Marc Fagaragan

I'm a Product Manager committed to building the bridge between business strategy and the needs of the user. I specialize in turning complex challenges into clear, executable roadmaps, leading teams to efficient delivery and measurable outcomes that drive growth. That same sense of purpose and commitment to rigorous execution drives me outside the office, where I compete in Ironman Triathlons and other endurance races.

Case Study: PlayStella - From idea to MVP

An interactive daily game inspired by my cat Stella that challenges players to maximize their playtime with a moody tuxedo cat through quick reflexes and strategic decision-making

• Prototype
• MVP
• playstella.com

Discovery

Goal: To build a simple, sticky daily web game that demonstrates rapid prototyping and end-to-end product ownership.Hypothesis: A daily "mood management" micro-game based on simple risk assessment would drive high daily retention due to the time-gated, low-friction loop.The Problem I Solved: How to move from concept to a live, playable MVP in under 30 days while managing all development, content, and deployment independently.

• Prototype

Execution

Tooling Strategy: Leveraged Anthropic's Claude to generate the initial game logic/flowchart, content narratives, and mood-state transition prompts.Impact of AI: I do not have any coding experience. AI allowed me to focus my time on crucial PM tasks (UX/UI, deployment, and GTM strategy).The Refinement Loop: The AI output served as a "first draft." My role involved translating the conceptual artifact into functional code (HTML/JS) and refining the game state machine for balance and optimal user experience.

• MVP

Go-to-Market & Metrics

Launch Strategy: Chose a simple GTM (Go-to-Market) strategy for the landing page and purchased playstella.com for a strong, memorable brand identity.Key Iteration (Post-Launch): Initial testing revealed users were confused by the random mood changes. Decision: Implemented a version where the emoji changes according to Stella's patience.Current Metrics (as of Nov. 1, 2025):
Since Oct. 25 (first deployment)
- Total pageviews: 460
- Total Unique Visitors: 283

• playstella.com

Learnings

Lesson 1: The power of "Good Enough" AI: AI is a force multiplier for a one-person team. I learned how to move swiftly from AI-generated concepts to a high-quality production build, prioritizing speed over initial perfection.Lesson 2: Defining the Success Metric: With a daily game, Retention is the only metric that matters. All code and UX decisions were tied directly to maximizing the likelihood of a user returning tomorrow.

Building a High-Velocity PRD Generator

• Prototype
• MVP

The Problem I Chose to Solve

The most critical phases of product development, discovery and strategic planning, often get sidelined by the tedious work of documentation. Every Product Manager knows the pain of manually structuring, formatting, and drafting a comprehensive Product Requirements Document (PRD) when they should be talking to customers or refining the strategy. This documentation friction slows down the entire engineering cycle.

• Prototype

The Solution: Building the PRD Generator

I built a lightweight, functional tool to eliminate this friction. My PRD Generator is designed to take a handful of high-level inputs, the core problem, the target user, and the desired outcome, and instantly output a complete, structured, and ready-to-share PRD.This isn't just a simple template filler; it's a strategic assistant that ensures every PRD is launched with the necessary rigor and alignment.

• MVP

Box Breathing Visualizer

• MVP
• V.1

Discovery

The Problem: Stress management tools are either bloated meditation apps or confusing breathing tutorials. I wanted something minimal. A tool that guides you through box breathing without friction or distraction.The Inspiration: While walking my dog, I started practicing box breathing to calm my nervous system. I realized there wasn't a simple, beautifully-designed tool to visualize the technique. That gap became the opportunity.Goal: Build a focused, minimal breathing visualizer that demonstrates clean product thinking and intentional design. Something I'd actually use, and that others would find genuinely helpful.

Development Process

Phase 1: MVP (End of Week 1): I defined the core experience: infinite 4-4-4-4 box breathing cycles with zero friction. No session timers. No customization. Just the breathing.For the visual language, I chose sage green for the box, phase-specific text colors (blue for Inhale and Exhale, a matching secondary shade for Hold states), and smooth animations. The box grows and shrinks with each breathing phase, synced to the 4-second count.I built this as a React component and deployed it as an interactive artifact.Phase 2: V1 (End of Month):
I'm planning to add session timer selection (30 sec, 1 min, 3 min, 5 min, 10 min), deploy to GitHub and Netlify for standalone hosting, and explore data tracking (session count, daily usage). Down the line, I'm considering monetization options.

Key Design Decisions

Visual Simplicity: The box grows and shrinks with each phase. Text labels change color per phase. No sound. No notifications. Just you and the breathing.Interaction Model: One button to start, one to stop. When you hit stop, you see "Session ended" before the page resets. No pause. No friction. The goal is to remove all cognitive load.Mobile-First: Full-screen experience, portrait-locked, responsive across devices. Breathing apps live on your phone.

Metrics & Success

I'm targeting 50 daily active users within 3 months of deployment. I'll track this via Netlify analytics.

Try the MVP!

• MVP