Project overview
Serai was HSBC’s international trade venture aimed at transforming how apparel buyers, suppliers, and manufacturers connect and build trust in the global garments industry. Positioned at the intersection of trade and technology, Serai provided a data-powered platform to streamline lead management, enhance supplier discovery, and accelerate business relationships across borders.
Targeted primarily at SMEs in the apparel sector, Serai addressed key pain points around sourcing, trust, and trade efficiency. The MVP achieved 98% quarter-over-quarter growth and reached over 10,000 customers in 2021, validating both its market need and user adoption.
What we did
- As Head of Design, I led a multidisciplinary team of product and discovery designers across multiple workstreams and played a critical role in shaping the strategy and user experience of the MVP.
- Defined and executed the design strategy for Serai’s initial go-to-market product, aligning with both user needs and HSBC’s strategic goals.
- Led design discovery, including over 30 contextual interviews and deep field research across Hong Kong and Guangzhou trade fairs, to identify unmet needs in the trade ecosystem.
- Shaped the product strategy by turning research insights into actionable opportunities—addressing trust, lead management, showcasing, and buyer-supplier matchmaking.
- Developed key personas (e.g. Fashion Startups, Manufacturer-Designer Hybrids) and customer journeys to guide design decisions and product focus.
- Orchestrated end-to-end prototyping, testing, and iteration, validating early concepts through live app testing and guerrilla research with SMEs during real trade events.
- Built the internal design capability for Serai from the ground up, including hiring and onboarding new designers.
- Collaborated closely with product managers and engineering leads to ship a user-centric MVP that delivered measurable business impact.
