I’m a Senior Visual Designer and Art Director with 10 years of experience in tech startups, scale-ups, and unicorns. Clients include Skyscanner, FreeAgent, Tevent.
I’m humble, empathetic, and data-driven. Passionate about crafting conceptual & authentic brand touch points that make an impact.
I love supporting and learning from smart people.
In my spare time, I wrestle with Italian verbs, collect midcentury furniture, make portraits of strangers, and run a blog about inspirational workspaces.
Also, I enjoy one-sided conversations with my cats.
EXPERIENCE
EXPERIENCE
Tevent
Creative Design Lead
First design hire, owner of brand vision in a B2B SaaS company. Reported directly to the CEO. Led a brand refresh that included new guidelines and reshape of the narrative.
In charge of all marketing touch points, including creative campaigns, blog assets, website assets, performance, social media, emails, and seed decks that raised $2m+
I helped drive user growth from 0 to 7.5K, become №1 Product of the Day on Product Hunt and got featured on AppSumo which drove $50K in revenue.
Created a process for managing design requests from growth and marketing. Close collaboration with leadership (CEO, CTO, CMO). Skilled in articulating ideas and getting/giving feedback. Capable of breaking down strategic design choices and pitching ideas to all stakeholders.
Quote: Ilya’s combination of design acumen and marketing strategy is genuinely brilliant. His innovative mindset and commitment to quality make him an invaluable asset to any team. Alex Dobson, CEO
Quote: Working with your guidance over the years has helped me grow so much creatively. Thank you for your patience and and support (both professionally and personally). Josh Walker, Motion Designer
Instrument
Tevent
Tevent
Senior Designer
Creative Design Lead
Creative Design Lead
Currently working across product, brand, and design system projects at Instrument, an integrated digital agency.
First design hire, owner of brand vision in a B2B SaaS company. Reported directly to the CEO.
Led a brand refresh that included new guidelines and reshape of the narrative. In charge of all marketing touch points, including creative campaigns, blog assets, website assets, performance, social media, emails, and seed decks that raised $2m+.
I helped drive user growth from 0 to 7.5K, become №1 Product of the Day on Product Hunt and got featured on AppSumo which drove $50K in revenue.
Created a process for managing design requests from growth and marketing. Close collaboration with leadership (CEO, CTO, CMO).
Skilled in articulating ideas and getting/giving feedback. Capable of breaking down strategic design choices and pitching ideas to all stakeholders.
Quote: Ilya’s combination of design acumen and marketing strategy is genuinely brilliant. His innovative mindset and commitment to quality make him an invaluable asset to any team. Alex Dobson, CEO
Quote: Working with your guidance over the years has helped me grow so much creatively. Thank you for your patience and and support (both professionally and personally). Josh Walker, Motion Designer
First design hire, owner of brand vision in a B2B SaaS company. Reported directly to the CEO.
Led a brand refresh that included new guidelines and reshape of the narrative.
In charge of all marketing touch points, including creative campaigns, blog assets, website assets, performance, social media, emails, and seed decks that raised $2m+.
I helped drive user growth from 0 to 7.5K, become №1 Product of the Day on Product Hunt and got featured on AppSumo which drove $50K in revenue.
Created a process for managing design requests from growth and marketing. Close collaboration with leadership (CEO, CTO, CMO).
Skilled in articulating ideas and getting/giving feedback. Capable of breaking down strategic design choices and pitching ideas to all stakeholders.
Quote: Ilya’s combination of design acumen and marketing strategy is genuinely brilliant. His innovative mindset and commitment to quality make him an invaluable asset to any team. Alex Dobson, CEO
Quote: Working with your guidance over the years has helped me grow so much creatively. Thank you for your patience and and support (both professionally and personally). Josh Walker, Motion Designer
2021 — 2023
2021 — 2023
EXPERIENCE
EXPERIENCE
Freelance
Design Contractor
I provide my design & marketing expertise for startups and scale-ups to improve their brand experiences.
