# Marié Whittington

> Marié Whittington is the co-founder and CEO of Pepperplane, a remote UX/UI design studio she founded with her sister Annette Schuman in 2018. Originally from South Africa and based in North Carolina, she studied Visual Communications Design at Stellenbosch University and entered UX after being hired by Adii Pienaar. Her work spans product design, client collaboration, remote-team leadership and the use of AI in design and development.

- **Role:** Co-founder and CEO at Pepperplane
- **Organizations:** Pepperplane
- **Education:** Visual Communications Design, Stellenbosch University
- **Known for:** Co-founded Pepperplane with Annette Schuman in 2018., Named by Klink co-founder Simon Groll as part of the Pepperplane team that developed its mobile app design., Guest speaker at Triad Dev Connect in October 2025.

## Career timeline

- **2006-2009** — Studied at Stellenbosch University; her interview identifies her degree as Visual Communications Design.
- **Date not specified** — Hired by Adii Pienaar after university; she credits this opportunity with introducing her to UX design.
- **2018** — Co-founded Pepperplane with her sister, Annette Schuman.
- **2022** — Appeared on The Founder Files to discuss UX, customer experience and Pepperplane’s development.
- **2024** — Discussed leadership, hiring and staff retention in a GENFIN interview.
- **2025** — Presented The Design-Driven Software Agency at Triad Dev Connect in October.
- **2026** — Discussed remote operations, founder-led sales and AI in public posts and a Brilliance Talks interview.

## Achievements

- Co-founded Pepperplane with Annette Schuman in 2018.
- Named by Klink co-founder Simon Groll as part of the Pepperplane team that developed its mobile app design.
- Guest speaker at Triad Dev Connect in October 2025.

## Latest updates

- **2026-09** — Described Pepperplane as a ten-person remote agency spanning Cape Town to Charlotte, using recorded explanations and written decisions.
- **2026-08** — Appeared on Brilliance Talks in an episode about UX, remote business operations, founder-led sales and AI.
- **2026-05** — Described experimenting with hybrid design/development sprints at Pepperplane.
- **2026-04** — Shared an anonymous team exercise about the nature of Pepperplane’s work.

## Links

- Website: https://pepperplane.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariewhittington
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/mariebeetge

---

Profile page: https://yespress.io/marie-whittington
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-22