Hi, I'm Sofia.I design experiences that make complexity feel simple.
From service design to visual storytelling, I transform ideas, systems, and information into experiences people can understand, navigate, and feel.Sometimes that's a workshop. Sometimes a healthcare system, a travel service, embroidery, packaging, and whatever challenge comes next.
Visual Design
Designing thoughtful visual communication that turns ideas into clear, memorable and engaging experiences across identities, campaigns and physical touchpoints.
Service Design
Designing services through research, systems thinking and collaboration, connecting people’s needs with organisational goals and turning complexity into clear, actionable direction.
UX/UI Design
Designing digital experiences where content, identity and interaction work together, making complex journeys easier to navigate, understand and use.
Photography Journal
Observing everyday moments through light, composition, and emotion. A collection of personal and commercial photography.
Strategic storytelling visual frameworkDesigning a scalable storytelling system for client success stories.
Healthcare
Filo.sophy StudioMy illustration-led embroidery brand transforming personal ideas into wearable, handmade pieces.
Fashion · Craft · Personalisation
Buy a Leash, Save a FishA circular packaging concept that turns cigarette waste into a resource for the surf community.
Sports · Sustainability
Aurora — The wind you can see, the light you can hearA multisensory storytelling experience where editorial design meets animation, interaction and sound.
Publishing · Education · Interactive Media
Green SpiritsA packaging concept that transforms solo travel into a mindful journey of self-discovery.
Travel · Wellbeing · Experience Design
ViahDesigning an adaptive travel planning service that transforms information overload into confident, collaborative decisions.
Travel · Tourism
Patient-Centred Information JourneyDesigning a service that delivers the right information at the right moment to empower informed healthcare decisions.
Healthcare · Public Sector
Implementation Strategy WorkshopDesigning a facilitation framework to align stakeholders and de-risk organisational transformation.
Retail · Organisational Transformation
Be(you)tyJewellery e-commerce designed around self-expression and personal styling.
Jewellery · Fashion · E-commerce
Alt om TænderRedesigning a dental knowledge platform to make complex information easier to navigate and understand.
Healthcare
ViahDesigning an adaptive travel planning service that transforms information overload into confident, collaborative decisions.
Travel · Tourism
"Great design is not just about aesthetics, it's about creating meaningful experiences."
About
I thrive in collaborative environments where different perspectives lead to better ideas. Curious, proactive, and detail-oriented, I enjoy exploring new ways of thinking and turning complexity into clarity through both strategy and visual communication.
My MSc in Service Systems Design, shaped the way I approach complex challenges through research, strategy, and visual storytelling. Today, I combine systems thinking with visual design to create work that is not only engaging, but purposeful, intuitive, and grounded in real user needs.
Strengths
Concept development
Visual communication strategy
Digital illustration
Stakeholder co-creation
Prototyping
I worked with, for, and at
EYH&MNovo NordiskIKEALEGOHusqvarnaNokiaCarlsbergCCH TagetikTelenorMetsäOpera AdvertiseDelta of Scandinavia
Due to confidentiality agreements, a significant portion of the projects contributed to cannot be publicly displayed. Selected details can be discussed upon request.
CV
Experience
Graphic & Service Designer
Intern and Student Assistant
Ernst & Young (EY), Denmark
August 2025 — July 2026
Graphic Designer & Travel Coordinator
Luxury travel, Nordic countries
Delta of Scandinavia, Denmark
November 2022 — February 2026
Freelance Graphic Designer
Neocare Nordic, Denmark
January 2023 — June 2023
Graphic Designer & SoMe Content Creator
Opera Advertise, Italy
June 2021 — October 2022
Education
MSc in Service Systems Design
Aalborg University Copenhagen, Denmark
September 2024 — June 2026
Web Marketing & Social Media
Click Academy, Online
January 2021 — December 2021
BA in Graphic Design
Santa Giulia Academy of Fine Arts, Italy
October 2017 — June 2020
Bring me the brief.I’ll find the real problem.
Let's look beneath the surface, question the familiar, and find a direction that feels clear and meaningful.
Aurora — The wind you can see, the light you can hear
A multisensory storytelling experience where editorial design meets animation, interaction and sound.
