I’m a Romanian-Turkish multidisciplinary designer, currently based in Helsinki. I have a background in industrial design and I have experience in the domains of graphic, product, and spatial design. I am particularly passionate about designing engaging experiences and services.
In this portfolio, you’ll find a diverse collection of my student projects, professional work, and side projects, all reflecting my visual and technical design capabilities,
Contact Information
Mail: heraakcay@gmail.com
Phone:+31687709541
Experience Skills
Freelance Designer
Jan 2022- Sep 2023
Product design, graphic design, project visualisation, social media management and content creation on demand.
Education
MA Interior Architecture
The Royal College of Art
2023-2024, The Hague NETHERLANDS
BS Industrial Design
Middle East Technical University
2017-2022, Ankara TURKEY
Designer and Project Assistant
Onaranlar Kulübü
Aug 2022- Nov 2022, Istanbul, TR
Participated in creative project development processes for a social enterprise specializing in spatial design projects.
Key Responsibilities:
Conducted research, including necessary exploration, sketching, and design, for city-oriented projects.
Took an active role in field operations, fostering communication with manufacturers, and overseeing process management.
Honour Student
Product Design Intern
Sinbo Home Appliances
Aug 2019- Sep 2019, Istanbul, TR
3D modelling for production of small home appliences. Working closely with mold designers. Following production process of plastic parts.
Honorable Mention
Usability Testing
User Research
Research Analysis
Concept Generation
Experience Mapping
Information Architecture
Wireframing
User Flows
Prototyping
Product Design
Product Strategy
UX/UI Intern
Jotform
Jul 2019- Aug 2019, Ankara, TR
Contributed as a UX/UI intern to enhance the intuitive and visually appealing interfaces for the company’s website usability.
Actively engaged in user research and testing to inform design decisions. Took part in the creation of wireframes to outline the structural framework of the website.
Collaborated with the design team to ensure cohesive and effective design implementation.
Finalist
Circular Economy Themed Interdisciplinary Design Contest I System design, 2020 IEDxIDD 2020
International Scholarship contest: Designing Imagination l Service design, 2020
TU Delft-Certificate
Circular Economy: An Introduction, 2020
Awards&Certificates Other Activites
International Press Coordinatior
Golden orange Film Festival, 2022
Board Member
METU Design Community, 2022
Visual Design
Project management
3D modelling
Softwares
Photoshop
Illustrator
Indesign
Premiere Pro Figma
Procreate Rhino
Fusion 360
Keyshot
Midjourney
Languages
English- C2
Turkish- Native
Budgy
UX/UI Design
Mobile Application
Community Space
Spatial Design Public Space Transformation
Product Design
Bluetooth Speaker
Memphis Bistro
Furniture Design
Public Bistro
Brand Identity
Visual Design
System Design
Business Concept
Foamo Amica
Shoe Loop
Budgy
A digital assistant and wallet application that supports young people to improve their financial literacy and regulate their financial health.
Time: 12 Weeks (2022)
Role/ Project Type: Graduation Project
Collaboration: Garanti BBVA Technology
Tools:
About
Working with Turkey’s second- largest private bank
Problem
Generation Z faces significant challenges in managing their financial health
Opportunity
Helping Garanti BBVA to reach and engage with a young audience
Garanti BBVA: Turkey’s second-largest private bank, established in 1946, is committed to transparency, customer experience, and sustainable growth.
Garanti BBVA Technology provides organizations of the Garanti BBVA brand with technology infrastructure, software development on different platforms, internet applications, integration, system management, security management, project management and office application services.
Generation Z faces significant challenges in managing their financial health and improving financial literacy. Existing digital tools often lack the comprehensive and engaging approach necessary to educate and empower Gen Z individuals in making informed financial decisions. As a result, many young people struggle with budgeting, saving, and investing, which can lead to financial instability and missed opportunities for personal growth.
This situation presents a significant opportunity for Garanti BBVA to reach and engage with a young audience by providing a comprehensive digital solution tailored to the financial needs and preferences of Generation Z. By developing a user-centric digital assistant and wallet application, Garanti BBVA can position itself as a trusted financial partner for young individuals, helping them build a strong financial foundation and fostering long-term customer relationships.
To kick off the UX/UI design project, I conducted an in-depth discovery phase with generation-z individuals to understand their financial behaviours. This allowed me to align the design concept with their needs and desires.
Research Findings
Lack of Education
Over half of the children have never heard of financial health, according to the online survey.
Lack of financial products
The results of the market research indicate that young people are not currently being targeted to by digital finance solutions.
Difficulty of setting
goals
According to online survey four out of five children find it difficult to stick to a budget and create goals.
Lack of communication
Studies indicate that more than 80% of children avoid asking their parents for assistance.
Insights
User-Friendly and Engaging Design
With the tech-savvy nature of Generation Z and their short attention span, their digital experience should feature an intuitive and visually appealing interface. This approach encourages regular use and makes financial management an enjoyable experience, perfectly suited to their preferences.
