UX Designer @ KIRFU
UX Designer @ KIRFU
UK-based delivery and logistics platform reimagining how independent drivers manage their work. Think Uber's shift-selection model, built for logistics, with an AI companion no other delivery platform has explored.
UK-based delivery and logistics platform reimagining how independent drivers manage their work. Think Uber's shift-selection model, built for logistics, with an AI companion no other delivery platform has explored.
UK-based delivery and logistics platform reimagining how independent drivers manage their work. Think Uber's shift-selection model, built for logistics, with an AI companion no other delivery platform has explored.
Project Overview
Project Overview
Project Overview
Role
Role
Role
Founding Product Designer
Founding Product Designer
Founding Product Designer
Duration
Duration
Duration
1+ years
1+ years
1+ years
Team
Team
Team
CEO, CTO, Engineering, Marketing.
CEO, CTO, Engineering, Marketing.
CEO, CTO, Engineering, Marketing.
Deliverables
Deliverables
Deliverables
Driver app, Design system, Company website, Marketing materials
Driver app, Design system, Company website, Marketing materials
Driver app, Design system, Company website, Marketing materials
The Problem
The Problem
The Problem
When I joined KIRFU, there was no app. Drivers were navigating shifts, deliveries, and communication through fragmented tools that weren't built for them or for anyone, really.
Three core problems needed solving:
When I joined KIRFU, there was no app. Drivers were navigating shifts, deliveries, and communication through fragmented tools that weren't built for them or for anyone, really.
Three core problems needed solving:
When I joined KIRFU, there was no app. Drivers were navigating shifts, deliveries, and communication through fragmented tools that weren't built for them or for anyone, really.
Three core problems needed solving:
No driver-first app existed.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
Drivers had no dedicated, user-friendly interface to manage their work. Existing solutions were either built for internal ops teams or borrowed from food delivery where neither fit the reality of an independent logistics driver in the UK.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
Communication was broken.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
There was no reliable way for drivers and dispatchers to stay in sync during a shift. Important information such as special instructions, route changes, delivery updates had no clear channel.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
No design consistency.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
Without a design foundation, every screen was built in isolation. The product had no visual language, no component library, and no shared standards, making it impossible to scale.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
The Opportunity
The Opportunity
The Opportunity
What if drivers had something closer to Uber's shift model, but built specifically for UK logistics?
What if drivers had something closer to Uber's shift model, but built specifically for UK logistics?
What if drivers had something closer to Uber's shift model, but built specifically for UK logistics?
Amazon Flex gives drivers a shift-based experience, but it's locked to one company. No platform had brought that same intuitive, shift-selection model to independent logistics drivers across multiple companies. Kirfu had the chance to own that space.
Amazon Flex gives drivers a shift-based experience, but it's locked to one company. No platform had brought that same intuitive, shift-selection model to independent logistics drivers across multiple companies. Kirfu had the chance to own that space.
Amazon Flex gives drivers a shift-based experience, but it's locked to one company. No platform had brought that same intuitive, shift-selection model to independent logistics drivers across multiple companies. Kirfu had the chance to own that space.
And beyond that, an idea that no delivery platform had explored: an AI companion for drivers. A contextual assistant that surfaces road updates, weather alerts, and route insights exactly when a driver needs them, not buried in a menu, but woven into the experience.
And beyond that, an idea that no delivery platform had explored: an AI companion for drivers. A contextual assistant that surfaces road updates, weather alerts, and route insights exactly when a driver needs them, not buried in a menu, but woven into the experience.
And beyond that, an idea that no delivery platform had explored: an AI companion for drivers. A contextual assistant that surfaces road updates, weather alerts, and route insights exactly when a driver needs them, not buried in a menu, but woven into the experience.
What I Built
What I Built
What I Built
The Driver App
As the product matured, I led the creation of a comprehensive design system in Figma, crafted to support everything from mobile apps to internal dashboards and our marketing site.
This system included:
Modular, reusable components with responsive behavior.
Clear naming conventions and documentation.
Visual foundations: color, typography, grid.
Usage guidelines to support handoff with developers.
It helped reduce design inconsistencies, speed up handoff, and scale our product with clarity.
(While I can’t show direct visuals due to NDA, the system structure followed industry standards used by modern product teams.)
The Driver App
A full mobile app designed from scratch for independent delivery drivers. Key features include:
As the product matured, I led the creation of a comprehensive design system in Figma, crafted to support everything from mobile apps to internal dashboards and our marketing site.
This system included:
Modular, reusable components with responsive behavior.
Clear naming conventions and documentation.
Visual foundations: color, typography, grid.
Usage guidelines to support handoff with developers.
It helped reduce design inconsistencies, speed up handoff, and scale our product with clarity.
(While I can’t show direct visuals due to NDA, the system structure followed industry standards used by modern product teams.)
