Backbone PLM
I designed the Line Sheet Library for Backbone PLM, a $15M Series A startup — achieving 100% Live Link adoption within 2 weeks and 80% month-to-month retention.
Backbone PLM
The Problem
Fashion brands using Backbone PLM needed a way to create, manage, and share product line sheets with retail buyers — but the existing workflow was manual, error-prone, and disconnected from the product data already in the system.
The Team
I was the product designer at Backbone PLM, a $15M Series A startup, working directly with the founder, engineers, and fashion brand customers to design and ship the Line Sheet Library.
What I Did
I designed the Line Sheet Library — a feature that let brands generate dynamic, always-up-to-date line sheets directly from their PLM data. The key innovation was "Live Links" — shareable URLs that automatically reflect product changes, eliminating the need to manually re-export and re-send PDFs to buyers. I designed the creation flow, template system, and sharing experience to be intuitive for non-technical fashion professionals.
The Impact
- 100% Live Link adoption within 2 weeks of launch
- 80% month-to-month retention across the feature
- Eliminated manual PDF generation and re-sharing workflows
- Became a key differentiator for Backbone PLM in sales conversations
Backbone PLM's Line Sheet Library revolutionizes how apparel companies create and manage product presentations. Intuitive grouping capabilities allow users to effortlessly organize products by collection, season, or custom categories. The innovative Live Link feature dynamically updates line sheets based on product taxonomy or custom field values, ensuring presentations always reflect the most current product lineup. This smart automation significantly reduces the time and effort required to create and maintain line sheets, allowing designers and merchandisers to focus on creativity and strategy rather than manual data entry. Within two weeks of launch, 100% of line sheets created utilized the Live Link feature, demonstrating its immediate value and adoption. Whether preparing for a buyer meeting or planning a new collection, Backbone PLM's line sheet tool streamlines the process, making it easier than ever to showcase products professionally and efficiently.
As a UX designer on this project, I focused on bridging the gap between the digital world of PLM and the tangible nature of fashion. I championed the need for rich product representation, advocating for features that allowed users to showcase multiple colorways, detailed material specifications, and precise measurements within the line sheet tool. This ensured that even in a digital format, the nuances of physical garments were accurately conveyed. I also spearheaded the design of a flexible grouping system that mirrored the physical organization of showrooms, making it intuitive for users to categorize and present their collections. By prioritizing these user-centric features, I helped ensure that the line sheet tool was not just functional but also effective in conveying the tactile qualities of fashion, ultimately facilitating clearer communication and more informed decision-making for both internal teams and buyers.
My contributions to the line sheet tool's success directly influenced the development of a powerful dashboard view within Backbone PLM. By championing user-centered design and real-time data visualization, I advocated for extending the dynamic updating principle to encompass purchase order monitoring. This resulted in a dashboard that provides instant visibility into PO status, quantity changes, and delivery timelines, empowering teams to spot trends, make data-driven decisions, and respond agilely to market demands. This facilitated both top-down planning, with leadership able to set strategic goals based on real-time data, and bottom-up planning, where teams could use insights to inform product development and sales strategies. Essentially, I helped expand the platform's capabilities beyond product presentation to encompass sales tracking and analysis, further enhancing its value for apparel companies by enabling a more agile and responsive approach to planning and decision-making.
