Photograph of Kelcey Braine, Design strategy and DesignOps partner for startup founders

Hi, I'm Kelcey – originally from the North-West of England. I'm currently based in Te Whanganui-a-Tara/Wellington, Aotearoa/New Zealand.

I'm passionate about partnering with startups and founders to transform their ideas into compelling products and experiences through design.

With my expertise in design strategy and operations (DesignOps), I've been fortunate to support numerous early-stage businesses in making their mark in the industry.

My design journey began in advertising (primarily in the international FMCG space), gradually incorporating brand and design strategy before shifting into product design. Over the years, I’ve honed my skills, becoming adept at creating visually appealing and user-friendly designs that resonate with the end user and add value to the business.

I've spent years working directly with founders, helping them to realise their vision and mission in a way that engages and excites end users, as well as potential investors. Working so closely with founders has helped me to develop a strategic balance between aligning the goals of the business with the needs of users, and the craft of design.

In the world of startups, where every second counts, I also offer my expertise in DesignOps. By streamlining design processes and fostering efficient workflows, I’ve been able to support teams to increase their operational efficiency and go to market faster.

Currently, I'm an Experience Lead / Product Designer at EndGame. I provide the user-focused voice as part of a product trio while working closely with startup founders to bring their vision to life.

I'm always keen to collaborate when I have the time. Give me a shout about an upcoming project!

Professional experience

Education

Media / Achievements

Professional experience

2022–ongoing – Experience lead / Product designer

EndGame

I help early- and later-stage startups with product design in the B2B and B2C space. My role focuses on creating meaningful experiences for users on behalf of startup founders, through product discovery and user research, UX/UI design, and branding.

Ongoing – Freelance

As a freelancer, I have gained experience in stakeholder management through developing client relationships and writing briefs; project and workflow management; and budgeting and invoicing.

Highlights:

Collaborate: Delivered strategic alignment workshops, ad-hoc user mapping and (app) user testing. Within 18 months of the final workshop, Collaborate developed their app with a local development agency, on-boarding 1,275 new volunteers and 311 organisations.
View case study
Narrative Muse: Design and storytelling for industry and investment pitches.

2017–2022 – Design Lead

Creative HQ brand guardian: Actively managing collateral development, print and digital promotional materials, and brief and budget management for ad-hoc contractors.

Early-stage prototype/product concept testing: Support for design sprints with Creative HQ’s clients.

Startup and corporate accelerator support: Strategic, design, and storytelling (industry and investment pitch) support for 15 accelerators with 120+ ventures ranging FMCG, fintech, govtech, culture, energy, tourism and climate sectors.

Highlights:

Hnry: Brand strategy and website relaunch: 1 month after implementation, Hnry saw a 45% increase of new users.
View case study

2016 – Design Specialist/Consultant

2012–2015 – Designer

Mesh Marketing, London

Below-the-line marketing designs for FMCG brand activations across points of sale, packaging, social media and experiential displays.

Highlights:

Design rollout, artwork and digital production (and coordination for) Budweiser’s 2014 “Rise as One” FIFA World Cup™ campaign, which won Best Sponsorship Activation – Bronze (Institute of Promotional Marketing Awards).
View case study
Digital rollout and production of Budweiser’s 2015 activation at London’s O2 Arena for their “Grab some Buds” campaign, visible to 20,000+ attendees.
View case study
In-store activation design concepts for M&M’s Halloween campaign, which would be rolled out and visible in up to 2,455 outlets†

†Statista Research Department

Skills

Branding, UX/UI design, Product design, Rapid prototyping, Wireframing, Storyboarding and storytelling, Design sprints, User research, Market and competitor research

Education

2021 – Startmate Women's Fellowship

Startmate

Spring (AUS/NZ) cohort 2021

Spring (AUS/NZ) buddy 2022

The Startmate Women's Fellowship helps talented and ambitious women from a multitude of backgrounds gain the network and skills needed to thrive in the startup world.‍‍ Fellows join a community of talented and inspiring women and gain access to the most iconic startups in Australia and New Zealand with 1 degree of separation.

2020 – Brand The Change academy

BrandTheChange.org

I worked alongside the Lightning Lab startup team to review where the brand and its offerings fit in the New Zealand startup support ecosystem, after changes in leadership and offerings between 2018–2020.

I was responsible for communicating the process we would be following with our internal team and for facilitating a collaborative strategy review through weekly workshops.

2012 – BA (Hons) Graphic Design