and multi-level collaborations.
Clients we have collaborated with in the field of hospitality and real estate include The Durst Organization, Morgan Hotel Group, Architectural Digest, Andre Balaz, Baker, Elliman, Rockwell Group, Champalimaud Design, ServCorp, Hunter Douglas, Starwood Hotels, Michael J Smith Design, Stephen Sills, Ralph Pucci International, Schrager Hotels, Kohler, Delano Hotel, Mondrian Hotels, Mercer Hotel, Royalton Hotel and many more.
MICHELLE EDELMAN, CEO and Founder An expert in the field of branding, Michelle has had a colorful and diverse journey leading up to to Traffic. From designing ads at the Village Voice, to working as a fashion stylist and photography agent, to moving up through the agency world with Cato Desgrippes Beauchant Gobé and Lister Butler, she has dedicated her career to a deeper understanding of every aspect of branding and design. Enamored both of fashion and publishing, Michelle was brought on by Grace Mirabella as the photo editor for Mirabella Magazine. Later, she joined the newly launched Allure magazine as a photo editor, where a new perspective of beauty was born. After her time in publishing, she followed design director Lucy Sisman on to new pursuits, working hand-in-hand to build Sisman Design into a successful branding agency, before branching out on her own to found Traffic. In addition to her role as CEO of Traffic, she also works alongside M&A Arts, dedicated to Art and Finance. She is on the executive board the American Scandinavian Foundation, and holds a BA in Social Psychology and Communications from UC Santa Cruz. Michelle was born in Norway
and raised around the world, in Norway, France, England, Germany, and Egypt. She speaks most of the languages native to these countries. michelleve@traffic-nyc.com IG michelle_edelman
SHEREKA EVANS, Executive Vice President An industry insider with over 20 years at Traffic, Shereka oversees business operations, marketing, artist relations, and account management. She plays an invaluable role in bridging the relationships between clients and artists. She is strategically minded, solutions-oriented and results driven. Culturally attuned and new media savvy, she has a keen understanding of the shifts in marketing, media, and culture as a whole. On a personal note, she is a keen writer, poet, and taste-maker. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Forensic Psychology from John Jay University. Shereka is Jamaican/American, embodying the best of both cultures.
shereka@traffic-nyc.com IG xaymacabird
CREATIVE DIRECTION MICHELLE EDELMAN AMEENA MEER DEANNE CHEUK MICHELLE ROQUE
NHI MUNDY SILKE VISHAB ERIKA PERRY PAUL LAMB
CREATIVE/COPY (LINK) AMEENA MEER AMY SWIFT BRENDA CULLERTON DIMITRI EHRLICH FAYETTE HICKOX MICHAEL GROSS JIM LARKIN
ART IZAK ZENOU SOPHIE GRIOTTO MIA MARIE OVERGAARD WENDY PLOVMAND MONSIEUR Z RIKKE JØRGENSEN LUCILE PRACHE CECILIA LUNDGREN ADOLFO CORREA ERIC INKALA SAM WILDE MOYOSORE MARTINS BRITT BOUTROS-GHALI
SOUND DESIGN JEREMIAH BORNFIELD DIMITRI EHRLICH CHRISTOPHER EDELMAN/PRODBYGEKKO
Photography by Michael Mundy © 2019
PHOTOGRAPHY MICHAEL MUNDY BOWEN FERNIE DANIELLA LIGUORI
MOTION ANIMATION FILM STEFANO DE BELLIS MICHAEL MUNDY LIONEL DJAOWE DAVIES AND STAR DANIEL LEMUNYAN
COPYWRITING. Copywriters are really conceptual artists—each with
their own unique style. Not only are they seasoned wordsmiths and communicators, but they have the unique gift to fully encapsulate an entire brand vision and experience. Our skill is the keen understanding to pair you with the right copywriter that meets your specific need and vision. WORDS ARE IMPORTANT. Today, when audiences are inundated by media, the right words can make an image unforgettable. Without copy, even beautiful images become interchangeable. The copywriters we work with know how to speak a brand’s language, how to give the brand story depth and resonance. They are the conceptor who can see the big picture and bring it all together. COPY GIVES A BRAND A VOICE AND A SOUL. Our copywriters develop brand voices, clarify brand missions, create brand and product stories, and reawaken brand histories and mythologies, as well as brand positionings. Words, ideas, and concepts bring advertising, promotional campaigns and websites to life. A great copywriter understands the importance of the perfect brand or product name, along with the exact words to describe its benefits. The right words matter in ads, out of home, brochures, web banners, POS materials, commercial scripts for video, TV and radio spots. NAMING. We have great success with name development. We offer the unique possibility of working with one of our seasoned copywriters to mastermind your naming strategy and development. We also run a naming group with a writer and creative leading the sessions. This “round table” of individuals are curated based on the clients’ industry sector, and overall experience. Extensive lists of names are generated, then distilled, and returning to the creative process multiple time until we arrive to a short list of names that can be trademarked. We can provide legal support, if needed.