Client
Academic project - Bachelor Thesis
Industry
Publishing · Education · Interactive Media
Services
Editorial Design · Experience Design · Storytelling · Illustration · Motion Design · Art Direction
“How might editorial design evolve beyond the printed page to create a richer, multisensory storytelling experience?”
Project Overview
Aurora is an experimental editorial project inspired by the Northern Lights and Nordic folklore. Through a combination of printed pop-up structures, hand-drawn animations and sound, the book transforms reading into an immersive experience where every page can be seen, touched and heard.
Challenge
Traditional books engage primarily through text and static imagery. The challenge was to preserve the intimacy of printed storytelling while expanding it into a more immersive and emotionally engaging experience without losing narrative clarity.
Solution
I designed an interactive pop-up book where each physical scene is paired with a hand-drawn animation, creating a continuous dialogue between print and digital media. The narrative was built around the unique paradox of the Aurora Borealis, the only wind you can see and hear, using movement, sound and tactile interactions to reinforce the emotional journey of the story.
My Role
Developed the concept, story and editorial structure.
Illustrated the characters and visual design language.
Produced frame-by-frame animations for every interactive scene.
Designed and prototyped the complete pop-up book.
The story follows the Nordic Wind, who longs to become a star so he can finally be seen. Through his journey, he discovers that true beauty comes from embracing both strengths and imperfections, ultimately transforming into the Aurora Borealis.
0:00
The Story Characters
The Storyboard
Behind the Scenes: Animation Process
Pop-up Dimensions Study
The Pop-up Book
Outcomes
The project demonstrated how physical and digital media can work together to expand editorial storytelling into a more immersive and emotionally engaging experience. The final prototype successfully combined illustration, pop-up design, animation, sound, and interaction within one coherent narrative.
Its strongest validation came from the audience response: adults were visibly moved by the story, and children remained curious and deeply engaged. This showed that the experience could connect across age groups and translate a complex emotional message into an accessible, memorable format.
Designing a scalable storytelling system for client success stories.
*Content redacted due to confidentiality.
Client
Big Four Consultancy × Leading Nordic Pharmaceutical Company
Industry
Healthcare
Services
Strategic Storytelling · Visual Communication · Presentation Design
“How might we transform past projects successes into a narrative that communicates the value and evolution of a long-term client partnership?”
Project Overview
This presentation framework communicates the success stories of collaborative projects between a Big 4 consultancy and one of the leading Nordic pharmaceutical companies to help consultants present past achievements consistently while reinforcing the long-term value of the partnership.
Challenge
Consultants lacked an engaging way to connect fragmented projects and communicate the partnership’s strategic value over time. The framework also needed to remain reusable across future healthcare clients.
Solution
I analysed and restructured the existing material into three connected chapters: shared ambitions, partnership highlights, and achievements. To make the progression immediately visible, I developed a molecular-bond metaphor using microscopic imagery. As the presentation unfolds, two molecules gradually connect into a stronger structure, reflecting the evolving relationship between the organisations. The metaphor became a strategic storytelling system that guided the content structure, imagery, and transitions while remaining adaptable to other healthcare brands.
My Role
Benchmarked communication approaches across leading consultancies.
Defined the storytelling strategy and content architecture.
Designed the visual language and presentation system.
Delivered an editable framework for future client engagements.
Outcomes
The framework was presented to the consulting team and recognised for turning disconnected case studies into a coherent and engaging business narrative.
It also created a reusable knowledge-sharing asset, making successful projects easier to document, communicate, and leverage internally and externally. By providing clearer evidence of long-term client impact, the template also supports future business development.
“The narrative creates a much stronger business case for our work. It connects projects that previously stood alone and communicates the partnership in a way that’s clear, engaging, and scalable.”The consultants account team
Designing an adaptive travel planning service that transforms information overload into confident, collaborative decisions.
Client
Academic project - Master Thesis
Industry
Travel · Tourism
Services
Service Design · UX Design · Product Strategy
Methods: Desk Research · Surveys · Personas · Journey Mapping · Stakeholder Mapping · Co-creation · Prioritisation Matrix · Service Blueprint · User Testing & validation
Team: Jacob Szøts (Back-end development & AI) · Sofia Shafaat
Project Overview
Viah is a travel ecosystem bringing together travellers, citizens, local experience providers and tourism organisations.
