Arena Club
I joined Arena Club as a Product Design Intern, where I took ownership of key projects alongside PMs and developers. I designed end-to-end experiences for core features like the marketplace, mobile guest mode, digital wallet payouts, and various UI elements. Working in a fast-paced, cross-functional team helped me grow quickly both professionally and personally.
Role
Product Design Intern
Team
2 people
Timeline
2 months
Tools
Figma, Jira, Notion, AI
My role as a product design intern
My role as a product design intern
My role as a product design intern
Owned and delivered core feature designs at Arena Club.
Owned and delivered core feature designs at Arena Club.
Owned and delivered core feature designs at Arena Club.
In just two months, I collaborated closely with product managers, stakeholders, users, and fellow designers to design and develop both new and existing features. Working on-site at the Santa Monica office, I led design reviews, conducted user interviews, and participated in cross-functional meetings to support successful feature launches.
Delivering end-to-end solutions from problem to launch
Delivering end-to-end solutions from problem to launch
At Arena Club, my contributions were driven by close collaboration and fast execution. As I adapted to the team’s workflow, I focused on rapidly iterating designs based on feedback, user data, and engineering constraints.
Conducting thoughtful design reviews
Contribution
Led weekly design reviews to gather feedback and iterate quickly.
Collaborated to launch roadmap-driven designs.
Pitched design concepts with clear business impact.
Impact
Ensured smooth design implementation aligned with the roadmap, enabling seamless handoff and iteration for remote development teams
Building new and existing features
Contribution
Built new features like guest mode, wallet payouts, pop report, and activity center.
Redesigned existing web and mobile flows to improve usability and drive user growth.
Impact
Boosted account creation by over 40% with guest mode and designed several mobile and web flows to improve efficiency, retain users, and drive revenue.
Solving complex, user-centered design challenges
Contribution
Used user data, analytics, and behavioral tracking to inform and guide design decisions.
Brainstormed design solutions in response to engineering constraints.
Impact
Used real-time user data to design low-effort solutions that improved satisfaction, prevented sales loss, and supported team momentum.
Challenges
Challenges
Embracing challenges, learning from them, and moving forward.
Embracing challenges, learning from them, and moving forward.
As an intern, I gained firsthand insight into the fast pace of startup life, facing both personal and design challenges. Embracing these experiences helped me grow significantly as a designer, presenter, and collaborator.
Design pitches
One challenge was gaining confidence presenting to stakeholders and explaining my design process.
Content layout
we needed more information displayed within various widgets.
UI Details Matter
A challenge was creating design flows detailed enough for developers, including all use cases and visual specs.
Friction points
certain screens had complex steps leading to confusion.
Faster Iteration
Another challenge was learning to iterate faster while balancing feedback, deadlines, and design quality.
UI Fixes
visuals weren't cohesive and certain elements needed adjusting.
Delivering end-to-end solutions from problem to launch
At Arena Club, my contributions were driven by close collaboration and fast execution. As I adapted to the team’s workflow, I focused on rapidly iterating designs based on feedback, user data, and engineering constraints.
Conducting thoughtful design reviews
Contribution
Led weekly design reviews to gather feedback and iterate quickly.
Collaborated to launch roadmap-driven designs.
Pitched design concepts with clear business impact.
Impact
Ensured smooth design implementation aligned with the roadmap, enabling seamless handoff and iteration for remote development teams
Building new and existing features
Contribution
Built new features like guest mode, wallet payouts, pop report, and activity center.
Redesigned existing web and mobile flows to improve usability and drive user growth.
Impact
Boosted account creation by over 40% with guest mode and designed several mobile and web flows to improve efficiency, retain users, and drive revenue.
Solving complex, user-centered design challenges
Contribution
Used user data, analytics, and behavioral tracking to inform and guide design decisions.
Brainstormed design solutions in response to engineering constraints.
Impact
Used real-time user data to design low-effort solutions that improved satisfaction, prevented sales loss, and supported team momentum.
Delivering end-to-end solutions from problem to launch
At Arena Club, my contributions were driven by close collaboration and fast execution. As I adapted to the team’s workflow, I focused on rapidly iterating designs based on feedback, user data, and engineering constraints.