Traffic and all of our writers, illustrators, and creative talent contributed to the creation and production of GUESS magazine for 2014—2020. We developed the editorial content, designed, curated, collaborated, commissioned works. Amy Swift took the lead on written content. We can honestly say every word printed was written by her. We were sad to see this wonderful journey come to an end with the start of covid.
AMY SWIFT The Story is in the Telling. Amy is a writer, strategist and content creator. Her focus is in architecture, real estate, beauty, fashion, fitness, spirituality and design, as well as non-profit, finance and general consumer products. She loves connecting with people through compelling stories and words that disarm how an audience typically thinks of a product or service. By finding or creating a brands voice, she’s able to craft editorial and blog content, as well as photography assets and video content, to more effectively amplify presence, visibility and message. As a copywriter, she develops the positioning/strategy, brand guidelines, as well as crafts or edits external messaging like websites, taglines/naming, social media posts, advertisements and other marketing collateral. She also works as a ghostwriter for CEO’s, personalities and celebrities when they’re tasked with publishing a column or in need of talking points for TV/digital. Relevant work: Hotels: Stanford Hotel Group Schrager Hotels, New York City CityCenter (now Aria) Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Las Vegas Harmon Hotel, Las Vegas Gensler Architecture (multiple public projects) Richard Meier Architects, furniture collaboration Developers + Builders: Industry Partners (real estate, Los Angeles) Lena Group (real estate, Los Angeles) Astani Partners (real estate, Los Angeles) Anderson Real Estate (Los Angeles) Conroy Commercial (real estate, Los Angeles) RAC Design Build (Los Angeles) Principal Builders (San Francisco) Properties: The Fields (retail, dining, office) Los Angeles Crossroads of the World, (retail, dining, entertainment) Los Angeles Lantana, (office) Los Angeles Wrenn (luxury residential) Los Angeles) The Bloc (retail, dining) The Culver Steps (retail, entertainment, dining) The Wallis Center for Performing Arts Lifestyle Brands: GOOP Apple Bulgari Sur La Table Pottery Barn Guess Brands Limited Brands LINK to Amy’s online portfolio
Sunset Magazine
IN THE BEGINNING THERE WAS THE WORD IT’S THE IDEA THE IDEA UNDERNEATH THE EMOTION THE IDEA THAT DRIVES THE STORY THAT PAINTS THE PICTURES THAT MAKES US BELIEVE BRING BELOW-THE-LINE TO ABOVE-THE-LINE VIRTUAL TO REALITY THE IDEA THAT MOVES THE PRODUCT INTO OUR MINDSPACE THE IDEA THAT CLOSES THE SALE AND OPENS UP A WHOLE NEW WAY OF BEING Ameena Meer
AMEENA MEER, Creative Director and Copywriter Ameena has launched and revitalized high-impact brands and products with lasting influence. Her strength is expressing emotion that inspires action. As a writer, Meer knows intuitively that a good story changes minds. She believes the most effective communication is based on love for the consumer, respect for the brand and change for the good. After a misspent youth as a fashion victim, club kid, journalist, dancer, editor, Asian American activist and waitress, Ameena came back to writing with her first novel, Bombay Talkie. Three daughters later, she authored How to Shoot Your Kids for Arthur Elgort. After she survived cancer she wrote Fearless Healing, an inspiring guide to take charge of your own healing . A mother of re-invention, Meer’s been a copywriter, thinker, conceptor and/or creative director for Avon, Calvin Klein, Coty, The Gap, Estee Lauder, Donna Karan, Federated Stores, Pzifer, L’Oreal, The Navajo Nation, Homes for the Homeless and Proctor & Gamble. Today, Ameena bridges her commercial branding work with her passion for natural health and healing. She trained and became a certified Holistic Nutritionist, Energy Healer and Meditation Guide. As her focus in this area has grown, so have the clients and brands with whom she works—providing them with a deep knowledge she has to offer. She has worked with Jurlique, Under the Canopy, Kama Ayurveda, and 5S for Shiseido (based on 5 senses). She has spent the past three years working closely with Weleda as a consulting creative director to help brand and guide them for the US market.
