Creating an NFT marketplace to present art in the Eastern market

The NFT marketplace project was born in a period of hype growth in the popularity of NFTs and the rapid emergence of startups in this industry. Every day brought new platforms and cryptocurrencies, and everything was just starting to gain steam in the NFT world. We were on the wave and also wanted to dive deeper into all this excitement by mastering new tools.

The NFT marketplace was created not only to sell digital art, but also to demonstrate the cultural characteristics of the Eastern market. The design had to be minimalistic and modest, with the images themselves playing the role of the main decor of the platform. We deliberately avoided additional visual embellishments, focusing on the images of the works, adding only light decorative accents.

A special requirement was to comply with Shariah law, which influenced the content selection and moderation policy. The customers set up a compliance committee to check the NFTs for admissibility, including whether images of faces or figures were allowed. In addition, we created two versions of the interface – light and dark, giving users the opportunity to choose to their liking.

For us, this project was not only a challenge, but also an opportunity to develop our skills and expand our knowledge in the field of NFT. As a studio, we were looking for partners and mentors who could help us understand the nuances of the new technology. Although we were not experts in NFT, the team approached the project with design thinking and customer focus, which allowed us to create a product that was relevant at the time.

In addition to the main marketplace, for the convenience of users, the team developed a messenger as an additional functionality that facilitated communication and allowed them to quickly coordinate the details of a sale or purchase. 

In May 2022, the NFT market began to fall, and daily token sales decreased by 92% compared to September 2021, so many NFT platforms closed at that time. 

For us, this project has become an important experience and a test of our flexibility and readiness to adapt quickly to changes. Our marketplace for digital art has become a unique example of how to combine technology with cultural values and create something progressive for a specific market. And a little bit of Shariah law :)