Sami Abdullah Bakırcı

Country Localisation Partner, Canva Türkiye

Istanbul, Türkiye · samibakirci.com · linkedin.com/in/abakirci · instagram.com/onbab

Mechanical engineer turned marketer who builds communities and makes global brands feel local. Launched Pexels in Türkiye and grew it into the platform’s largest community worldwide, led the EMEA region, and now localizes Canva’s growth in Türkiye. Photographer with more than 149 million views on Pexels.

Experience

Country Localisation Partner · Canva, IstanbulNov 2025 – present
  • Localizes Canva’s growth in Türkiye across strategy, campaigns and culture, so the brand doesn’t just speak Turkish, it speaks to Türkiye.
  • Core member of the team behind Bunu Nasıl Yaptın?, Canva Türkiye’s first brand campaign, which won four Kristal Elma awards, including Crystals for Best TV & Digital Film and Best Use of Humor.
i18n Partner · Canva, remoteSep 2021 – present
  • Writes Turkish and UK English copy for Canva’s template library, adapting tone, wit and cultural references for each audience.
Regional Manager, EMEA · Pexels, remoteApr 2023 – Nov 2025
  • Owned growth plans, campaigns and community programs across Europe, the Middle East and Africa, adapting global strategy to each market’s language and culture.
  • Built creator communities through photowalks, meetups and workshops in cities including Istanbul, Berlin, London and Cape Town.
Country Manager, Türkiye · Pexels, IstanbulMar 2021 – Apr 2023
  • Launched Pexels in Türkiye as Launch Manager (Mar – May 2021), then grew a small circle of creators into the largest Pexels community in the world.
  • Put Turkish photography on the global map through meetups, photowalks and partnerships with local creators.
Business Development Manager, Corporate Innovation · Softtech, IstanbulJan – Dec 2021
  • Expanded partnerships and shaped growth strategy; led Corporate Innovation Services for enterprise partners.
International Marketing Manager · ISBAK, IstanbulOct 2019 – Jan 2021
  • Developed and executed go-to-market strategy for smart transportation products with product and sales teams; produced white papers, presentations, collateral and competitive analysis.
Project Manager and Mechanical Project Engineer · ISBAK, IstanbulJul 2016 – Aug 2018
  • Managed the Platform Screen Door system on Istanbul Metro Line M7, the city’s first domestically built fully driverless line (19 stations): design, installation, commissioning, operations and maintenance.
  • Served as “the Engineer” for the M7 platform screen doors before leading the project (Jan – Aug 2018).
Summer Research Intern · Technische Universität Darmstadt, GermanyAug – Sep 2015

Education

University
Galatasaray University, Istanbul
Exchange
Student exchanges in Sheffield, UK, and Frankfurt, Germany · Language school, Bristol, UK (2013)

More

Skills
Community building · Localization · Go-to-market · Brand campaigns · Turkish and English copywriting · Partnerships · Engineering project management
Photography
Pexels contributor: 2,300+ photos, 149 million views
Writing
Essays in Turkish on economics, technology and change at medium.com/@onbab
Languages
Turkish (native), English (professional)