Project Overview
About the client
SoLo Funds is a peer-to-peer lending app designed to provide short-term, affordable loans to underserved communities — challenging predatory lending models with a people-first approach.
Work request
I was brought in as UX/UI Designer and Brand Marketing Manager to lead creative execution across SoLo’s early-stage mobile app, brand identity, investor marketing, and digital campaigns.
As part of the founding creative team, my role spanned product design, strategic storytelling, and scalable brand development — building the systems that helped launch SoLo from startup concept to investor-backed fintech platform.
The Process
What Made This Unique
This was a mission-driven fintech startup scaling at full speed — where design wasn’t just cosmetic, it was critical. My role evolved constantly as new campaigns, investor needs, and product pivots emerged week to week. I was trusted to adapt in real-time, leading brand, UX, and marketing efforts that directly influenced user adoption, funding success, and long-term company growth.
Working on SoLo Funds required constant adaptation — not just in design, but in strategy, messaging, and creative execution. As the company scaled, my responsibilities grew with it, spanning product design, brand evolution, investor support, and marketing.
I approached each challenge with a systems mindset, ensuring that every creative decision — from UI flows to pitch decks — aligned with SoLo’s mission, user needs, and business goals.
UX/UI Design
• Designed key flows for onboarding, lending, and repayment across iOS and Android
• Built wireframes and component systems in collaboration with product leads
• Conducted user testing and applied feedback in real-time to refine the experience
Brand Identity Development
• Evolved SoLo’s visual language from a minimal orange/yellow palette into a robust brand system
• Refined the logo for scalability across digital and print
• Created a brand style guide to align internal teams, product, and external partners
Investor Decks & Fundraising Assets
• Designed multiple pitch decks tailored to investors, accelerators, and funding rounds
• Visualized key metrics, roadmaps, and narratives that helped secure $10MM+ in early investment
• Integrated brand consistency across all fundraising materials
• Designed multiple pitch decks tailored to investors, accelerators, and funding rounds
• Visualized key metrics, roadmaps, and narratives that helped secure $10MM+ in early investment
• Integrated brand consistency across all fundraising materials
Marketing & Launch Strategy
• Developed animated onboarding graphics and campaign visuals
• Built early email flows (Mailchimp), designed social media assets, and collaborated with influencers
• Coordinated with external growth partners to scale user adoption and reach
Strategic Challenges / Solutions
Throughout SoLo’s rapid growth, I faced several creative and operational challenges that required real-time adaptation, strategic thinking, and scalable design execution:
Fintech User Skepticism:
Designed a brand identity that felt warm, trustworthy, and human — shifting away from the sterile aesthetic common in finance.
Designed a brand identity that felt warm, trustworthy, and human — shifting away from the sterile aesthetic common in finance.
Early-Stage Startup Chaos:
Introduced structure across visual identity, file systems, and creative workflows — bringing order to a fast-moving environment.
Introduced structure across visual identity, file systems, and creative workflows — bringing order to a fast-moving environment.
Complex User Journeys:
Simplified the app experience by refining UX flows, reducing friction during onboarding, and improving lending clarity.
Simplified the app experience by refining UX flows, reducing friction during onboarding, and improving lending clarity.
High-Volume Output at Scale:
Delivered flexible, reusable design assets that supported social campaigns, investor decks, email flows, and in-app visuals — all with consistent brand integrity.
Delivered flexible, reusable design assets that supported social campaigns, investor decks, email flows, and in-app visuals — all with consistent brand integrity.
Results & impact
The creative systems I built for SoLo directly contributed to key business outcomes:
💰 Secured $10MM+ in early investor funding through branded pitch decks and product visuals
📲 Onboarded 60,000+ users during the app’s initial launch phase
🏆 Brand identity featured in CNBC’s Disruptor 50, highlighting SoLo as a category-defining startup
🔄 Improved app retention with optimized UX flows and interface clarity
🧠 Established a full brand system now used across product, marketing, fundraising, and growth campaigns
Client Testimonial:
“Justin was instrumental in helping SoLo reflect the philosophies and values we most wanted. His UX/UI work helped us secure $10MM in funding and grow our user base rapidly.”
— Travis Holoway, CEO
— Travis Holoway, CEO
My conclusion / analysis
SoLo Funds was a defining chapter in my creative journey — a rare opportunity to merge purpose, product, and storytelling into design that moved real people. I operated at the intersection of UX, brand, and growth, helping transform a scrappy fintech startup into a nationally recognized platform.
This experience sharpened my ability to lead under pressure, adapt quickly, and deliver creative systems that drive both user trust and business outcomes. More than anything, it proved that design — when done with clarity and conviction — can fuel momentum, build community, and change the game.
Role Summary Snapshot
• Role: Lead Creative & Marketing Designer
• Team: CEO/Founders, Development Team (3), Project Manager
• Tools: Figma, Illustrator, InDesign, Adobe CC Suite
