The Design Co.

What The Design Co. does

The Design Co. is a privately held, founder-operated career coaching business that serves product, UX, and digital designers navigating job searches and in-role career growth. Founded by Chris Shepard — a product design leader with 12+ years of experience leading teams at startups and B2B SaaS companies and making hiring decisions as a design leader — the company is incorporated as The Design Company, LLC in Massachusetts and operated as a sole-practitioner practice (1-10 employees).

The core product portfolio follows a tiered funnel. Entry points include the free Job Search Signal Check (a self-assessment guide on Podia) and The Design Signals weekly email newsletter (500+ subscribers). The first paid offer is the Job Search Audit, a one-time $300 diagnostic with intake review, written bottleneck analysis, and a 45-minute 1:1 call; the $300 fee is credited 100% toward a coaching sprint if enrolled within 30 days. Mid-tier offerings are the Job Search Sprint and the Interview Performance Sprint, each an 8-week 1:1 program priced at $2,300 (or two monthly installments of $1,150). The most recently launched offering, the Career Growth Plan ($350/month, 2025), provides ongoing coaching for designers already in role. There is no proprietary technology platform; delivery and operations run on third-party SaaS — Podia (storefront and digital delivery), Stripe (payments), Calendly (scheduling), Slack (async support), Notion (content), Google Workspace (email/data), Tally (intake forms), and Google Analytics (site tracking).

The business model is direct-to-consumer and sales-led. Acquisition runs through free intro calls (booked via Calendly), content marketing on the website and newsletter, Chris Shepard's LinkedIn personal brand, and SEO; conversion to paid offerings is driven by the diagnostic audit, which feeds the higher-ticket sprints. Customer segments are horizontal: (1) Product, UX, and digital designers who are stuck in job searches or converting interviews to offers, and (2) mid-career designers in role seeking growth and leadership development. Pricing is published and tiered across one-time, installment, and recurring monthly structures. The business is bootstrapped with no disclosed funding rounds, no institutional investors, no parent company, and no partnerships; ownership and delivery capacity are concentrated in the founder.

Name

The Design Co.

Legal name

The Design Company, LLC

Website

https://thedesign.co

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Design Co. is a founder-operated career coaching business serving product, UX, and digital designers with a tiered funnel of diagnostic audits, 8-week coaching sprints, and ongoing in-role coaching, delivered via third-party SaaS tools by sole practitioner Chris Shepard.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Career Coaching Services

SIC

Services-Employment Agencies (7361), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Career Exploration, Interest/Skills Assessment & Pathway Planning (EDAFAMAK)

Keywords

• Career coaching
• Job search coaching
• Interview preparation
• Design portfolio coaching
• Resume positioning

Headquarters

HQ city

Melbourne

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Job Search Audit: One-time diagnostic service ($300) that identifies bottlenecks in a designer's job search. Includes intake review, written breakdown, and 45-minute 1:1 call. Serves as a lead generation product that credits toward coaching sprints.
2. Job Search Sprint: 8-week coaching program ($2,300 or 2 monthly payments of $1,150) focused on fixing targeting, positioning, and application materials. Weekly 1:1 coaching with async support. Revenue recognized at enrollment; installment billing available.
3. Interview Performance Sprint: 8-week coaching program ($2,300 or 2 monthly payments of $1,150) focused on interview storytelling, portfolio walkthroughs, and whiteboarding. Weekly 1:1 sessions with async support between rounds. Installment payment option available.
4. Career Growth Plan: Ongoing monthly coaching subscription ($350/month) for designers in-role seeking growth. Includes 2 hours of 1:1 coaching, training, feedback on real work, growth planning, and async Slack/email support. Recurring monthly billing.
5. Free Resources (Lead Magnets): Free Job Search Signal Check guide to generate leads. The Design Signals weekly email newsletter (500+ subscribers) nurtures leads toward paid products and coaching. No direct revenue but drives conversion to paid offerings.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Design Co. sells 1:1 career coaching services for product, UX, and digital designers, structured as a tiered progression: a free Job Search Signal Check, a $300 Job Search Audit diagnostic, two $2,300 eight-week coaching sprints (Job Search Sprint and Interview Performance Sprint), and an ongoing $350/month Career Growth Plan. Services target individual designers struggling to convert applications into interviews and offers, delivered directly by founder Chris Shepard using Podia, Stripe, Calendly, and Slack.

