Aavegotchi
UI/UX, Web3 DApp Design, Prototyping, Design Leadership
Project Brief
Transform Aavegotchi's Baazaar from a basic NFT marketplace into a sophisticated Web3 gaming hub with fiat onramps, multi-chain swaps, auction systems, and beginner-friendly onboarding—without losing the playful pixel aesthetic that made the community fall in love with their ghost companions.
Duration
6 months
Stack
Polygon blockchain, Web3 wallet integration, Figma, React, multi-chain DeFi protocols
Services
Product Design, UI/UX Strategy, Web3 DApp Design, Cross-functional Leadership, Design Ops
As Sr. Product Design Manager at Pixelcraft Studios (Aavegotchi), I led the complete redesign of the Baazaar V2—the central NFT marketplace for one of Web3's most beloved gaming ecosystems. The project transformed a basic trading interface into a sophisticated marketplace that supports fiat gateways, multi-chain token swaps, GBM bid-to-earn auctions, and comprehensive user onboarding.
Working across product, engineering, marketing, and the DAO community, I led cross-functional workflows to ship features that served both crypto-native players and newcomers exploring Web3 gaming for the first time. The Baazaar became the primary hub for trading Aavegotchi NFTs, wearables, REALM land parcels, and consumables—handling millions in transaction volume while maintaining the whimsical, accessible personality the community loved.
I oversaw marketplace operations including 20+ successful NFT drops, designed the auction house experience for high-stakes bidding, and created onboarding flows that reduced friction for players entering from traditional gaming backgrounds.
Understanding the Ecosystem: Aavegotchi isn't just an NFT project—it's a DeFi-gaming hybrid where pixelated ghosts are staked with interest-bearing aTokens, dressed in tradable wearables, and used as avatars in the Gotchiverse metaverse. The Baazaar needed to support this complexity while feeling approachable and fun.
Cross-Functional Leadership: I led agile processes across design, engineering, smart contract development, and marketing teams. Coordinated with the AavegotchiDAO community to ensure features aligned with governance decisions. Built design systems that could scale across 10+ connected products in the ecosystem.
Key Features Delivered:
GBM Auction House - Bid-to-earn system where even losing bidders earn rewards
Fiat Onramps - Seamless fiat-to-crypto gateways for mainstream adoption
User Tutorials - Contextual Web3 education reducing support tickets by 40%
Marketplace Operations - Executed 20+ NFT drops yielding over $2M in sales
