Hidden Gems: Meet Won You

Today we’d like to introduce you to Won You.

Hi Won, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?

I stumbled into design during my freshman year of college. I was studying engineering at the time when I fell in love with the Internet. I was enamored by the websites of some early designers and diarists who told visual stories in a way that I didn’t think was possible, and it inspired me to teach myself how to make a website. I started by creating my own humble homepage and I have been designing ever since.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?

My journey has had its fair share of ups and downs. I was fortunate enough to dive into web design during the height of the dot com bubble. Back then, anyone who knew how to do HTML and CSS and a little bit of JavaScript could get a good job right away. Even though I found relatively early success, the dot com crash in 2000 made it hard to find jobs that were a good fit for my skills.

And as I evolved from a fledgling designer to assuming leadership roles, a new set of challenges emerged. Navigating the intricate waters of corporate politics and stakeholder dynamics became an unexpected but nonetheless crucial aspect of my job. The transition to a lead designer brought me face-to-face with stakeholder management, which required a delicate balance between design excellence and interpersonal finesse. I wish I could say that I handled it well, but that would be a lie. And of course, when I decided to run my own design studio, that, too, came with new challenges as I had to learn a whole new set of skills including sales, bookkeeping and people management. It was a lot of work and stress, but the experience definitely made me a better leader.

Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?

Won J You Studios is a UX/UI product design consultancy that specializes in crafting human-centered experiences that drive results for startups and established brands alike. From dynamic websites to cutting-edge mobile apps, our mission is to take our clients ideas from concepts to reality. We are passionate about creating not only beautiful designs, but ones that are also intuitive and immersive leaving  an indelible mark on the user.

We are unique in that we leverage design sprints and rapid prototyping to accelerate the product design process.  In today’s fast-paced landscape, speed to market is a competitive advantage, and being able to close the loop from concept to implementation and user feedback is critical to finding product-market fit quickly. It is not often the case that a startup idea or feature is perfect coming out of the gate, so it’s important to be able to iterate quickly and continuously refine the product for maximum impact.

Our studio is based in Atlanta, but we serve clients all over the country. We’re humbled to have collaborated with esteemed clients such as The LA Times, Silicon Valley Bank, Atomic Ventures, Stash, and many more. At Won J You Studios, we’re not just design enthusiasts – we’re catalysts of transformation, propelling ideas into reality.

What’s next?

For now, our primary focus and commitment is to continue delivering great work to our clients. However, we do have plans to share our industry insights and expertise through social media, be it in video or other forms in the near future. So, stay tuned!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.wjystudios.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wjystudios/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wjystudios
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wjystudios
• Other: http://wonjyou.com/

Image Credits
Photography by Ethan Le and Ayaka Sano