Conducting thoughtful design reviews
Contribution
Led weekly design reviews to gather feedback and iterate quickly.
Collaborated to launch roadmap-driven designs.
Pitched design concepts with clear business impact.
Impact
Ensured smooth design implementation aligned with the roadmap, enabling seamless handoff and iteration for remote development teams
Building new and existing features
Contribution
Built new features like guest mode, wallet payouts, pop report, and activity center.
Redesigned existing web and mobile flows to improve usability and drive user growth.
Impact
Boosted account creation by over 40% with guest mode and designed several mobile and web flows to improve efficiency, retain users, and drive revenue.
Solving complex, user-centered design challenges
Contribution
Used user data, analytics, and behavioral tracking to inform and guide design decisions.
Brainstormed design solutions in response to engineering constraints.
Impact
Used real-time user data to design low-effort solutions that improved satisfaction, prevented sales loss, and supported team momentum.
Challenges
Challenges
Embracing challenges, learning from them, and moving forward.
As an intern, I gained firsthand insight into the fast pace of startup life, facing both personal and design challenges. Embracing these experiences helped me grow significantly as a designer, presenter, and collaborator.
Content layout
we needed more information displayed within various widgets.
Friction points
certain screens had complex steps leading to confusion.
UI Fixes
visuals weren't cohesive and certain elements needed adjusting.
Learnings + Reflection
Learnings + Reflection
Rapid growth as a designer, strategic thinker, and professional.
My two month internship was filled with both successes and challenges, giving me the opportunity to work on over five core features, support more than ten smaller projects, and interview over twenty real users. Being in person exposed me to new experiences and led to meaningful growth as a product designer that I will carry with me moving forward.
Colloboration moves design forward - By conducting more design reviews, hosting brainstorming sessions, and seeking feedback from teammates, I was able to push designs faster and with better quality.
Becoming more intentional - Organizing my Figma files, structuring flows clearly, and presenting my thinking with purpose helped developers and stakeholders better understand my process, leading to less friction and less pushback.
Interviewing users uncover hidden issues - Each week, I conducted user interviews on current and upcoming designs. Real user stories revealed new problems, making my design direction clearer and more effective.
Holding no attachment - In the fast pace of a tech startup, I learned to prioritize what matters, take feedback openly, scrap ideas when needed, and iterate in line with business goals.
Reflection
My time at Arena Club taught me more about work and design principles than I could have learned in a full year elsewhere.
Team chemistry is important. Understanding how your coworkers communicate and work is essential to effective collaboration.
Use mistakes and challenges as opportunities to grow, and design solutions that support the company’s goals.
Feel free to email me: plexomc@gmail.com if you are interested in learning more about my experience at Arena Club.
Learnings + Reflection
Learnings + Reflection
Rapid growth as a designer, strategic thinker, and professional.
Rapid growth as a designer, strategic thinker, and professional.
My two month internship was filled with both successes and challenges, giving me the opportunity to work on over five core features, support more than ten smaller projects, and interview over twenty real users. Being in person exposed me to new experiences and led to meaningful growth as a product designer that I will carry with me moving forward.
Colloboration moves design forward - By conducting more design reviews, hosting brainstorming sessions, and seeking feedback from teammates, I was able to push designs faster and with better quality.
Becoming more intentional - Organizing my Figma files, structuring flows clearly, and presenting my thinking with purpose helped developers and stakeholders better understand my process, leading to less friction and less pushback.
Interviewing users uncover hidden issues - Each week, I conducted user interviews on current and upcoming designs. Real user stories revealed new problems, making my design direction clearer and more effective.
Holding no attachment - In the fast pace of a tech startup, I learned to prioritize what matters, take feedback openly, scrap ideas when needed, and iterate in line with business goals.
Reflection
My time at Arena Club taught me more about work and design principles than I could have learned in a full year elsewhere.
Team chemistry is important. Understanding how your coworkers communicate and work is essential to effective collaboration.
Use mistakes and challenges as opportunities to grow, and design solutions that support the company’s goals.
Feel free to email me: plexomc@gmail.com if you are interested in learning more about my experience at Arena Club.