Product · Hackathon · 2021
F-Sync
Product Designer · Hackathon Lead
2021 · HackHarvard
Cross-functional hackathon team
F-Sync is a cross-retailer inventory sharing platform built at HackHarvard to tackle excess inventory in fashion. It enables brands and retailers to view live stock across partners and request excess inventory — reducing overproduction and waste.
What needed solving
Fashion retailers frequently over-manufacture due to fragmented visibility across inventory systems. Excess stock sits unsold while other retailers reorder unnecessarily, creating waste and margin loss.
research & problem framing
The inventory problem isn't a data problem — it's a visibility and coordination problem between brands and retailers.
- Identified two core user types: brands managing global inventory and retailers requesting stock from partner networks.
- Mapped the inventory request lifecycle: browse → request → notify → fulfill → return.
- Studied existing B2B inventory tools and found they lacked cross-retailer sharing and real-time visibility.
- Defined transactional touchpoints requiring automated communication between brands and retailers.
design process
- Wireframed brand and retailer views — global inventory tables, stock request flows, and retailer selection.
- Designed high-fidelity prototypes in Figma with usability testing loops for inventory navigation.
- Built Twilio email templates for every interaction: welcome confirmations, product requests, return notices, and order summaries.
- Simulated retailer workflows using Power Apps and Power Automate for fulfillment notifications.
- Created an app architecture diagram mapping proposed functionalities to technical implementation.
design strategy
Design for two audiences with one platform — brands need oversight, retailers need speed.
- Used a clean table-based UI for inventory browsing — item name, ID, size, color, location, and one-click request actions.
- Separated brand and retailer onboarding with tailored welcome flows and role-specific dashboards.
- Automated email notifications at every transaction step to reduce manual coordination overhead.
- Applied minimal, high-contrast UI so inventory data remains scannable under time pressure.
solution
- Brand view: global inventory page with live stock levels across all retail partners.
- Retailer view: searchable inventory table with filter-by-retailer and one-click stock requests.
- Automated Twilio email templates for 8+ transaction types between brands and retailers.
- Power Apps workflow simulation for fulfillment and return notification automation.
HackHarvard build artifacts
Architecture diagrams, inventory interfaces, automated email flows, and team context from the 36-hour HackHarvard sprint.
Context
HackHarvard 2021
F-Sync was built at HackHarvard to tackle excess inventory in fashion — a cross-retailer sharing platform connecting brands and retailers in real time.
view research section →
Team
Cross-functional team
Collaborated with engineers, designers, and business strategists across a 36-hour sprint to ship a working prototype and Twilio integration.
view research section →
Architecture
App architecture diagram
System diagram mapping proposed functionalities — inventory browsing, stock requests, fulfillment, and returns — to our technical implementation.
view process section →
Product UI
Brand view — global inventory
Sonybrand's global inventory page with live stock levels, one-click request actions, and retailer management — designed for scannability under time pressure.
view solution section →
Automation
Twilio email templates
Automated email flows for 8+ transaction types — welcome confirmations, product requests, return notices, and order summaries between brands and retailers.
view solution section →Impact & results
- Winner — HackHarvard Twilio Challenge (2021).
- End-to-end UX from wireframes to high-fidelity prototypes with usability testing.
- Functional email automation system covering the full brand-retailer transaction lifecycle.