AfroLA Buy Black LA Re-Design
Internship
Solving visibility, marketing, and resource gaps for Black business owners in LA
Role
UX Designer
Timeline
6 weeks
Collaborators
2 Designers
1 Product Manager
1 Software Engineer
Skills
User Research
Competitive Analysis
Information Architecture
Picture of my team and I
What is Afro LA & Buy Black LA?
AfroLA is a digital media platform that centers Black voices in Los Angeles through journalism, storytelling and community engagement.
Buy Black LA is AfroLA’s free, community-powered directory helping Angelenos discover and support local Black-owned businesses.
My role
I collaborated with SWE, PM and other co-interns to deliver a product brief that detailed the initial plans of Buy Black LA (BBLA)’s revamp.
Overview
Re-designing the Buy Black LA directory to streamline business discovery for local audiences
The end goal of this project is to transform Buy Black LA into a dependable directory for discovering authentic Black-owned businesses across Los Angelos. As a UX intern, I proposed key features that aligned with user and business needs.
Our product roadmap for BBLA revamp
Discovery
Dozens of great businesses were hidden behind poor design.
Buy Black LA’s navigation creates friction for users, directly limiting engagement. As a result, it fails to properly support Black business owners and the curious consumers searching for them.
Core Discovery Insight
Prioritizing mobile usability across user segments
BBLA caters to a wide range of audiences, from local residents and students to tourists and business owners. However, the existing platform was built strictly for desktop devices. Because the majority of our audience relies primarily on smartphones for daily browsing, transitioning to a mobile-responsive architecture was essential to improving equity, engagement, and cross-segment accessibility.
The different user group BBLA serves to
How might we make Buy Black LA a frictionless, mobile-first experience that connects Black owned-businesses with consumers?
Proposed Solution: Fall 2026 Launch MVP
To address navigation barriers and enhance business discoverability, I proposed the following feature updates for the revamp..
Disclaimer: The graphics provided below are screenshots of the app in progress and not the final design.
Search
Filter businesses by category and neighborhood
Listing Details
Each listing of the business includes vital info and expands to more details (ADA, nearby parking/transit nearby, payment options)
Inclusivity
Showing a variety of business types, including online-only
Integrated features for later development stages
Additional proposed features planned for future release phases...
Disclaimer: The graphics provided below are screenshots of the app in progress and not the final design.
In-App Perks
Businesses can offer in app-only deals and incentives
Cross-Business Collaboration
Allow businesses to work together to reach consumers
Custom Collections
Users can login to curate their search results into "Favorites" lists
Enhanced Business Showcase
Businesses can display more than list the basics; they have a space to tell their “story”.
Impact
Guided early product strategy and engineering execution
The product brief defined the early product strategy and informed engineering decisions. The revamped version of BBLA is currently on track to launch in late 2026.
Reflections
Juggling business and user needs
A key learning from this role was pitching features that balanced business and user needs. It helped me shift mindsets and still continues to guide my design decisions as a designer.
Bridging design and development
I also learned how to frame design intent around technical feasibility and it was important to consider these factors especially when I was working with a software engineer. Translating UX rationale into actionable technical context gave me valuable insight into effective cross-functional communication
