From Prototype to Product: How do you design a product when you don’t yet know who your users are

That was the challenge when I joined the Shopper Innovation team at Trax as their first UX Designer. Engineering had built a proof-of-concept using a proprietary Augmented Reality SDK, and the Product Manager had an early roadmap and a PRD (Product Requirements Document) based mostly on desktop research. One key piece was missing though: the users.

My job? Turn this prototype into a real product—one that people actually wanted.

Two Months to Launch:
Designing fast without compromising quality

In our first conversations with the PM, I mapped out the underlying assumptions shaping the product roadmap— who we thought our users were, what features mattered most, and how we expected them to engage with beer deals.

I also worked with the team to map OKRs and previous product explorations, into an opportunity map to identify how AR (Augmented Reality) technology could be valuable in physical stores.

With just two months until our soft launch, I had to move fast without cutting corners, so I focused on:

• Scaling design for iteration: We had UI concepts from an external agency, but they weren’t built for scalability or iteration. I took them as a starting point to build a reusable Figma component library, making it easier to maintain consistency while enabling our Mobile Developer to work faster.

• Structuring information for usability: I designed the app’s information architecture based on our must-have user stories, ensuring the structure was logical, scalable, and aligned with iOS platform guidelines to minimize friction. I didn’t want us to disrupt our early users’ experience as we iterated the product.

The soft launch went smoothly (thanks to having a strong team!) but a major gap remained: we had built an app —a good looking one— without truly understanding our (hypothetical) users’ relationship with beer.

Were they casual shoppers looking for deals? Craft beer enthusiasts hunting for rare finds?

We needed to find out as soon as possible.

Testing our assumptions:
Were beer deals a big deal for our users?

To help meet one of our team’s quarterly goals (identifying our target audience) I proposed a structured testing plan.

At that point, all we knew was that we were building for “people who like beer.” But that was too broad. Who were they, really? Casual shoppers? Craft beer connoisseurs?

We needed to find out.

My proposal was to embed user interviews into our sprints, dedicating one week per cycle to do discovery research and concept testing sessions with users ahead of the next iteration.

Over time, we refined this workflow:

• Concept validation first: We tested ideas with users early—before engineers started implementation. Keeping engineers in the loop: We held weekly prototype reviews where engineers were able to assess its feasibility —and adjust the designs if needed.

• Building team-wide research culture: I invited team members to join sessions as note-takers first, which helped them see their value by themselves. Soon, they wanted to ask users questions directly —helping us align faster and even shape up solutions.

Uncovering audiences:
A product pivot driven by user feedback

User testing revealed two key audiences:

• Casual beer enthusiasts looking for new flavors

• Dedicated “beer nerds” chasing rare brews—sometimes across the country!

With this insight, we evolved the value proposition from a simple store deal finder to a personalized beer discovery tool, complete with alerts for when favorite brews became available.

This was a roadmap shift, not just new features to work on.

And it informed our early user acquisition efforts.

From problem-solution fit to product market fit:
Going after our newfound target audiences

As we kept getting increasingly positive user feedback, the team —including the CTO— got enough confidence to start investing in marketing the product.

Our goal was now to expand our coverage nationwide and grow our user base. A new Marketing Manager (and well connected beer connoisseur!) joined the team.

I shifted the focus of our user research efforts to dig deeper into their motivations to help us inform marketing campaigns.

We collaborated to build a 3-month marketing roadmap, and I prepared assets to promote the app in Social Media.

We were ramping up our promotion efforts when the bad news arrived.

A premature ending:
The project was sunset due a shift in the company’s direction

By the second half of the year, the company decided to change priorities, and our team had to be repurposed.

We were told the product was going to remain online for a while, but we could no longer iterate on it.

Very tough news for us and the beer enthusiasts community we built who were looking forward to their rare beer catches.

But even though the project ended, our lessons in rapid iteration, audience refinement, and cross-functional collaboration were invaluable—and highly transferable to any product space.

This experience reinforced the power of continuous user engagement—especially when a product is still searching for its niche. Whether it’s beer, consumer or enterprise tools, my preferred approach stays the same: work closely with users, iterate quickly, and build solutions that truly meet their needs.

And that’s the story about BrewARy.