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LINK TO BRAND BOOK
CHAMPALIMAUD DESIGN Brand research, analysis and positioning for guiding the company ‘s evolution into a cohesive brand with products in multiple categories in the Interior and Lifestyle sectors of the market. The project included extensive Competitors and Market Research, Visual Reseach and devloping a Brand Positioning Strategy. Branding and Design: Traffic Copywriting: Ameena Meer
Hunter Douglas, a dominant player in the worldwide window shade sector, sought our help to re-position their brand through their automated, window shade controller, Powerview Motorization. As new companies were emerging with similar technology and the category was beginning to be absorbed by more innovative companies, HD needed to work quickly and to create something that would help them maintain their leadership position in the market. HD created the Pebble, a fun and beautifully designed remote controller for Powerview as a hook to sway the perception the company as more modern and innovative. The design of the Pebble was very successful, however, the visual materials and advertising were outdated and did not present the product in an innovative way. We started by creating an animated video for the Pebble, which was used to launch Powerview Motorization to the press and was used on their website and social media. The 15 and 45 second animated video was created by our photographer Davies + Starr. The fresh and fun video was extremely successful. We went on to explore a new voice for the ads, which was more straight forward and smart, a more modern presentation with more focus on the Pebble, as well as the overall concepts for print advertising. Creative Direction and Design: Michelle Edelman and Chalkie Davies Digital Design: Jeffrey Hurley Copywriting: Ameena Meer
LINK TO VIDEO
AMEENA MEER
X WELEDA
With our creative guru and Brandwallah, Ameena Meer, in the lead we did a deep dive into the branding of WELEDA for the U.S. Ameena provided her deep knowledge and expertise in the beauty industry. The brand vision and seasonal campaign concepts, provide the guidelines for agency partners, with a totally collaborative process. Traffic handled all facets of logistics, as well as photo research, concepting, and project management. The goal was to build brand awareness for Weleda and create an emotional connection between the U.S. consumer with one of the oldest wellness brands in Europe. And, to push Weleda into a dominant position in the natural skincare sector, leveraging it’s long European history with deep roots in natural products with biodynamic and anthroposophic practices. Over the last three years, Weleda’s sales at Whole Foods increased 68 - 77% a year, the sales in other natural lifestyle stores increased 65% a year and the sales in mainstream stores like Target, Walgreens, Wegmans, and Walmart increased 100%.
Manifesto Celebrate your beauty. Feed your body, mind and soul with products that do us good, that do good on the earth, Immerse yourself in words, actions, objects That have beautiful meaning. Let the trees, plants and flowers Connect your body To it’s healing powers. Let the sea and sky soothe your soul And the ground quiet your mind. Because when you are in balance with nature, you shine brighter. Live your inner nature.
If you know who you are. If you’ll try anything once. If you won’t take no for an answer. If you live your own life. If you choose love over stability. If you like to share. If you don’y try to be something you’re not. If you think conformity is boring. If you’re a man or a woman.
CK one
This remarkable example of a brand positioning statement by Ameena Meer so deeply the embodied essence of the brand that it became the springboard for creative all the years ahead.
ORIGINAL GENUINE SIGNIFICANT ART TRANSFORMS YOUR
SPACE SPIRIT ARTEMVS EMPOWERS YOU TO MAKE
INSPIRING VALUABLE WORKS OF ART AN INTEGRAL PART OF YOUR
CULTURE IMAGE ENVIRONMENT
Artemus is an art finance, leasing, lending and advisory firm providing advantageous ways for individuals and businesses to make significant works of art an integral part of your life. With over eighty-five years of combined experience in fine art, finance, and real estate, we are uniquely suited to fulfill our premise and promise —empowering you to exhibit authentic works of art which will captivate and inspire you and the world around you.