I’ve had the pleasure of collaborating with Freetrade (investing scale-up), Daios (AI startup), e.fundamentals (Digital shelf analytics) and ContentClass (Creator Economy).
Quote: Incredible talent has helped us really bring our brand up a level across a number of sales, marketing and corporate assets. Very versatile and easy to work with, would highly recommend for any team needing a modern creative designer. Scott Ferguson, Head Of Marketing, e.fundamentals
Quote: Ilya takes a unique approach to problem solving which leads to him delivering distinctive, strong creative solutions. He has a keen eye for detail and excellent knowledge of digital media platforms and mobile apps. Ilya is also a great team player with a quick wit, and was a pleasure to work with. Sam Poullain, Head of Brand, Freetrade
Instrument
Freelance
Freelance
Senior Designer
Design Contractor
Design Contractor
Currently working across product, brand, and design system projects at Instrument, an integrated digital agency.
I provide my design & marketing expertise for startups and scale-ups to improve their brand experiences. I’ve had the pleasure of collaborating with FreeTrade (investing scale-up), Daios (AI startup), e.fundamentals (Digital shelf analytics) and ContentClass (Creator Economy).
Quote: Incredible talent has helped us really bring our brand up a level across a number of sales, marketing and corporate assets. Very versatile and easy to work with, would highly recommend for any team needing a modern creative designer. Scott Ferguson, Head Of Marketing, e.fundamentals
Quote: Ilya takes a unique approach to problem solving which leads to him delivering distinctive, strong creative solutions. He has a keen eye for detail and excellent knowledge of digital media platforms and mobile apps. Ilya is also a great team player with a quick wit, and was a pleasure to work with. Sam Poullain, Head of Brand, Freetrade
I provide my design & marketing expertise for startups and scale-ups to improve their brand experiences. I’ve had the pleasure of collaborating with FreeTrade (investing scale-up), Daios (AI startup), e.fundamentals (Digital shelf analytics) and ContentClass (Creator Economy).
Quote: Incredible talent has helped us really bring our brand up a level across a number of sales, marketing and corporate assets. Very versatile and easy to work with, would highly recommend for any team needing a modern creative designer. Scott Ferguson, Head Of Marketing, e.fundamentals
Quote: Ilya takes a unique approach to problem solving which leads to him delivering distinctive, strong creative solutions. He has a keen eye for detail and excellent knowledge of digital media platforms and mobile apps. Ilya is also a great team player with a quick wit, and was a pleasure to work with. Sam Poullain, Head of Brand, Freetrade
2016 — PRESENT
2016 — PRESENT
EXPERIENCE
EXPERIENCE
FreeAgent
Marketing Designer
I designed digital assets and crafted marketing creatives for online and offline campaigns, social media, slide decks, blog assets, and illustrations, all aimed at enhancing FreeAgent’s brand awareness.
I conceptualised and executed engaging multi-channel campaigns primarily for B2B clients, which included accountants and bookkeepers. This was achieved through cross-functional collaboration with the marketing, growth, and product teams.
Quote: Ilya is an awesome designer to work with! His last campaign with us was praised for (1) being a refreshing change visually from category norms and (2) delivering results and even exceeding conversion targets. On top of that, he also has a really cool, engaging presentation style. Andrea Cid, Award-winning Creative and Brand Planner
Instrument
FreeAgent
FreeAgent
Senior Designer
Marketing Designer
Marketing Designer
Currently working across product, brand, and design system projects at Instrument, an integrated digital agency.
I designed digital assets and crafted marketing creatives for online and offline campaigns, social media, slide decks, blog assets, and illustrations, all aimed at enhancing FreeAgent's brand awareness.
I conceptualised and executed engaging multi-channel campaigns primarily for B2B clients, which included accountants and bookkeepers. This was achieved through cross-functional collaboration with the marketing, growth, and product teams.