A full mobile app designed from scratch for independent delivery drivers. Key features include:
Shift browsing & selection : drivers can browse available shifts across companies and commit to one like booking a ride, not filling in a form
As the product matured, I led the creation of a comprehensive design system in Figma, crafted to support everything from mobile apps to internal dashboards and our marketing site.
This system included:
Modular, reusable components with responsive behavior.
Clear naming conventions and documentation.
Visual foundations: color, typography, grid.
Usage guidelines to support handoff with developers.
It helped reduce design inconsistencies, speed up handoff, and scale our product with clarity.
(While I can’t show direct visuals due to NDA, the system structure followed industry standards used by modern product teams.)
Shift browsing & selection : drivers can browse available shifts across companies and commit to one like booking a ride, not filling in a form
Route information : full route overview with stop count, package count, and a map preview before starting
As the product matured, I led the creation of a comprehensive design system in Figma, crafted to support everything from mobile apps to internal dashboards and our marketing site.
This system included:
Modular, reusable components with responsive behavior.
Clear naming conventions and documentation.
Visual foundations: color, typography, grid.
Usage guidelines to support handoff with developers.
It helped reduce design inconsistencies, speed up handoff, and scale our product with clarity.
(While I can’t show direct visuals due to NDA, the system structure followed industry standards used by modern product teams.)
Route information : full route overview with stop count, package count, and a map preview before starting
In-shift navigation : turn-by-turn directions with recipient details, delivery instructions, and proof of delivery (photo, signature, notes) built in
As the product matured, I led the creation of a comprehensive design system in Figma, crafted to support everything from mobile apps to internal dashboards and our marketing site.
This system included:
Modular, reusable components with responsive behavior.
Clear naming conventions and documentation.
Visual foundations: color, typography, grid.
Usage guidelines to support handoff with developers.
It helped reduce design inconsistencies, speed up handoff, and scale our product with clarity.
(While I can’t show direct visuals due to NDA, the system structure followed industry standards used by modern product teams.)
In-shift navigation : turn-by-turn directions with recipient details, delivery instructions, and proof of delivery (photo, signature, notes) built in
AI-powered Discover screen : surfaces real-time road updates, weather, and traffic conditions relevant to the driver's current location
As the product matured, I led the creation of a comprehensive design system in Figma, crafted to support everything from mobile apps to internal dashboards and our marketing site.
This system included:
Modular, reusable components with responsive behavior.
Clear naming conventions and documentation.
Visual foundations: color, typography, grid.
Usage guidelines to support handoff with developers.
It helped reduce design inconsistencies, speed up handoff, and scale our product with clarity.
(While I can’t show direct visuals due to NDA, the system structure followed industry standards used by modern product teams.)
AI-powered Discover screen : surfaces real-time road updates, weather, and traffic conditions relevant to the driver's current location
The Design System
As the product matured, I led the creation of a comprehensive design system in Figma, crafted to support everything from mobile apps to internal dashboards and our marketing site.
This system included:
Modular, reusable components with responsive behavior.
Clear naming conventions and documentation.
Visual foundations: color, typography, grid.
Usage guidelines to support handoff with developers.
It helped reduce design inconsistencies, speed up handoff, and scale our product with clarity.
(While I can’t show direct visuals due to NDA, the system structure followed industry standards used by modern product teams.)
The Design System
Built a component library in Figma from the ground up covering typography, colour, iconography, spacing, and reusable UI components across the app, website, and dashboard. This gave the engineering team a single source of truth and reduced inconsistency across every surface.
As the product matured, I led the creation of a comprehensive design system in Figma, crafted to support everything from mobile apps to internal dashboards and our marketing site.
This system included:
Modular, reusable components with responsive behavior.
Clear naming conventions and documentation.
Visual foundations: color, typography, grid.
Usage guidelines to support handoff with developers.
It helped reduce design inconsistencies, speed up handoff, and scale our product with clarity.
(While I can’t show direct visuals due to NDA, the system structure followed industry standards used by modern product teams.)
Built a component library in Figma from the ground up covering typography, colour, iconography, spacing, and reusable UI components across the app, website, and dashboard. This gave the engineering team a single source of truth and reduced inconsistency across every surface.
Company Website & Marketing
As the product matured, I led the creation of a comprehensive design system in Figma, crafted to support everything from mobile apps to internal dashboards and our marketing site.
This system included:
Modular, reusable components with responsive behavior.
Clear naming conventions and documentation.
Visual foundations: color, typography, grid.
Usage guidelines to support handoff with developers.
It helped reduce design inconsistencies, speed up handoff, and scale our product with clarity.
(While I can’t show direct visuals due to NDA, the system structure followed industry standards used by modern product teams.)
Company Website & Marketing
Designed the Kirfu website and supporting marketing materials to communicate the platform's value to both drivers and logistics companies.