To make an appointment contact info@artemus.com t.+1212 472 7770 www.artemus.com
ARTEMUS, the leader in the upper tier of the Art Finance sector, provides businesses and private collectors with a way to make significant works of art an integral part of their environment and culture. For businesses it’s about branding and financing, for collectors and galleries it’s about financing. Traffic worked closely with the Artemus team to develop a brand strategy that conveyed luxury in a modern, minimalist, yet elegant way. We developed the name through to copyrighting, and brought in Equancy No. 11 to design the corporate identity and website. www.artemus.com Brand Strategy, Naming, Creative Direction: Michelle Edelman Design of Website and Corporate ID: Equancy No. 11 Brand Voice and Copywriting: Brenda Cullerton
Traffic has produced photoshoots and a variety of different projects with leading hotels around the world, including the Mondrian Hotel.
Mondrian Hotel, Miami, FL Photography by Michael Mundy
IZAK ZENOU ILLUSTRATION Over the last two decades, Izak has forged a reputation as one of the globes most prolific fashion illustrators. His love of women, fashion, and style icons such as Audrey Hepburn and Ines de la Fressange inspire his whimsical and enchanting view of life. Whether his distinctive characters are meeting for cocktails with girlfriends, taking a stroll through the park, or shopping with their puppies in tow, each vignette boasts Izak’s optimistic and confident vision of the world.
LUCILE PRACHE ILLUSTRATION Lucile has a vast international following with with a large demand for her Recipe Illustrations. She first emerged within the artistic landscape in Europe during the 1980s shortly after graduating from Penninghen Art School in Paris. During this time she joined forces with fellow designer and colleague Michel Maidenberg to found the Klaxon Graphic Art Studio where she worked extensively with a wide range of advertising agencies. After the birth of her two children, Lucile went on to pursue her passion
for culinary and fashion illustration. Her authentic detailed work immediately captivated the attentions of numerous leading European fashion publications. Lucile has worked extensively with Marie Claire, Biba, Depeche Mode, Avantages, Phosphore and Muze magazines. She has authored numerous cook books and collaborates with many in the realm of hospitality, food and beverages.
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MONSIEUR Z ANIMATION/MOTION/ ILLUSTRATION Monsieur Z (also known as Mr. Z) burst onto the international illustration Jet Set in the 90s when his work was published in Wallpaper magazine. His illustrations are vibrant and colorful, and reflect his fascination with the groovy, retro sensibilities of 1960s Hollywood. For this issue of Guess magazine Mr. Z has created a series of retro travel posters inspired by some of the key spots in the Med. Mr. Z’s graphic style has led him to become one of the worlds leading contemporary illustrators. His digitally synthesized work begins with a series of masterfully hand-sketched renderings, which reflect his fascination with architecture and Jet Set culture, whether it be the Riviera or California.
SOPHIE GRIOTTO ILLUSTRATION After getting her start storyboarding in the world of Paris haute couture in the nineties, drawing for Dior and Gaultier, Sophie established herself as a fashion and lifestyle illustrator in 2003 and enjoys a fruitful career. She is distinguished by her sophisticated, fluid style—and cites Japanese ink wash painting and African dance as inspirations. Sophie’s work has gained recognition not just commercially but critically, too. She has been featured in anthologies of the world’s most important current illustrators such as Taschen: 100 Illustrators and Illustration Now! Fashion. Sophie has worked with Douglas Elliman, Macy’s, Swatch, Caudalie, and Estée Lauder.
TRAFFIC 14 East 77th Street New York, NY 10075 T. + 1 212 734 0041 E. info@traffic-nyc.com www.traffic-nyc.com @traffic_nyc
For an appointment contact: Shereka Evans shereka@traffic-nyc.com Michelle Edelman michelleve@traffic-nyc.com
Copyright Notice: This book and all of its contents/images is copyright of the individual artists and Traffic, Inc. © 2023. All rights reserved. Any redistribution or reproduction of part or all of the contents in any form is prohibited and punishable by law.