Comprehensive Financial Education
In the quickly changing world of finances, there is a clear need among Generation Z for engaging and easy-to-understand financial education. This growing interest highlights the importance of creating simple resources that cover budgeting, saving, investing, and managing credit, tailored to their needs and interests.
Personalized Financial Insights
Generation Z demands individualised attention and prefers personalised experiences, it is imperative to offer personalised financial insights and advise based on each person’s spending patterns and financial objectives. This method encourages the formation of sound financial habits and assists users in making well-informed decisions.
Interactive Financial Tools
To close the educational gap, it is important to encourage communication between parents and younger members of Generation Z. By ensuring that young people receive the required financial education and assistance, this contact serves to foster responsible financial behaviour and well-informed decision-making.
Persona
& Journey Map
Information Architecture Deliverables
Information Architecture
Design System Visual Design Deliverables
Interaction Design Deliverables
Wireframe & Prototyping
Design
Solution& Key Features
Family Group Goal Setting & Tracking
A family budget group that teaches kids to manage money by giving them financial responsibilities in a controlled environment.
Blog that meets both parents and the kids at the same page by providing peronalised blog contents about financial education and technology.
Personal wallet Personal Tests
A personal wallet for kids to learn money management and track their expenses.
Users can take a test to assess their financial situation. Based on the results, Budgy offers personalized suggestions.
A page that helps users create and manage financial goals, accounts, and budgets after receiving suggestions from Budgy, allowing them to track their progress and challenges.
Alman Deresi Community and Movement Space
Public space transformation that creates dialouge between space and people
We repaired the basketball court on the Alman Deresi Walking Track, which provided opportunities for a walking track and various sports activities for many years, and created community spaces that would improve the dialogue and social activity of people not only with themselves but also with their surroundings.
In addition to the sitting and viewing units we designed for the visitors of the park, we built new areas for resting, performing, working and spending time in the park with other furniture units around the basketball court, which was empty before our intervention.
Foamo
Branding design for a skincare beauty brand Foamo.
Time: 1 Week (2024)
Project Type: Personal Project
Design: Visual Syle
Spatial Concept
Tools:
Visual Identity
Bringing the essence of nature and playfulness into every detail
Foamo’s mission is to nourish the body with natural ingredients while sparking joy through delightful fruity fragrances. With this in mind, I crafted a brand identity that encapsulates their vibrant and playful spirit. The colors—pink, green, and peach—are carefully chosen to reflect the brand’s essence of fruity deliciousness and natural goodness. This project was all about intertwining the natural charm and playful energy into both the strategic and visual aspects of Foamo’s skincare products. It’s not just about skincare; it’s about celebrating nature and playfulness in every facet of the brand’s identity.
Design
Spatial Concept
With the brand identity I crafted, I explored an experiential brand store concept. Using Midjourney, I developed numerous ideas for store design that reflect the brand’s playful essence and professionalism. I created over 50 concept iterations using various Midjourney commands. These visuals effectively communicate potential spatial concepts, bringing the brand’s vision to life.
Amica
Portable Bluetooth Speaker design for manufacturing
Time: 7 Weeks (2022)
Project type: Student Project
Tools:
Sketching
Prototyping & Testing
Laser cut carboard mock-ups of the two concepts made to develop form and conduct user tests.
One concept was selected after user tests. Then made styrofoam mockup of the concept to develop the design.
Modelling
Concepts modelled in Rhinoceros 3D program ready to manufacture.
Memphis Street
Bistro
The bistro design, which is emerged from the need for socialization during the pandemic period.
Time: 2 Weeks (2021)
Role/ Project Type:
Designer/ Professional Work
Project Executive: Onaranlar Kulübü
Cooperation: Levis jeans
Project Support: Şişli Municipality
Responsibilities:
Concept Design, Manufacture Modelling
Tools:
Ideation
I have recognized the lack of interaction that people needed during the corona pandemic. Since restaurants were closed, people were already gathering outside with their beverages. Proposed the idea of a space to enable the dialog in a safe way.
Technical Details
I have designed the street bistro. And prepared the blueprints and production details for application with the illustrations and 3d models.
Shoe Loop
Social enterprise project that set out with the aim of adding waste and idle shoes to the circular economy with different repair scenarios and changing the consumption habits of users
24.3 billion pairs of shoes were produced worldwide in 2019 (World Footwear 2020 Yearbook, APICCAPS, 2020)
22.000.000.000
In 2020, 22 billion pairs of shoes went to waste. (Vivobarefoot, 2020)
Project Stages
In our project, which we will start by creating a community around the repair shop, we have designed a polyphonic and constantly learning environment that can bring users, manufacturers, repairers and designers together. We aim to disseminate the right practices including repair, reuse, recycling and upstream recycling with the repair shop and then the modular shoe production processes. Our horizon is the expansion of the right practices we have developed to the entire textile sector.
