Company: The Daily Beast
Role: Lead Product Designer
Platforms: Web (desktop & mobile)
Timeline: October 2024-October 2025
Role: Lead Product Designer
Platforms: Web (desktop & mobile)
Timeline: October 2024-October 2025
Summary: Led the end-to-end branding and product design from concept through launch of The Looker, a new beauty, style, wellness, and ambition vertical.
The Challenge: Create a distinct lifestyle vertical that expanded The Daily Beast’s editorial reach while maintaining brand credibility and platform cohesion.
Role & Responsibilities:
- Conducted competitive analysis of leading online beauty and lifestyle platforms, paired with user research, to define positioning, content strategy, and key user needs
- Developed a distinct visual identity, including logo design and a recognizable color palette, while maintaining alignment with The Daily Beast brand ecosystem
- Led The Looker as The Daily Beast’s first project to implement a headless UI system, designing and deploying a reusable component library for both The Looker and The Daily Beast.
- Created wireframes and high-fidelity designs for the sub-site homepage, article wrap pages, and key points of entry from The Daily Beast homepage
- Reimagined site navigation to support a multi-site experience, streamlining discovery and creating a framework to showcase The Daily Beast’s expanding library of sub-sites
- Conducted competitive analysis of leading online beauty and lifestyle platforms, paired with user research, to define positioning, content strategy, and key user needs
- Developed a distinct visual identity, including logo design and a recognizable color palette, while maintaining alignment with The Daily Beast brand ecosystem
- Led The Looker as The Daily Beast’s first project to implement a headless UI system, designing and deploying a reusable component library for both The Looker and The Daily Beast.
- Created wireframes and high-fidelity designs for the sub-site homepage, article wrap pages, and key points of entry from The Daily Beast homepage
- Reimagined site navigation to support a multi-site experience, streamlining discovery and creating a framework to showcase The Daily Beast’s expanding library of sub-sites
Outcome: Launched in late 2025 with a clear visual identity and a scalable foundation for continued expansion.
Logo Design & Color Palette
Our first ask from stakeholders was to give The Looker a visual identity that complemented The Daily Beast while feeling independent. Through multiple explorations, we landed on a lighter, more delicate version of the brand font and a palette that helps the brand stand out.
Our first ask from stakeholders was to give The Looker a visual identity that complemented The Daily Beast while feeling independent. Through multiple explorations, we landed on a lighter, more delicate version of the brand font and a palette that helps the brand stand out.
Marketing Materials and Logo Application
Wireframes
We began the site process with wireframes, exploring multiple layouts that presented stories clearly while maintaining a premium feel. The designs tested UX features like product carousels, trending articles, verticals, and ad placements.
We began the site process with wireframes, exploring multiple layouts that presented stories clearly while maintaining a premium feel. The designs tested UX features like product carousels, trending articles, verticals, and ad placements.
High Fidelity Designs
The Looker homepage brings the brand to life through high-fidelity mobile and web design, offering a more premium reading experience with larger imagery and story-driven layouts. Vibrant, on-brand photo illustrations add personality and reinforce The Looker identity. The design supports revenue growth by elevating products and commerce alongside investigative reporting. The four core verticals (Wellness, Face, Body, and Hair) are clearly showcased, with subtle use of the Looker green in rubric and button treatments.
The Looker homepage brings the brand to life through high-fidelity mobile and web design, offering a more premium reading experience with larger imagery and story-driven layouts. Vibrant, on-brand photo illustrations add personality and reinforce The Looker identity. The design supports revenue growth by elevating products and commerce alongside investigative reporting. The four core verticals (Wellness, Face, Body, and Hair) are clearly showcased, with subtle use of the Looker green in rubric and button treatments.
The Looker Article Page
The article page delivers an intuitive, premium reading experience with seamlessly integrated ads, product carousels, embeds, and styling consistent with The Daily Beast.
The article page delivers an intuitive, premium reading experience with seamlessly integrated ads, product carousels, embeds, and styling consistent with The Daily Beast.
Multi-Site Navigation and UX Updates
As part of launching a new sub-site, we needed to seamlessly integrate it within DailyBeast.com while enabling clear, intuitive navigation between The Daily Beast sub-sites, including Obsessed and The Looker. This was also an opportunity to utilize user feedback and data and make improvements to the structure of the navigation.
As part of launching a new sub-site, we needed to seamlessly integrate it within DailyBeast.com while enabling clear, intuitive navigation between The Daily Beast sub-sites, including Obsessed and The Looker. This was also an opportunity to utilize user feedback and data and make improvements to the structure of the navigation.
Below is the original Daily Beast navigation, followed by the redesigned Daily Beast navigation. The updated navigation structure was applied to The Looker to ensure consistency and create a more intuitive multi-site experience.
