Cojocaru Maxim — designer and entrepreneur

Cojocaru Maxim

updated 19 September 2026

Hi, I’m Maxim

I was born in Chișinău and now live in Saint Petersburg.

I’m a designer and co-founder of marquiz.ru and marquiz.io. I took the product from zero to one, and in March 2026 our team reached ₽18 million in monthly revenue. I’m responsible for product design, brand and media, and I build teams for new product directions. Right now, I’m especially excited about combining artificial and human intelligence to create value for our customers.

I explore philosophy, sociology and AI to develop a better design management methodology. I run a YouTube channel and a Telegram blog, and occasionally create products for designers, such as the Design Performance Review assessment system.

products

marquiz.ru	Russia’s No. 1 quiz builder. For entrepreneurs, product managers and marketers. Facts 14 I have led design at Marquiz since its founding: as a product designer until 2022, and as design director and leader of creative teams since 2023. During the 2022 crisis, I increased product revenue by 50%, from ₽10,788,892 in September 2022 to ₽16,195,099 in September 2023. In December 2024, I redesigned our pricing model: average payment grew from ₽1,171 to ₽1,773, average time to payment fell from 30 to 11 days, and signup-to-paid conversion rose from 3.3% to 4.2%. By month five, revenue from the new paying cohort had increased by 56%. I designed and organized the ongoing product delivery process across four teams and 15 roles. The team has shipped around 2,198 product updates, features and improvements. I created Quizcult, a publication about authentic marketing featuring SEO articles, product updates, case studies, videos and a podcast. In 2025, the blog attracted 534,500 unique visitors and 2,033 signups. We create educational products and guides: 100 million leads, From leads to sales and The power of questions. Courses: Quiz fundamentals and Quizzes in B2B. A compact team of three editors, two brand designers and one developer runs the website and blog in four languages: Russian, English, Portuguese and Spanish. I introduced OKR goal-setting and regular tactical and governance meetings in my teams. I introduced facilitation practices and regular design meetups within the team. I initiated and helped implement the MarquizUI design system. I introduced Holacracy and Spiral Dynamics principles to build self-managing teams at Marquiz. I developed the brand identity and visual language in collaboration with Non-Objective studio. I created the Marquiz employer brand page. So much has been made possible by these remarkable people. I launched Marquiz on Product Hunt.
djgo.ru	A service for finding vetted DJs for events. Facts 3 179 DJs across 27 cities in Russia. Personal recommendations for your event, with no commission or unnecessary hassle. Our artists include winners and finalists of major competitions: Kardo, DMC and Red Bull 3Style.
scratchdj.ru	A DJ community and school in Moscow, Kazan and Samara. Facts 5 The school is in the heart of the Design Zavod creative space. Its three-level loft is fully equipped with top-tier DJ gear, providing ideal conditions for working on music projects. School founder DJ Erik is one of the few professional DJs in the world who can scratch with both hands. He also specializes in music industry management. Our students include Maxim Ilyakhov, Yury Vetrov, Mikhail Mazunov and Pavel Chinarev. Every instructor brings their own expertise: DJ DAN, P.OLY, ANATOLY ICE and VESTER. Rated 5.0 on Yandex Maps.

personal projects

methodology	A design management methodology. Organizing and managing creative teams. Product, Human, Leadership Design Performance Review Strategy
design performance review	A quarterly performance review system for product designers.
mental collection	Mental models, systems archetypes and distinctions for decision-making.
youtube	Videos about books, management and design. My AI stack for product design. Cutting through the hype. Mimetic theory for product design Who decides for the user? Choice architecture in design Product design in 2026. What’s wrong? Where is it heading? A product designer assessment system. Design Performance Review A design management methodology for product designers
telegram	Notes on design, management and life.
vasilecojocaru	A digital gallery of my grandfather, artist Vasile Cojocaru.

I travel whenever I get the chance. I’ve visited 51 countries. I love photographing cities and architecture and collecting those photos in my Stories.