Challenge
Travel planning is fragmented across travellers, digital platforms, local businesses, and tourism organisations. Valuable information and local experiences exist across this network, but they are rarely connected in a seamless way that helps travellers make confident decisions or gives local providers meaningful visibility.
Key Insights
The challenge is not a lack of information, but disconnected knowledge and actors. Travellers need relevant guidance and personalisation, while local providers, citizens, and tourism organisations need better ways to share knowledge, connect with others and contribute to the destination.
Solution
The solution connects travellers, local providers, citizens and tourism organisations within one ecosystem. It combines personalised recommendations, collaborative planning and curated local experiences to create value across the network.
My Role
Led end-to-end desk and user research
Synthesised quantitative and qualitative insights to reframe the problem
Designed the service concept, user experience, and stakeholder ecosystem
Prototyped, tested, and iterated the service through user validation
Defined the business model and translated the concept into a final service proposition
A digital service concept aimed at facilitating more personalised, locally-oriented, and non-mainstream tourism experiences while creating value exchanges between travellers, local providers, citizens and local tourism organisations.
Planning a trip to a place you don’t know can quickly become overwhelming. The more questions you have, the harder the decision becomes.
But how did I understand it?Let’s make a step back and have a look to the design process!
Main insights
Information Overload Travel platforms provide an abundance of information, but struggle to turn it into coherent, organised, and actionable choices.
Trust matters Fragmented platforms and conflicting information make it difficult to know what to trust and confidently decide.
Local over mainstream Travellers increasingly seek authentic, local experiences, but discovering them still requires extensive research.
Planning is non-linear Plans constantly evolve with changing preferences, context and information, shaping an emotional journey from excitement to overwhelm to satisfaction.
These directions became the foundation for exploring different service concepts.
Sneak-peek of the ideation, test & validation phases
—
Ideation & filtering
Brainstormed solutions to key stakeholder challenges, then filtered ideas by feasibility and long-term potential.
—
Concept exploration
Developed and compared service concepts, using competitor analysis to evaluate their value and potential within the wider travel industry.
—
Prototyping
Made the service concept tangible through low-fidelity prototypes, exploring key interactions and service touchpoints.
—
Testing & validation
Refined the concept through user interviews, real-life testing and validation with local experience providers.
Visualising how the final ecosystem works
Travellers Share preferences, discover and plan their trips
Viah Orchestrates actors, relationships and value exchanges across the travel system
Local experience providers Offer activities, places, local knowledge and opportunities to visitors
Citizens Discover local providers, activities and places in their own city
Local tourism organisations Gain insights into visitor interests, movement patterns and underexplored areas to support destination management
Viah’s algorithm Connects data and preferences to generate personalised recommendations
Outcomes
User testing and validation showed that travellers could move from exploring an unfamiliar destination to building a personalised itinerary without having to piece information together across multiple platforms. The experience was accessible to users across different age groups, including older participants, who were able to navigate the service with ease.
The outcome was a tested service concept that brings together personalised planning, destination and local experience discovery, and collaborative decision-making in one experience, while keeping users in control of their final decisions.
Designing a service that delivers the right information at the right moment to empower informed healthcare decisions.
Client
Køge University Hospital × Charlie Tango Design
Industry
Healthcare · Public Sector
Services
Service Design · UX Research · Healthcare Innovation · Information Design · Service Blueprinting
Methods: Desk Research · User Interviews · Observation · Service Safari · Journey Mapping · Co-creation · Prototyping · Concept Validation · Service Blueprint
Team: Agnete Heidensleben · Lucas Grattan Landberg · Nina Sara Joachimowska · Samira Aliverdipour · Sofia Shafaat
“How might we personalize the distribution of medical information so patients receive the right support at the right stage of their treatment journey?”
