Florianópolis, BR 🇧🇷Remote since 2022Ex-pastry chefSwimmingTrufa & Caju

Hi! I’m Leticia!

I’m a product designer based in Florianópolis, Brazil.

Before design, I studied gastronomy and ran a pastry business for six years. That background still shows up in how I work: hands-on, curious, and very into making messy things make sense.

Outside work, you’ll usually find me traveling, cooking, swimming, or hanging out with Trufa and Caju.

Experience

Nerdy (Varsity Tutors)Full-time · Remote (US) · 04/2024 – Present

07/2026 – Present Current

Associate Product Engineer

04/2024 – 07/2026 Promoted

Product Designer

Associate Product Engineer

Work across product, design, data, and engineering to turn ideas into real product experiences for tutors.
Use AI as a hands-on partner throughout the product development process, from mapping user journeys and analyzing product data to prototyping, building, testing, and iterating on solutions.
Build frontend experiences myself and use tools like Hermes and Supabase to explore ideas, set up analytics on PostHog, prototype and test working products, and unblock progress without always having to wait on engineering bandwidth.
Partner closely with PMs and engineers to validate ideas, understand technical constraints, and take solutions from early concepts to something we can actually ship.

Product Designer

Led end-to-end product design for tutor-facing experiences supporting 21k+ active tutors across the U.S.
Worked across UX research, user flows, interaction design, UI, prototyping, usability testing, and product discovery, partnering closely with PMs, engineers, and Customer Success.
Used product data and user feedback to identify opportunities and improve engagement, retention, and complex operational workflows. Leverage AI-powered tools (Builder, Bolt, Cursor) to accelerate prototyping, testing, and iteration without sacrificing design quality.
Contributed to the tutor design system and advocated for accessible, scalable, and consistent experiences.

11/2022 – 04/2024

Product Designer

Kenlo · Remote (Brazil)

Owned the mobile product experience for Kenlo's real estate CRM, used nationwide by brokers and agents.
Collaborated closely with the web design lead to ensure UI consistency and feature parity across platforms.
Worked hands-on with PMs, engineers, QA, and tech leads in agile ceremonies to deliver high-quality solutions.
Introduced data-informed design practices, using product metrics and user feedback to guide decisions.
Actively contributed to critiques, workshops, and discovery sessions to strengthen design culture.

01/2023 – 04/2023

Volunteer UX/UI Designer

Prototipando a Quebrada · Florianópolis, Brazil

Supported a non-profit focused on connecting underrepresented youth to tech opportunities.
Contributed to a website redesign, improving navigation and clarity for new participants.
Participated in discovery sessions and interviews to align design decisions with community needs.

09/2016 – 12/2022

Founder & Pastry Chef

Florianópolis · Santa Catarina, Brazil

Founded and ran a pastry business serving events across Greater Florianópolis.
Led all aspects of the business: production, branding, marketing, customer relations, and finances.
Built a strong local reputation through word of mouth and social media.
Developed entrepreneurial, operational, and adaptability skills that continue to shape my product mindset.

Education

May 2025 – Aug 2026

Postgraduate Degree · User Experience Design and Beyond

Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS)

Postgraduate studies focused on UX/UI Design, combining user research, interaction design, visual design, usability, and product thinking. For my final project, I researched content discovery and continued consumption on streaming platforms, exploring how recommendation and discovery experiences can influence what users choose to watch and keep watching.

Feb 2022 – Sep 2022

UX/UI Design

Awari

Live classes covering UX research, user stories, wireframing, usability testing, and UI design (typography, color theory, designing for web and mobile), plus product design topics like metrics, prioritization, and team leadership. Final project: a virtual agenda for the city of Florianópolis, from strategic research to Figma prototyping and usability tests.

2015 – 2018

Bachelor’s Degree in Gastronomy

IFSC - Instituto Federal de Santa Catarina

Learned to understand, plan, manage, and operate culinary productions across food-service sectors, with empathy, innovation, and social responsibility. Studied food history, the culture of different countries, and the science of ingredients, alongside creativity and attention to quality.