Quote: Ilya is an awesome designer to work with! His last campaign with us was praised for (1) being a refreshing change visually from category norms and (2) delivering results and even exceeding conversion targets. On top of that, he also has a really cool, engaging presentation style. Andrea Cid, Award-winning Creative and Brand Planner
I designed digital assets and crafted marketing creatives for online and offline campaigns, social media, slide decks, blog assets, and illustrations, all aimed at enhancing FreeAgent's brand awareness.
I conceptualised and executed engaging multi-channel campaigns primarily for B2B clients, which included accountants and bookkeepers. This was achieved through cross-functional collaboration with the marketing, growth, and product teams.
Quote: Ilya is an awesome designer to work with! His last campaign with us was praised for (1) being a refreshing change visually from category norms and (2) delivering results and even exceeding conversion targets. On top of that, he also has a really cool, engaging presentation style. Andrea Cid, Award-winning Creative and Brand Planner
2020 — 2021
2020 — 2021
EXPERIENCE
Skyscanner
Design Lead
Initially hired as a Social Marketing Manager in 2013, I followed my passion, transitioning to a Graphic Designer role within the same company in 2017.
In 2020, I was leading the design for all email communications across every market, influencing 15 millions of travellers in 30 markets.
My responsibilities also extended to the conceptualisation and creation of visual assets such as digital ads, social media banners, affiliate banners, newsletters, and other brand touch points.
Quote: Ilya transformed the look and feel of our email, push and in-app messaging comms, displaying an exceptional attention to detail, driving design best practices and always putting the needs and expectations of the customer first. Richard Collins, Senior Global Marketing Manager
Quote: He is someone who’d always look at things from a completely different perspective than anyone else in the room and would come up with the most amazing creative ideas because of this. Timur Tugalev, Global Video Marketing Manager & Award-winning Filmmaker
Instrument
Skyscanner
Skyscanner
Senior Designer
Design Lead
Design Lead
Currently working across product, brand, and design system projects at Instrument, an integrated digital agency.
Initially hired as a Social Marketing Manager in 2013, I followed my passion, transitioning to a Graphic Designer role within the same company in 2017.
In 2020, I was leading the design for all email communications across every market, influencing 15 millions of travellers in 30 markets.
My responsibilities also extended to the conceptualisation and creation of visual assets such as digital ads, social media banners, affiliate banners, newsletters, and other brand touch points.
Quote: Ilya transformed the look and feel of our email, push and in-app messaging communications, displaying an exceptional attention to detail, driving design best practices and always putting the needs and expectations of the customer first. Richard Collins, Senior Global Marketing Manager
Quote: He is someone who’d always look at things from a completely different perspective than anyone else in the room and would come up with the most amazing creative ideas because of this. Timur Tugalev, Global Video Marketing Manager & Award-winning Filmmaker
Initially hired as a Social Marketing Manager in 2013, I followed my passion, transitioning to a Graphic Designer role within the same company in 2017.
In 2020, I was leading the design for all email communications across every market, influencing 15 millions of travellers in 30 markets.
My responsibilities also extended to the conceptualisation and creation of visual assets such as digital ads, social media banners, affiliate banners, newsletters, and other brand touch points.
Quote: Ilya transformed the look and feel of our email, push and in-app messaging communications, displaying an exceptional attention to detail, driving design best practices and always putting the needs and expectations of the customer first. Richard Collins, Senior Global Marketing Manager
Quote: He is someone who’d always look at things from a completely different perspective than anyone else in the room and would come up with the most amazing creative ideas because of this. Timur Tugalev, Global Video Marketing Manager & Award-winning Filmmaker
2013 — 2020
2013 — 2020
EXPERIENCE
EDUCATION
EDUCATION
Moscow State University
Faculty of Journalism
Quote: I’m so proud of you. Mom
Simon Fraser University
Moscow State University
Moscow State University
BA. Interactive Arts and Technology
Faculty of Journalism
Quote: I’m so proud of you. Mom
Faculty of Journalism
Quote: I’m so proud of you. Mom
2008
2008