Project Overview
Working alongside Køge University Hospital and Charlie Tango, our team redesigned how information is delivered throughout the colorectal cancer pathway. Rather than overwhelming patients with extensive information during consultations, we developed a service that distributes personalised information progressively, helping patients better understand, remember, and actively participate in treatment decisions.
Challenge
Patients received large amounts of complex information precisely when they were least prepared to absorb it. This created information overload, reduced participation in consultations, and made shared decision-making more difficult for both patients and healthcare professionals.
Key Insights
Patients need information progressively, not all at once.
Emotional distress significantly reduces information retention after diagnosis.
Existing communication focused on delivering information rather than ensuring patients could process and act on it.
Supporters and caregivers play a key role in helping patients navigate the treatment journey.
Solution
We designed a personalised card-based service that distributes relevant information throughout the patient’s healthcare journey instead of concentrating it within consultations. Each card combines practical guidance, personalised notes, reflective prompts, and QR-enabled digital content, creating an ongoing dialogue between patients and healthcare professionals. The service was supported by a digital dashboard and a service blueprint to facilitate implementation across the hospital ecosystem.
My Role
Planned and conducted user and stakeholder research.
Facilitated workshops and co-creation sessions.
Synthesised research into actionable insights and design opportunities.
Developed and validated service concepts through prototyping.
Designed the visual communication and patient information cards.
Mapped the end-to-end service implementation.
The Problem
The Solution
Informative cards that are distributed to patients throughout their cancer journey in between the several consultations. They provide only the relevant details, ensuring patients receive the information when they need it most, at the right moment.
Sneak-Peek of the Design Process
Discover
Define
Develop
Deliver
Outcomes
The concept was positively validated with healthcare professionals and patients, who recognised the value of receiving personalised information progressively rather than during a single consultation.
Beyond the card system itself, the project proposed a scalable service model that aligned patient needs with clinical workflows, demonstrating how service design can improve communication, support shared decision-making, and create more patient-centred healthcare experiences.
“How might we introduce a new Delivery Office operating model while minimising implementation risk and building stakeholder alignment?”
Project Overview
Working within a Big Four consultancy, I designed a strategic workshop to support the introduction of a new Delivery Office operating model for a global fashion retailer. The workshop translated a complex organisational initiative into a series of collaborative activities that enabled participants to understand the model, evaluate implementation scenarios, and align on practical next steps.
Challenge
Introducing a new operating model requires more than defining processes, it requires stakeholders to understand its purpose, align on responsibilities, and collectively identify potential implementation risks before execution.
Solution
I designed an end-to-end facilitation experience in Miro that combined storytelling, best-practice references, collaborative exercises, and implementation planning. The workshop progressively guided participants from understanding the purpose of the Delivery Office to defining service offerings, responsibilities, governance, and practical implementation scenarios, encouraging discussion and collective decision-making throughout.
My Role
Structured complex organisational information into clear visual frameworks.
Designed the workshop journey and facilitation activities.
Created diagrams and maps to support stakeholder understanding and alignment.
Outcomes
The workshop successfully aligned stakeholders around a shared understanding of the Delivery Office model and its implementation strategy.
The structured facilitation helped reduce uncertainty, encouraged constructive dialogue, and supported informed decision-making. The proposed approach was well received by the client and approved as the foundation for moving the transformation initiative forward.
“You really brought our concept to life through high-quality visuals and an effective workshop flow. Despite the very tight timeline, the result was impressive and received excellent feedback from the client, internal teams, and partners, particularly on the board’s look and feel. The workshop played a key role in securing the next phase of the programme.”The consultants account team
“How can an online jewellery experience help people express who they are?”
Project Overview
BE(YOU)TY is a conceptual jewellery brand and responsive e-commerce experience built around mixing, layering, and self-expression. The project translates the message “Show the world who you are” into a digital experience that helps customers explore individual pieces, discover new combinations, and imagine how each jewel could become part of their own style.
Challenge
Jewellery websites often present products in isolation, making it difficult for customers to understand their sizes, and how different pieces can be combined and styled. The challenge was to communicate that each item is only a starting point, with no fixed rules for how it should be worn.
