Kariyerine Mexx International’ın Hollanda genel merkezinde Yeni Pazarlar Geliştirme Yöneticisi olarak başladı. Orta ve Güney Amerika, Güney Avrupa ve Ortadoğu ülkeleriyle ticari ilişkiler geliştirdi.
1995 yılında İstanbul’a döndü. 2000 yılında Nike Türkiye’yi kurdu. Liderliğinde Nike, Türkiye’de 9 yılda 70 kat büyüdü. 2005’te Türkiye, Kıbrıs, Yunanistan, İsrail ve Güney Afrika’dan oluşan Nike Güney Cemea bölgesinin başına atandı. 2010 yılında Istventures yatırım danışmanlığı şirketini kurdu.
He started his career as New Markets Development Manager for Mexx International at its headquarters in the Netherlands. He has travelled and developed trade relations in Central and South America, Southern Europe and the Middle East.
In 1995, he returned to Istanbul and held general management positions in the areas of brand Management & retailing. In 2000, he was appointed as General Manager to establish a Nike subsidiary in Turkey. Under his leadership, Nike Turkey grew 70 times in 9 years. Parlar received several local and international awards in both the business and social responsibility areas.
In 2005, Zafer Parlar was appointed as the General Manager of Nike South CEMEA, responsible for Nike subsidiaries in Turkey, Cyprus, Greece, Israel and South Africa.
In 2010, he founded Istventures to support international companies with their market entries to Turkey and Turkish companies for their expansion abroad.