Joppa

Creator marketplace built to help business owners maximize creator marketing

problem

African creators have built real audiences. What they haven't had is the infrastructure to convert that attention into sustainable income. Existing monetization tools were designed for Western markets — with payment assumptions, business models, and user experiences that simply didn't translate. The gap wasn't just a missing feature. It was a missing category. Creators needed a partner platform that understood their context: how they build audiences, how they work with brands, and how they want to be seen as business owners — not just influencers.

solution

Brand credibility: Brands needed to see a polished, trustworthy platform before they'd consider partnering with creators on it. The design had to signal professionalism from the first screen. Creator empowerment: Creators needed to feel like the platform was built for them — not another tool that treats them as product. Every flow had to feel intuitive and purpose-built. MVP completeness: With a long product roadmap ahead, the hardest design challenge was making the MVP feel like a finished product, not a starting point. Incompleteness kills trust. Founder's bias: Being a creator myself gave me deep insight — but also made me finicky. I had to actively distinguish between what I wanted as a user and what the product needed as a business.

Brand identity

Built Joppa's visual identity from scratch — a design language that had to hold its own against global platforms while feeling rooted in the African creator context. Clean, confident, and creator-first.

Creator onboarding and profile

Designed an onboarding experience that felt like setting up a business, not filling out a form. Creator profiles are built to showcase work and build trust with brands at a glance.

Brand and creator discovery

Built the matching layer — so creators can find brands worth working with, and brands can find creators whose audiences actually fit. Discovery had to work for both sides without favouring either.

Creator storefronts

Designed standalone storefronts where creators sell services, digital products, or physical goods — turning followers into customers. Built to feel like a real business front, not a hobby shop.

Earnings dashboard

Creators needed to see exactly where their income came from — brand deals, direct sales, partnerships. Transparency in the dashboard was a trust mechanism, not just a UI feature.

Pitch and investor materials

Designed the investor-facing assets that communicate Joppa's vision — the roadmap, the market opportunity, and the product as it exists today. Currently in active use in fundraising conversations.

year

2026

timeframe

Ongoing

tools

Figma