YNYG New York
E-commerce
UX
Digital Media
Brand Design
YNYG Website↗
How does a small handwoven bag brand get noticed in a city full of designer bags?
YNYG makes handwoven bags in New York, most of them under $100. The store was already live when I joined. My job was to make the brand visible: on its own site, on Instagram, and in the photos people see first.
My Role
Freelance Digital & Visual Designer
Timeline
Jun 2025 – Feb 2026
Industry
B2C E-commerce, Fashion Accessories
OUTcomes
Reported revenue from campaigns I supported
Peak single-day sales
Revenue as reported by the YNYG founder for the campaigns I worked on
brand
The handwoven look of a designer bag, without the designer price.
YNYG was founded in New York on one belief, "beautiful design should be within reach". Its 69 handwoven bags sell for $39 to $168. Its foldable CityBag sells for $39. Who it is for, and against whom, shaped everything I made.
Research
Handwoven bags are either luxury or anonymous. YNYG sits in between.
I compared YNYG with five handwoven brands and two city-tote brands, by price, material, channel and how they use images and social media. Luxury brands sell the weave as craft. Affordable ones sell through stores and creators.
insights
Without a luxury label, trust has to come from people.
The weave sells the bag, only if you can see it.
In this price range, trust comes from people, not labels.
Small brands live or die on the follow.
Design Opportunity: Make an affordable New York brand feel as trustworthy as a designer one, by showing real people carrying it and turning every visit into a follow.
Design
Design 01
Deals, free shipping and "follow @ynyg_official" now open every page, with Instagram at the top left of the header. A visitor sees the brand's social side before they scroll.
Design 02
A New Arrival link, a product row right under the hero, and a seasonal banner the team swaps for the product it most wants to push. The New Arrivals page opens with my photo.
Design 03
An eye icon on every product card opens a side drawer: photos, price, colours, Add to cart. Shoppers compare bags and see them on a real person without leaving the list.
Design 04
I proposed working with creators and inviting customers to tag #WovenByYNYG. The creator collaboration ran. Their videos and customer posts now sit before the footer, as proof for anyone still deciding.
Photography
I shot the bags the way people actually carry them.
About half of the photos on the site are mine, mostly the real-use shots in product galleries and on Instagram. I shot in New York streets, parks and markets in autumn light, close enough to see the weave.
Results
The campaigns sold, and the work stayed.
reflection
Working inside someone else's site.
I couldn't redesign, so every change had to fit the theme. That made me think in sections and priorities, not pages.
Photography was design work.
The most visible thing I made was not a layout. It was the photos that show the weave.
