Replica Studio - Platform Redesign & Rollout
From fragmented research tools to unified SaaS platform driving $18M ARR. I led the platform transformation that scaled Replica from hundreds to 10,000+ users while achieving profitability. This multi-year overhaul unified fragmented analytical tools into a cohesive enterprise platform, tripling active usage and reducing design-to-dev cycles by 40% while establishing the foundation for sustainable business growth.
The Challenge
Replica's legacy tools were valuable but fragmented across different analytical workflows. Each product served different urban planning needs but operated in silos, creating significant barriers to platform adoption and business growth. Cities and agencies struggled with inconsistent interfaces, making it difficult to derive actionable insights for policy decisions.
With growing market demand for unified urban planning solutions, Replica needed to evolve from research-grade tools to enterprise SaaS platform. Our goal was to transform these fragmented workflows into a cohesive platform experience that could scale to serve thousands of government analysts nationwide.
Role & Responsibilities
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Led cross-functional platform transformation across design, product, and engineering teams
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Directed product strategy and team execution managing designers and PMs through research, prototyping, and implementation
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Conducted user research and market validation with government analysts and urban planners
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Designed scalable platform architecture including IA, navigation, and analytical workflows
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Managed customer transition strategy and enterprise onboarding experience
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Established design system governance enabling 40% faster development cycles
Who we served
Understanding our target users was critical for platform-market fit. Government analysts and urban planners represented a $X billion market opportunity for data-driven planning tools, but existing solutions were either too technical or too simplified for their complex analytical needs.
Profiles showed who needs raw datasets vs guided visuals. We mapped proficiency and confidence, then shaped paths for each group.
From needs to workflows
User research revealed that workflow fragmentation was the primary barrier to platform adoption. By mapping user journeys across multiple tools, we identified opportunities to reduce analysis time by 60% through unified workflows, directly supporting our business objective of increasing user engagement and retention.
Sticky notes map needs by phase, from defining metrics to presenting results.
The same needs, turned into a clear start-to-finish flow that links maps, tables, and dashboards.
Designing the platform, not just pages
This strategic approach positioned Replica as a comprehensive platform rather than a collection of tools, creating sustainable competitive advantages and enabling the pricing strategy that contributed to profitability..
Detailed architecture used to align product, design, and engineering.
Object map and key paths across Studio.
Systematizing the UI
To ship faster with quality, we built a design system with documented patterns, tokens, and examples for light and dark.
Component library and tokens that cut design to dev time by about 50 percent and raised visual consistency.
What We Shipped
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Improved navigation and filters in Places: simpler controls, fine-grained filtering, and interactive summaries to quickly focus on the trips and people that matter.
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More control over visualizations: map color palettes, step controls, and transparency settings, plus a streamlined chart view for trips and people.
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Dataset view with live preview: filter first, see a sample in app, then download with confidence.
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Smarter data downloads: pick only the fields you want and export CSV, Shapefile, or GeoJSON.
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New Home: quick access to saved work across Trends and Places, plus recent applications.
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Refreshed reference data: clearer access to geographies, land use, and parking datasets.
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Design system foundation: reusable patterns for tables, filters, maps, and charts, documented for product and engineering teams.
Application home
Unified dashboard that reduced user onboarding time by 50%, directly supporting customer expansion and reducing churn.
Before Redesign
After Redesign
Study experience
Streamlined analytical workflows that increased feature adoption rates and positioned Replica for enterprise contract growth.
Before Redesign
After Redesign
Data access
Old flow forced manual downloads. The new Data Library lets users filter, preview, and export in one place, with clear field docs and controls.
Before Redesign
After Redesign
A smarter first mile
We added a light onboarding that captures role and geographies, then tailors the first session with relevant apps, studies, and dashboards.
Why it matters
The data did not change. The experience did. Users can now move from question to answer without leaving the product. That reduces context switching, builds trust in the outputs, and shortens the path from exploration to decision.
Results Delivered
Strategic Outcomes
Business model transformation:
Enabled transition from project-based to SaaS revenue model
Competitive advantage:
Platform approach differentiated from fragmented competitor solutions
Foundation for growth:
Architecture supporting continued product line expansion
Business Impact
Platform profitability:
Contributed to Replica achieving $18M ARR by 2025
Market positioning:
Unified experience became key differentiator enabling premium pricing
Customer expansion:
Platform architecture supported 100x user growth without proportional cost increase
Product Performance
User adoption:
90%+ retention rate across government customers
Market positioning
Development efficiency:
40% reduction in feature delivery cycles
Enterprise readiness:
Platform scalability enabled expansion to serve government agencies nationwide
More Work Examples
Replica Data Library
Tractics UI/UX Transformation
Replica Design System
Replica Places Studies
mySidewalk Dashboards
Replica Brand