As the product matured, I led the creation of a comprehensive design system in Figma, crafted to support everything from mobile apps to internal dashboards and our marketing site.
This system included:
Modular, reusable components with responsive behavior.
Clear naming conventions and documentation.
Visual foundations: color, typography, grid.
Usage guidelines to support handoff with developers.
It helped reduce design inconsistencies, speed up handoff, and scale our product with clarity.
(While I can’t show direct visuals due to NDA, the system structure followed industry standards used by modern product teams.)
Designed the Kirfu website and supporting marketing materials to communicate the platform's value to both drivers and logistics companies.
The Feature No One Else Has Explored…
The Feature No One Else Has Explored…
The Feature No One Else Has Explored…
No delivery platform has built an AI companion for drivers. Kirfu set out to be the first. It will be a lightweight layer within the driver experience. It surfaces contextual, real-time information based on the driver’s journey. The experience is fully hands-free, designed to support drivers without adding distraction, keeping the focus on safety and efficiency.
No delivery platform has built an AI companion for drivers. Kirfu set out to be the first. It will be a lightweight layer within the driver experience. It surfaces contextual, real-time information based on the driver’s journey. The experience is fully hands-free, designed to support drivers without adding distraction, keeping the focus on safety and efficiency.
No delivery platform has built an AI companion for drivers. Kirfu set out to be the first. It will be a lightweight layer within the driver experience. It surfaces contextual, real-time information based on the driver’s journey. The experience is fully hands-free, designed to support drivers without adding distraction, keeping the focus on safety and efficiency.
This work is protected by NDA. If you’d like to learn more about my role and process, I’m happy to walk you through it-
This work is protected by NDA. If you’d like to learn more about my role and process, I’m happy to walk you through it-
This work is protected by NDA. If you’d like to learn more about my role and process, I’m happy to walk you through it-
The Design System
The Design System
The Design System
As the product grew, consistency became critical. I built a design system that covered:
Reusable components with responsive behaviour
Colour, typography, and spacing foundations
Clear naming conventions for developer handoff
Usage guidelines across app, web, and marketing
The result was faster handoff, fewer inconsistencies, and a product that could scale without breaking.
'' Being included in stakeholder meetings gave me perspective on how UX fits into bigger business goals, something I hadn't seen up close before. I learned how to navigate between user needs and product-market realities.''
What I gained:
Operational Decision-Making
Product-Market Alignment
Stakeholder Engagement
As the product grew, consistency became critical. I built a design system that covered:
Reusable components with responsive behaviour
Colour, typography, and spacing foundations
Clear naming conventions for developer handoff
Usage guidelines across app, web, and marketing
The result was faster handoff, fewer inconsistencies, and a product that could scale without breaking.
What the Team Said…
What the Team Said…
What the Team Said…
Sam Clastine
Co-Founder, CTO
"Akshaya brought structure and polish to our product. Her UI work and the design system made it easier for us to build consistently and focus on solving the right problems."
Jibril Ali
Co-Founder, CEO
"Akshaya made a huge impact in a short time. Her design thinking helped us bring our ideas to life clearly and quickly. She's a team player who gets the bigger picture."
Sam Clastine
Co-Founder, CTO
"Akshaya brought structure and polish to our product. Her UI work and the design system made it easier for us to build consistently and focus on solving the right problems."
Jibril Ali
Co-Founder, CEO
"Akshaya made a huge impact in a short time. Her design thinking helped us bring our ideas to life clearly and quickly. She's a team player who gets the bigger picture."
What I Took Away
What I Took Away
What I Took Away
Working as Kirfu's first and only designer for over a year taught me things no classroom could. I learned to move fast without breaking trust, to design for real people under real pressure, and to communicate design decisions to non-designers every single day.User-centered design
In short: I learned what it actually means to own a product.
Working as Kirfu's first and only designer for over a year taught me things no classroom could. I learned to move fast without breaking trust, to design for real people under real pressure, and to communicate design decisions to non-designers every single day.User-centered design
In short: I learned what it actually means to own a product.
Working as Kirfu's first and only designer for over a year taught me things no classroom could. I learned to move fast without breaking trust, to design for real people under real pressure, and to communicate design decisions to non-designers every single day.User-centered design
In short: I learned what it actually means to own a product.
Designed under ambiguity
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
requirements evolved constantly, and I learned to make principled decisions without a complete brief.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
Built for real constraints
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
drivers use apps in motion, in low light, under time pressure. Every decision had to earn its place.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
Bridged design and business
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
sitting in stakeholder meetings gave me direct visibility into how design decisions affect product-market fit.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
🧩 Design Under Constraints
Learned to balance limited resources and tight timelines with clear, user-friendly design.
💛
💛
💛
You made it to the end .. Thank you!
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