As a founding team member, I led the brand strategy and visual identity for Lev, transforming an innovative mobility concept into Europe's first shared light electric vehicle service. Led UX design for a seamless digital-to-physical experience, from app interaction to vehicle usage. Through strategic brand positioning and end-to-end experience design, I crafted a differentiated, culturally relevant identity that drove user adoption and established market presence in Rotterdam's sustainable transportation ecosystem.
Getaround identified an emerging opportunity in European urban mobility: while car-sharing had proven successful and scooters had flooded cities, a critical gap remained for protected, comfortable short-distance transportation that didn't require the commitment or cost of car ownership. When I joined as a founding team member in the project's inception phase, the challenge was transforming an innovative light electric vehicle concept into a market-ready brand and experience that could establish an entirely new category in shared mobility.
Over the development and launch period, I led both brand strategy and UX design for Lev, working with an international team to create Europe's first shared light electric vehicle service. My work focused on positioning LEVs as the "missing middle" between exposed micro-mobility and traditional cars, emphasizing weather protection, comfort, and urban efficiency while building a distinctive brand identity rooted in Dutch design heritage.
The core design challenge centered on the digital-to-physical transition: how users discover, book, unlock, and intuitively operate an unfamiliar vehicle category without friction or confusion. I developed the complete user experience from app-based vehicle discovery through physical operation, ensuring the transition from screen to steering felt natural and confidence-inspiring for first-time users encountering this new vehicle format.
The brand identity drew deliberate inspiration from the Dutch De Stijl/Neoplasticism movement—reflecting Rotterdam's design heritage while communicating approachability and urban vibrancy. The logo featured a distinctive square "leaf" extending from the lowercase "l," subtly referencing both environmental mission and geometric Dutch modernism. The "e" incorporated a slight smile in its counter, designed for subconscious warmth without overt playfulness. The vibrant color palette—bold purples, bright cyans, energetic yellows—created unmistakable urban presence while the Greycliff typeface maintained friendly readability across all touchpoints.
I designed brand applications across the complete ecosystem: branded vehicle fleet that created distinctive street-level visibility, intuitive mobile app interface for seamless booking and unlocking, marketing materials establishing brand voice, and urban presence strategy that positioned Lev as integral to Rotterdam's transportation landscape. The brand values (community-centricity, convenience, comfort, and sustainability) were specifically crafted to resonate with "Social Urbanites," city residents seeking flexible, sustainable transportation without traditional car ownership constraints.
The strategic brand positioning differentiated Lev from both traditional car-sharing (Zipcar, traditional Getaround) and exposed micro-mobility solutions (Bird, Lime) by emphasizing the unique value proposition: autonomous mobility with weather protection and comfort, designed for trips where scooters felt inadequate but cars felt excessive.
The holistic brand and experience design enabled successful market entry in Rotterdam, establishing first-to-market advantage in the European LEV sharing category. The work demonstrated how strategic brand thinking combined with thoughtful UX design could create an entirely new transportation category, positioning Lev as the premium alternative to both exposed micro-mobility and expensive car ownership in dense urban environments.
