Building new business for pet parents
Role
Director of Product Design
Focus
0 to 1
Journey Mapping
Design Process
Visioning
Design Strategy
Branding
Background
I led design for a portfolio of new pet parent ventures within Mars Petcare, launching multiple zero-to-one digital products. I built design teams, established scalable systems, and embedded user-centered practices into early-stage ventures, helping shape innovative, consumer businesses aligned with Mars' strategic vision.
The Approach
How to decide what new companies to build
Understand pet parents
I partnered with our heads of research and product to define a research strategy that mapped the full pet parent journey. We conducted usability tests, analyzed industry reports, and interviewed experts to uncover unmet needs of millennial pet parents.
Identify Market Gaps
Map out the pet parent journey next and highlight the areas of opportunity.
Build the v1
Quickly launch new brands and companies. Double down on what does well and move on from what doesn't.
Identifying Opportunities
I created a master journey map with all moments of pet parent ownership assigned to where our companies meet them. This made it very easy to see the unmet gaps of pet parents.
A product journey map.
We used these to hone in on the actual flow
Selling the Vision
I mocked up storyboards to illustrate key user problems, which we later turned into videos to secure investment across our portfolio.
Lofi Concepts
Wireframes and prototypes to explore concepts like this one guiding new dog owners from adoption to their next steps and answering the critical “What’s next?” question.
Launching New Brands
For each brand I or someone on my team would choose colors, fonts and create illustrations and a brand personality.
Some Hifi Screens
Over two years at Mars, we launched and improved eight companies, built design teams, go-to-market strategies and key partnerships, and also drove traffic and improved performance across our existing brands.
Best CPA percentage - when compared with our benchmarks and other MARS companies
Strong account creation percentage when compared with competitors and national averages.
We built many new technologies that went on to be used throughout the company
Chat with a vet, breed library API and a much more personal onboarding were all strategies that we pioneered and were then pushed to other MARS brands.
Results
As a director - my job was about more than just shipping products - it was also about improving outcomes.
What I Learned
Get early alignment with leadership
Clearly define the problem as early and often as possible
Build Trasparently
Set Expectations upfront to foster trust and collaboration
Engage Experts Frequently
From internal teams to external clients and users—and cultivate their support for your success.
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