Acıman, Eli (b. 1919, Istanbul - d. January 13, 2011, Istanbul), businessman who was founder of the modern advertising sector in Turkey. He served as member (1964-96) and president (1985-89) of the board of directors of the American Hospital.
After graduating from Istanbul Saint-Joseph French High School in 1936, Acıman went abroad to study journalism in 1939. On his return to Turkey, he started work in Mahmutpaşa in Istanbul. He made his debut in the advertising world in 1943 with the commercial campaign for Vitali Hakko’s hat business “Şen Şapka”. In 1944, he set up an advertising agency called Faal Reklam with Vitali Hakko and Mario Beghian, but his business partners left a short time later. After meeting Vehbi Koç in 1946, he took charge of the publicity for Koç Ticaret. When Arif Erdemir and Nesim Matan joined Faal Reklam in 1957, it was incorporated and renamed Faal Ajans. Acıman went to the USA in the same year and worked as a copywriter and account representative at J. Walter Thompson advertising agency. Faal Ajans grew rapidly after his return from the USA in 1960. Following the breakup of the partnership in 1965, Acıman set up Manajans and Erdemir set up Yeni Ajans. Manajans played a crucial role in the development of the modern advertising sector in Turkey and served as a school for the new generation of advertising professionals. In 1985, following the partnership with J. Walter Thompson, the name of the agency was changed to Manajans/Thompson.
Acıman played a major role in founding the National Association of Advertising (Ulusal Reklamcılık Derneği) in 1972 and the Association of Advertising Agencies (Reklamcılar Derneği) in 1985. He was also the first president of the latter. He was one of the founding members of the Quincentennial Foundation (1989) of Turkish Jews. In 1990, he was awarded a gold medal by the European Association of Advertising Agencies. He retired in 2001.
His biography Eli Acıman, written by Nil Baransel, was published in 2003.