Available for select projects — Q1 2027

AmaraNjeri

Brand & motion designer building visual systems for climate and fintech products across East Africa.

BasedNairobi, KE
Experience9 years
StudioKikao Studio
Portrait of Amara Njeri
Portrait — studio series, 2026AN / 04
01 — Approach

I treat identity design the way an editor treats a story — structure first, decoration last.

Most of my work sits at the intersection of brand and product: naming, type systems, motion, and the interface details that make a system feel inevitable rather than assembled. I've led rebrands for two Kenyan fintechs and built the visual language for a pan-African climate data platform now used across 14 countries.

Selected work

Six projects from the last four years, shown by year of delivery.
2026
Jua Climate — data platform identity
Type system, dashboard iconography and motion language for a pan-African environmental monitoring product.
BrandProduct design
2025
Zawadi Pay — rebrand
Full identity relaunch for a mobile payments app serving 2M+ users across Kenya and Uganda.
BrandApp design
2024
Nairobi Design Week — visual system
Wayfinding, poster series and motion titles for the festival's 2024 edition.
Art directionMotion
2023
Kikao Studio — founding identity
Brand system for the studio I co-founded, built to flex across client work without diluting either voice.
BrandStudio

Capability map

What I lead on, and the tools each domain runs through.

BRAND SYSTEMS

  • Naming & verbal identity
  • Type & grid systems
  • Identity guidelines

PRODUCT & INTERFACE

  • Design systems
  • Dashboard & data UI
  • Mobile app design

MOTION & DIRECTION

  • Title sequences
  • Micro-interaction design
  • Art direction for shoots

Career

Nine years, three studios, one throughline.
2023 — Present
Founding Partner & Creative Director, Kikao Studio
Co-founded a five-person studio focused on identity and product design for African fintech and climate-tech companies.
2020 — 2023
Senior Brand Designer, Cellulant
Led the visual identity refresh across the company's payments products in 12 markets.
2017 — 2020
Designer, Ogilvy Nairobi
Worked across brand and campaign design for regional consumer and telecom clients.

CURRENTLY THINKING ABOUT

Design systems for low-bandwidth contexts, and how climate data can be made legible without being cold.

OUTSIDE THE STUDIO

Film photography, long walks around Karura Forest, and collecting old East African print ephemera.