Solution
The website combines product discovery with styling inspiration, layered jewellery, and lifestyle imagery. On hover, individual product images transform into styled compositions, showing how each piece can be mixed with others. The visual identity balances Nordic minimalism with Mediterranean warmth through clean layouts, soft neutral tones, gold details, sunlight, and tactile summer imagery.
My Role
Developed the brand concept and creative direction.
Designed the visual identity and information architecture.
Created the responsive UX/UI and interaction system.
Prototyped hover states, image transitions, and responsive behaviours in HTML.
The concept
Beauty begins with being you
The name combines beauty and be you, expressing the idea that jewellery should not define one ideal, but give each person the freedom to create their own.
Visual direction
Nordic simplicity, Mediterranean warmth
Clean layouts and soft neutral tones are balanced by gold, sunlight, summer textures and sun-kissed imagery.
Moodboard
Colour palette
Cream, warm yellow, white and earthy brown reflect Scandinavian minimalism meeting summer warmth.
Outcomes
BE(YOU)TY resulted in a complete responsive e-commerce concept that translated one brand idea consistently across visual identity, interface and interaction.
The project helped me move beyond static brand design and understand how a visual identity behaves across a digital journey. The project strengthened my ability to design a visual identity as a dynamic system, using motion and interaction to communicate the mix-and-match concept.
“How might a content-heavy knowledge platform make complex information easier to find, scan, and understand?”
Project Overview
Alt Om Tænder is a Danish dental knowledge platform containing extensive information about oral health and treatment. The project focused on redesigning the wisdom teeth subpage, using information architecture and visual design to improve the clarity, usability, and structure of the experience.
Challenge
The existing page presented users with dense content, unclear navigation, and limited visual hierarchy. The challenge was to simplify how the information was organised without reducing its depth, helping users quickly identify what was relevant while preserving the platform’s trustworthy and informative character.
Solution
Following a competitor analysis, I reorganised the content through keyword clustering and defined a clearer user flow. The redesigned page combines simplified navigation, structured content blocks, stronger hierarchy, white space, and carefully selected imagery, making the information easier to scan, understand, and explore.
My Role
Conducted competitor and content analysis.
Organised and prioritised the existing information.
Defined the information architecture and user flow.
Developed wireframes and the final visual redesign.
Outcomes
The project demonstrated how visual design and information architecture can work together to make complex content feel more accessible.
It strengthened my understanding that readability depends not only on typography and aesthetics, but also on how information is grouped, prioritised, and sequenced. The project also became an important professional milestone, attracting the attention of a Danish company and leading to a work opportunity.
“The brief was to visually redesign one page, but Sofia went much further. Her overall and complete research, competitor analysis and careful content organisation demonstrated an impressive level of depth and accuracy.”Danish communication agency
My illustration-led embroidery brand transforming personal ideas into wearable, handmade pieces.
Client
Self-initiated brand
Industry
Fashion · Craft · Personalisation
Services
Brand Design · Digital Illustration · Embroidery · Creative Direction · Content Creation
“How might digital illustrations move beyond the screen and become meaningful, personal objects?”
Project Overview
Filo.sophy Studio is a personal brand that transforms original digital illustrations into handmade embroidery on textiles and accessories. Each piece is developed collaboratively, from the customer’s initial idea to the illustration and final embroidery, creating a unique object shaped around their story and preferences.
Challenge
The project began during the COVID-19 period, when I shared digital illustrations as mobile wallpapers and social media stories. The designs received strong engagement and repeated requests from people who wanted to use and own them. The challenge was to transform this interest into a tangible product and build a coherent creative brand around it.
Solution
I developed Filo.sophy Studio around the concept of wearable illustration. By translating digital artwork into embroidery, the illustrations became personal objects that people could wear, carry, customise, or give as gifts. This expanded the project beyond social media while preserving the individuality and handmade character of each design.
My Role
Develop the brand concept, identity, and creative direction.
Guide customers from initial idea to final personalised design.
Create the digital illustrations and handmade embroidery.
Select materials, colours, and product applications.
Manage photography, social media, communication, orders, and fulfilment.
Outcomes
Filo.sophy Studio developed from an experimental illustration practice into a customer-facing creative brand.
