The client

Fankarist is a creative hiring platform that connects talented individuals such as artists, stylists, performers, and photographers with employers looking to fill short-term gigs and creative roles. The platform allows talent to showcase their work and find opportunities.

The opportunity

When Fankarist partnered with Grand, they were already operating a live platform. But despite having a functional product, they were facing a deeper challenge. The experience no longer matched their brand, and users were quietly slipping away. The design felt outdated, the workflows were confusing, and retention among both talent and employers was low.

They didn’t just need a UI refresh. They needed to reconnect the platform with its purpose and make creative hiring feel intuitive, inspiring, and efficient. What started as a redesign quickly evolved into a full strategic overhaul. From user research and product architecture to messaging and visual identity, Fankarist trusted Grand to help reimagine the experience from the ground up.

Research-driven foundation

We began by conducting in-depth user research including user interviews, and behavioral audits. We mapped out personas across key segments, from emerging creatives and full-time freelancers to employers in media, fashion, and content production.

This helped us uncover critical experience gaps. Users found the onboarding unclear, the profiles difficult to personalize, and the job flows poorly aligned with real-world hiring needs. Employers often lacked trust in the platform’s professionalism, and talent struggled to see its value beyond basic job listings. These insights formed the foundation of every design and brand decision that followed.

Fankarist needed a brand identity that felt bold, expressive, and culturally relevant. We created a system that brought individuality to the forefront, using striking colors, editorial-inspired typography, and layouts that felt approachable.

Reshaping the product experience

The product was restructured around two distinct user journeys. For talent, we created a smoother onboarding experience, simplified portfolio setup, and built a personalized job board based on interests, roles, and location. The messaging and application tracking flows were also reimagined to make engagement more fluid and rewarding.

For employers, we designed a job posting flow that was fast, structured, and clear. Filtering and reviewing candidates became easier through intuitive profile previews, saved lists, and messaging tools. These improvements helped both sides of the marketplace operate with more clarity and confidence.

How we helped

Grand led the project from insight to execution. We audited the original platform, conducted user research, and developed actionable personas. We delivered a complete brand strategy and created a full visual identity system. The product design was rebuilt from the ground up across both mobile and desktop, including flows for job discovery, application, and talent management.

Final Thoughts

Fankarist is more than just a hiring platform. It is a space that celebrates creative potential and connects people through opportunity. Our work helped bring their vision into focus and turn it into a digital experience that feels purposeful, personal, and ready to grow.

At Grand, we didn’t just redesign screens. We helped shape the future of a brand that empowers talent to be seen and hired on their own terms.