Material Exchange

Intelligent sourcing, made simple.

overview

Material Exchange is a B2B platform for the fashion industry. It allows brands to discover materials, connect with suppliers, manage sampling and sourcing projects, and access sustainability data in one system. The goal was to transform a fragmented, relationship-driven sourcing process into a structured digital platform.

challenge

Material sourcing traditionally happens through emails, spreadsheets, trade fairs, and personal networks. Information is fragmented and difficult to compare. The challenge was to translate this complex ecosystem into a clear digital system without losing the nuance of how the industry actually works. This required designing structured information architecture, multi-role workflows, and AI capabilities that could support discovery, comparison, and decision-making across large datasets.

Role

I joined Material Exchange as Lead Product Designer, shaping the platform experience while leading a small team of designers and developers. My role combined hands-on product design with guiding the team on design practices, collaboration, and product thinking. I designed the core platform architecture across material discovery, supplier collaboration, sampling workflows, and project management, defining the information hierarchy and interaction patterns that allowed multiple user roles to operate within the same system. I also worked closely with engineers on AI-powered features, including an LLM-based sourcing assistant that helps brands explore large material datasets and identify relevant suppliers. Alongside product work, I introduced AI-assisted workflows to improve prototyping, documentation, and iteration speed, helping the team adopt new tools and work more efficiently.

IMPACT

The work created a coherent platform foundation connecting discovery, supplier communication, sampling, and sustainability data. Brands could navigate material datasets more easily, collaborate with suppliers more effectively, and reduce the fragmented workflows common in textile sourcing. Internally, improved product structure, clearer design practices, and AI-assisted workflows helped the team move faster while maintaining product quality.

Product definition

Design direction

Strategic alignment

Product architecture

DLS

AI experience design

Cross-functional alignment

Team leadership