Product overview

The Design Co is a career coaching business operated by Chris Shepard, a 12+ year product design leader. The core offering consists of a tiered service progression: designers start with the free Job Search Signal Check or the $300 Job Search Audit to diagnose bottlenecks, then move into paid coaching sprints. The Job Search Sprint ($2,300) addresses targeting and positioning, while the Interview Performance Sprint ($2,300) focuses on interview conversion. An ongoing Career Growth Plan ($350/month) provides sustained coaching for designers in role. The company also publishes a free weekly newsletter, The Design Signals. Services are delivered via Podia for course delivery, Stripe for payments, Slack for async support, and Calendly for scheduling.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Job Search Audit A focused one-time diagnostic ($300) for product, UX, and digital designers that identifies the primary bottleneck limiting job search progress. Includes an intake review (15-20 minutes), a written breakdown of the bottleneck with prioritized recommendations, and a 45-minute 1:1 review call. The audit fee is 100% credited toward a coaching sprint if started within 30 days.
• Job Search Sprint An 8-week coaching program ($2,300 total or 2 monthly payments of $1,150) that helps designers consistently convert applications into interviews by fixing targeting, positioning, and application materials. Includes weekly 1:1 coaching sessions, async support, and job search guides and tools.
• Interview Performance Sprint An 8-week coaching program ($2,300 total or 2 monthly payments of $1,150) for designers already getting interviews who want to improve storytelling, portfolio walkthroughs, whiteboarding, and overall conversion to offers. Includes weekly 1:1 sessions, interview guides and tools, and asynchronous support between rounds.
• Career Growth Plan An ongoing monthly coaching subscription ($350/month) for designers already in a role who want to grow. Includes 2 hours of 1:1 coaching per month, product thinking and business impact training, feedback on real work (case studies, stakeholder prep), growth planning, and async support via Slack and email.
• Job Search Signal Check A free self-assessment guide that helps designers quickly identify where their job search may be breaking down across targeting, portfolio positioning, and interview approach, surfacing specific gaps before investing in coaching.
• The Design Signals A free weekly email newsletter delivering short, practical insights on portfolios, interviews, and job search strategy for product designers, with 500+ subscribers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Clients report securing interviews at multiple companies after resume/portfolio overhaul
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration8 records

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• ADPList: ADPList is a global mentorship platform connecting designers with mentors for portfolio reviews, career guidance, and interviews. It is an emerging peer because it offers an alternative mentor-driven path for designer job seekers and career growth, though at lower price points and without the structured sprint ladder.
• Memorisely: Memorisely runs UX bootcamps with mentorship and career support targeting designers breaking into the field. It is an emerging peer because its cohort-based, mentor-led career support overlaps with The Design Co.'s coaching model but is delivered at a more structured, cohort scale.
• UX Design Institute: UX Design Institute offers UX certification programs with career-oriented curricula for working designers. It is an emerging peer because it serves the same designer upskilling/career-growth segment with formal certification rather than 1:1 coaching.
• Design Buddies: Design Buddies is a community and content platform for designers with job boards, career resources, and events. It is an emerging peer because it supports the same product/UX designer job-search journey via community and content rather than paid 1:1 coaching.

Direct peers

• Springboard: Springboard offers UX design career tracks with 1:1 mentorship, portfolio projects, and career coaching. It is a direct peer because it sells outcome-oriented design career support to aspiring and mid-career designers using a mentor-led model.
• Designlab: Designlab runs UX/UI design bootcamps with dedicated career services including 1:1 mentorship, portfolio reviews, and job-search support. It is a direct peer because it combines design education with structured coaching targeting designers trying to break into or advance in the field.
• Interaction Design Foundation: Interaction Design Foundation is a UX education provider offering courses, certifications, and career resources for designers. It is a direct peer because it serves the same UX/product designer audience with career-oriented content and learning paths.
• DesignerUp: DesignerUp provides career coaching, mentorship, and portfolio reviews specifically for UX and product designers. It is a direct peer because it serves the same product/UX designer persona with comparable audit, portfolio, and career-coaching offerings.
• CareerFoundry: CareerFoundry provides mentored UX/UI design programs with explicit career coaching, job-search preparation, and portfolio review components. It is a direct peer because its mentorship-plus-career-services model targets the same designer job-seeker persona.

Others

• Fluxible: Fluxible provides coaching and training resources for designers focused on career advancement. It is an adjacent peer because it overlaps on designer career development content but its primary identity is broader UX skills training rather than the 1:1 audit/sprint coaching model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-design-com
• Xx.com/thedesigncoUK
• Facebookfacebook.com/thedesigncoUK

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Design Co.