The project received more than 30 orders in its first month and fulfilled over 290 purchases in Italy within its first year, growing mainly through organic social media engagement and customer recommendations. It later expanded into embroidery workshops in Copenhagen through the ArtXP community, allowing participants to design and create their own embroidered artwork.
Next steps
I am currently developing a new brand strategy to expand it in Denmark, adapting its positioning, visual identity and communication to a new market while maintaining the personal and handcrafted nature of the brand.
A circular packaging concept that turns cigarette waste into a resource for the surf community.
Client
Academic project
Industry
Sports · Sustainability
Services
Product Design · Packaging Design · Concept Development · Sustainable Design · Branding · Visual Communication
“How might packaging encourage kitesurfers to dispose of cigarette butts responsibly while supporting a more circular use of waste?”
Project Overview
Buy a Leash, Save a Fish is a sustainable packaging concept designed for the kitesurfing community. The project transforms a standard leash package into a reusable cigarette butt container, combining product utility with environmental responsibility.
Challenge
Cigarette butts are a common source of pollution on beaches and lakes, yet kitesurfers often lack a convenient way to dispose of them responsibly. The challenge was to make proper disposal easier while connecting the behaviour to a wider circular system.
Solution
The concept uses a bamboo leash package with a removable cap that also functions as a portable cigarette butt container. Collected filters are recycled and repurposed into materials for eco-friendly surfboards, turning waste into a resource. The campaign message “Buy a Leash, Save a Fish” makes the environmental benefit immediate and memorable.
My Role
Researched cigarette butt pollution and behavioural barriers.
Explored materials, suppliers, and recycling opportunities.
Developed the circular product and packaging concept.
Designed the brand message and visual communication.
Created the final 3D models and renders, leveraging AI to further refine and enhance the final visuals.
The upcycling process
The leash keeps the rider connected to the kite for greater safety and control.
Outcomes
Designing for behavioural change
The project explored how packaging can influence behaviour rather than simply contain a product. It strengthened my ability to connect product design, branding, material research, and circular thinking within one system, making responsible actions more intuitive while creating new value from waste.
A packaging concept that transforms solo travel into a mindful journey of self-discovery.
Client
Self-initiated project
Industry
Travel · Wellbeing · Experience Design
Services
Packaging Design · Experience Design · Brand Identity · Digital Illustration · Concept Development · Visual Storytelling
“How might packaging encourage young people to disconnect from technology, embrace solo travel, and reconnect with nature and themselves?”
Project Overview
Green Spirits is a packaging concept designed to promote mindful solo travel. Rather than simply containing a product, the package accompanies travellers throughout their journey, encouraging them to collect memories, reflections, and personal discoveries before, during, and after the experience.
Challenge
Technology, stress, and fast-paced routines often leave little space for reflection or meaningful connection with nature. The challenge was to design a tangible experience that could inspire young people to slow down, embrace solitude, and become more aware of both their surroundings and themselves.
Solution
Inspired by the Japanese practice of Shinrin-yoku (forest bathing), the package supports both reflection and sensory discovery: one side contains a diary for recording thoughts and experiences, while the other features pockets for collecting tactile memories from the journey. Distributed through tourism fairs and travel events, it supports travellers throughout their journey while encouraging a multisensory connection with nature.
My Role
Defined the concept, purpose, and target audience.
Developed the brand identity and visual storytelling.
Designed the packaging, logo, and original digital illustrations.
Created an experience that communicates the emotional journey from digital overload to mindful exploration.
The logo
The logo translates Green Spirits' values into a simple visual symbol, combining nature, personal growth and the idea of a transformative journey.
01 – Moonlight A visual reminder to slow down and reconnect with nature, celebrating the beauty and stillness often lost in everyday life.
02 – The Green Man Contrasting alienation with self-discovery, this illustration represents the transformation from disconnection to a more authentic and flourishing self.
03 – Immersion in Nature A metaphor for embracing the natural world, encouraging travellers to reconnect with their most instinctive and genuine selves.
Outcomes
The project explored how packaging can become part of an experience rather than simply contain a product. It strengthened my ability to translate abstract emotions into tangible design solutions by combining illustration, storytelling, branding, and physical interaction into one cohesive experience.
