Ruti Zisser ( he, רותי זיסר; born July 1974) is an

Israeli American , native_name_lang = , image = , caption = , population = 110,000–150,000 , popplace = New York metropolitan area, Los Angeles metropolitan area, Miami metropolitan area, and other large metropolitan ar ...

lifestyle designer,

fashion designer Fashion is a form of self-expression and autonomy at a particular period and place and in a specific context, of clothing, footwear, lifestyle, accessories, makeup, hairstyle, and body posture. The term implies a look defined by the fashion in ...

wardrobe stylist A wardrobe stylist, also fashion stylist, is a consultant who selects the clothing for published editorial features, print or television advertising campaigns, music videos, concert performances, and any public appearances made by celebrities, mod ...

, and business woman, publicly known by her first name, Ruti Zisser is the founder of a fashion company manufacturing and distributing her designs, and showcasing Israeli fashion designers internationally.

Biography

Ruti Zisser was born in

Haifa Haifa ( he, חֵיפָה ' ; ar, حَيْفَا ') is the third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropol ...

, Israel on July 21, 1974. In 1977 Zisser moved with her family to

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

, Belgium and in 1982, to

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

, Germany. In 1986 Zisser moved back to Israel and the family settled in

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...

. In 1999, Zisser immigrated to the US. Zisser's career didn't start in fashion. In her late twenties and early thirties, she worked in the tech industry. She self reflected that she was never satisfied and happy working in tech: "For many years I never had the courage to admit to myself, and to the people around me, that my heart was in a different place, far away from algorithms and artificial intelligence. The world of technology was not for me; I’ve always preferred the human touch." Zisser was married in 2002, and has three children, Yoav, Tamar and Guy.

Company

RUTI Inc. is a privately held company founded by Zisser in 2009 in her garage in

Palo Alto Palo Alto (; Spanish for "tall stick") is a charter city in the northwestern corner of Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto. The city was estab ...

. Zisser's company emphasizes cool, flattering and comfortable clothing for all ages. "I'm here to change your relationship with your closet. We’ve always been told that beauty hurts - that we must give up comfort in the name of style and compromise sophistication for whatever is fashionable. That’s where I come in." - Ruti Zisser

History

The first RUTI retail location opened on October 5, 2009 in Palo Alto. The second boutique opened on

Fillmore Street Fillmore Street is a street in San Francisco, California which starts in the Lower Haight neighborhood and travels northward through the Fillmore District and Pacific Heights and ends in the Marina District. It serves as the main thoroughfare an ...

, in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

and was designed by Nicole Hollis, a San Francisco-based interior designer. The

Santa Monica Santa Monica (; Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 U.S. Census population was 93,076. Santa Monica is a popular resort town, owing to ...

store was the third boutique to open, and is designed by Karina Tollman and Philipp Thomanek from Israel. The 4th RUTI boutique to open was the

Berkeley Berkeley most often refers to: *Berkeley, California, a city in the United States **University of California, Berkeley, a public university in Berkeley, California * George Berkeley (1685–1753), Anglo-Irish philosopher Berkeley may also refer ...

store on 4th St. The

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

store opened on vibrant

Abbot Kinney Abbot Kinney (November 16, 1850 in New Brunswick, New Jersey – November 4, 1920 in Santa Monica, California) was an American developer, conservationist, water supply expert and tree expert. Kinney is best known for his " Venice of America" de ...

street in 2013. Taking the success of their brick-and-mortar boutiques online, RUTI launched an eCommerce website in late 2014. In 2016, RUTI opened a new HQ office and showroom in Belmont, CA where all development and design for the RUTI label takes place. In an effort to continue the direct to consumer strategy, new boutiques are expected to open in Scottsdale, Miami and Seattle in 2018.

Introducing Israeli Designers to the US market

From the beginning, Ruti has been showcasing fashion in her boutiques. In 2009, Ruti introduced the Israeli brand Alembika by designer Hagar Alembic to the US Market. The collaboration between Zisser and Hagar Alembic led to co-designed items.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zisser, Ruti Israeli Jews Israeli fashion designers Israeli women fashion designers Jewish fashion designers American company founders American women company founders American fashion businesspeople American fashion designers American women fashion designers American women business executives American business executives Ruti Privately held companies based in California Ruti Living people 1974 births 21st-century American women