NESTLUMS
Overview
Nestlums set out to make financial literacy fun and accessible for kids — long before they open a bank account or own a phone. Built in partnership with Thought Machine, it combined playful characters, savings goals, and task-based rewards to teach real-world money skills through game-like interactions.
The goal was to help children build a healthy relationship with money — one that felt empowering, not abstract. The app needed to be intuitive for kids, trusted by parents, and grounded in meaningful offline behaviours.
My contribution
Icon Design
UI Design
Product design
The team
1 × product designer
1 × engineers
Year
2019
Process
As the Product Game Designer on Nestlums, I led the end-to-end design process — from defining the educational vision to shaping gameplay mechanics and crafting interactions that would resonate with both children and parents. The goal was to rethink how young kids engage with money, long before they interact with real financial systems.
Designing for this age group came with unique challenges: short attention spans, limited literacy, and the need to build trust with caregivers. It wasn’t just about making a game — it was about designing a tool that could quietly teach foundational habits, all through play.
Here’s how we approached it:
01 / Research & Early Concepts
We explored existing "kids + money" tools and found most of them either mimicked adult banking apps or were too data-heavy. Instead, we leaned into character-driven storytelling and visual metaphors that made sense to younger minds.
Outcome:
A creative direction focused on emotion, reward, and progress — not numbers.
02 / Mechanics & Interactions
The app needed to balance education with engagement. We designed a task tracker and savings system that felt like a game, not a lesson. Completing tasks earned gems, which could be used to unlock in-game items — each tied to effort and time.
Outcome:
A clear feedback loop between real-world behaviour and in-game value.
03 / UI & Visual Design
Nestlums wasn’t just a skinned-down finance app — it had its own world. We crafted a vibrant, playful interface with friendly characters, soft animations, and minimal text. Kids didn’t need to read spreadsheets; they just needed to feel progress.
Outcome:
A joyful, approachable design that encouraged repeated use without fatigue.
Learnings
What made Nestlums tough wasn’t just designing for kids — it was designing for parents and kids at the same time, with completely different expectations. One wanted control, the other wanted chaos. We were constantly walking a fine line between structure and spontaneity: How do you make saving money fun without gamifying bad habits? How do you build in friction when kids just want to tap-tap-tap?
Some days were spent adjusting hit zones because tiny fingers missed buttons. Other days were about reworking onboarding flows so parents didn’t bounce in the first 30 seconds. The “fun” interactions — like smashing open eggs for rewards — took weeks of iteration, not because it was hard to build, but because it was hard to earn. That interaction had to feel earned, not just handed out.
We learned quickly that what works in adult apps often breaks down entirely with children. Too much information? Lost. Too little? Confusing. The UI had to be bold, forgiving, and emotionally responsive — all while staying educational.