Kaboo
Website + Extension | Startup Product
Overview
- Principle UI Designer for Kaboo, a student-founded startup offering online shopping and discount services
- Helping shoppers spend less hours comparing products and redeem exclusive discounts to get the best deals on products
-Currently designing, prototyping, and developing browser extension, website, and mobile app products
-Cross-functional collaboration
Website
Roles
UI Design
Duration
June 2024 - Present
Teammates
Daniel Zhu, Freya Young, Abigale Nickels
Tools
Context
Meet The Team
In May 2024, Daniel Zhu, a fellow Vanderbilt student, introduced me to a startup he founded with the mission of helping students and young adults save money. I joined the design team, where I created flows and Hi-Fi screens with guidance from experienced designers Danny had brought on. Through team meetings, one-on-one discussions, and hands-on collaboration, I gained valuable lessons in improving my design skills and developing a product with meaningful real-world impact.
Founder
Danny has been leading the product vision and coordinating the effort between all departments.
Danny Zhu
Freya Young
Former Chief Designer
A Master of Design graduate from CMU, Freya initially designed Kaboo's extension and website.
Current Chief Designer
Gale has picked up where Freya left off and is currently leading Kaboo’s redesign and mobile app design.
Abigale Nickels
Kaboo: Optimizing Online Shopping
Many online-shoppers spend significant amounts of time comparing products and hunting for deals trying to find the right balance between quality and budget-friendly. This is especially true for younger demographics who shop online frequently. Existing tools like Honey and Capital One Shopping offer some assistance, but they lack a proactive solution that combines real-time price matching, deal finding, and purchase management in one platform. Kaboo aims to fill this gap by developing a user-friendly extension and website that finds alternatives to all the products they seek in order to save them money and time.
Objectives
Save Users Money
Provide product alternatives for users to find the best deal.
Make Shopping Efficient
Make it so users are able to find alternatives, save them, and compare them all in one place before buying.
Cost-Conscious Community
With social sharing features, create a community of shoppers who can support each other in finding deals.
Exploration
Product Structure And Branding
We were on a tight schedule with an MVP launch date less than two weeks out. User research had already been done for us by The Innovative Design Labs team at UCLA, so Freya and I knew what exactly what features to implement:
A basic website with landing, social features, account management and the user’s saved products
Alternative Recommendations
Bookmark Products
Freya started by compiling inspiration from dozens of websites and competitors to understand the design language of similar platforms. Though we didn’t have a set design system yet, we managed to develop a mascot and a feel for the product’s tone.
Mood Board
Piggy Exploration
Design
Iteration 1 and A/B Testing
We finished all the screens for the extension and the website within a week. Keeping the style consistent across screens was easy thanks to Freya's deep exploration, but we were still unsure about some theming choices on the extension, like the CTA button colors. Luckily, Danny knew plenty of people who could provide feedback, so we decided to do A/B testing to find the ideal color scheme.
Result
MVP Launch
We implemented the results of the A/B testing and completed the website to hand our work off to the development team. Not all of our design elements are available in the currently live version, as they are still in development.
Exploration
Feedback And Iteration 2
Abigale stepped in as Kaboo's chief designer following Freya's departure in late July. Drawing on her extensive UI design experience, she proposed a series of changes to the extension, informed by the feedback Kaboo received post-launch. Freya and I hadn’t been able to establish a proper design system, so the primary goal at this stage was to solidify that foundation and enhance the overall UI.
New Tab
New Piggy
Final Color System
Result
Our Solution
V2 makes noticeable improvements to V1, particularly with its use of vibrant colors and a populated layout that conveys more information at once without causing cognitive overload. This iteration is currently in the works to be implemented on the live product.
Browsing
Bookmarking
Reflection
Being An Effective Designer
Part of what makes an effective designer is successfully processing requirements and delivering a product that meets stakeholders’ needs. Though hectic at times, we were able to translate Danny’s requests into great designs with minimal direction necessary. This experience taught me to think more independently and to have greater confidence in my own designs.
Learning From Great Designers
Freya and Abigale brought quite a bit of experience in research, interaction design, and UI design skills to the table. I received so many tips and pointers through designing the extension and through one-on-one meetings to talk about their design processes. Mentorship is crucial for growth in this industry, and the Kaboo design team played a significant role in my development this summer.
High Stakes
This was the first project I worked on that involved a real product and a multidisciplinary team, not just designers. The deadlines carried real consequences—missing them would leave developers, marketers, and investors waiting. It was crucial to plan carefully within our timeframe and maintain a steady pace to ensure consistent progress.
