Why I Built Gitskinz

Six months ago, I had an ugly GitHub profile. Today, Gitskinz helps developers worldwide create stunning profiles with 60+ brutalist templates. This is the story of scratching my own itch and accidentally building something people love.

The Problem I Had

As a self-taught developer trying to break into tech, my GitHub profile was my resume. But looking at it was depressing:

No README
Random repos with no descriptions
No cohesive personal brand
Looked like a beginner (which I was)

I knew I needed a better profile. But I faced a problem: I didn't want to spend days learning README markdown tricks when I could be learning actual development.

The "Aha" Moment

While browsing GitHub profiles of developers I admired, I noticed patterns:

Great profiles used templates
Templates were copy-paste from other repos
No one tool did it well
Most generators were outdated or ugly

The market gap was obvious: developers need beautiful, modern README templates without the hassle.

Why I Didn't Just Use Existing Tools

I tried the existing README generators. They all sucked:

Too corporate: Made for big companies, not individual devs
Too basic: "Hi, I'm [NAME]. I code."
No personality: Every profile looked the same
Outdated design: Looked like 2015

I wanted something different: brutalist, bold, and actually cool.

Building in Public

Instead of building in secret, I shared my progress:

Week 1: The First Template

Built one template for myself. Shared it on Twitter. 50 people asked for it.

Week 2: Three More Templates

Added gaming, cyberpunk, and minimalist themes. Deployed to Netlify. 200 users in the first weekend.

Week 3: The Generator Interface

Realized people wanted customization. Built a simple form. Users could input their details and generate their README.

Week 4: Going Viral

A tweet got 10k impressions. Gitskinz hit 1000 users. I added 20 more templates.

Month 2: 60+ Templates

Listened to feedback. Added:

Professional templates
Neon/dark themes
Language-specific templates
Stats integration
Icon customization

Today: Used by developers globally.

The Tech Stack (Keep It Simple)

People always ask: "What fancy tech did you use?"

The boring answer:

Vite (fast dev experience)
React (I knew it well)
Netlify (free hosting)
No database (everything client-side)
No authentication (KISS principle)

Why this worked:

Fast to build
Easy to maintain
Zero hosting costs
No security concerns
Instant deployment

Lessons Learned

1. Scratch Your Own Itch

Gitskinz solved MY problem first. That made it easy to:

Know what features to build
Test thoroughly (I was the user)
Market authentically (I believed in it)

2. Ship Fast, Iterate Faster

Version 1 had one template. It was enough to validate the idea. Each week, I added features based on user feedback.

Don't wait for perfect. Ship the minimum viable product.

3. Distribution > Product

Having 60 templates means nothing if nobody knows about it. I:

Shared on Twitter weekly
Posted in Reddit communities
Asked users to share
Added "Powered by Gitskinz" links

Result: Organic growth through word-of-mouth.

4. Make It Free

Gitskinz is 100% free. No paywalls, no freemium model, no ads.

Why? Because:

Students can't afford subscriptions
Free tools get shared more
I wanted to help the community
Not everything needs to be monetized

5. Design Matters

Developers claim they don't care about design. They're lying.

The brutalist aesthetic made Gitskinz stand out. People shared it because it looked cool, not just because it was useful.

The Mumbai Perspective

Building from Kharghar, Navi Mumbai gave me advantages:

Low Competition

Most developer tools are built in Silicon Valley, optimized for Silicon Valley problems. Gitskinz fills a gap others weren't addressing.

Global Mindset

Being in India means thinking globally from day one. Gitskinz works for developers everywhere, not just one market.

Cost Advantage

Low living costs meant I could afford to build Gitskinz for free without worrying about immediate monetization.

Impact I Didn't Expect

Gitskinz has been used by:

Bootcamp graduates landing their first jobs
Self-taught devs building their brand
Experienced devs refreshing their profiles
Students impressing recruiters

The coolest part? Seeing Gitskinz profiles in the wild.

People tag me when they use a template. Some have gotten jobs because recruiters noticed their profiles. That's the real reward.

What I'd Do Differently

1. Add Analytics Earlier

I waited 2 months to add basic analytics. Should've done it day one to understand user behavior.

2. Build Community Faster

Users wanted to share templates. I should've added user submissions earlier.

3. SEO from Day One

I treated SEO as an afterthought. Should've optimized for "GitHub README generator" from the start.

4. Document the Journey

I built Gitskinz but didn't blog about it until now. The building process would've been great content.

The Funny Part

Gitskinz became my portfolio piece. Recruiters see it and immediately understand:

I can identify problems
I can build solutions
I can ship products
I can grow user bases

One side project did more for my career than months of LeetCode.

Open Source Impact

Gitskinz taught me:

The joy of building for users, not profit
The power of community feedback
The satisfaction of helping others

It proved that you don't need VC funding or a startup to make an impact.

Why "Brutalist"?

The brutalist design wasn't accidental. It represents:

Raw and honest: Like the GitHub platform itself
Function over form: Code-first aesthetic
Standing out: Not another Material Design clone
Developer culture: We like things that look "hacker-y"

The Best Way to Learn

Gitskinz taught me more than courses ever could:

React: Built 60+ component variations
State management: Handled complex form inputs
Deployment: Learned Netlify inside out
Marketing: Grew users organically
User research: Listened and iterated

You don't learn by consuming tutorials. You learn by building products people use.

Future Plans

I'm considering:

User-submitted templates
GitHub Actions integration
Profile analytics
Team profiles
API for developers

But honestly? I'm happy with Gitskinz as is. It solves the problem it set out to solve.

Your Turn

If you're a developer without a side project:

Find your itch: What frustrates you daily?
Build the simplest solution: Don't overthink it
Ship publicly: Share your progress
Gather feedback: Listen to users
Iterate quickly: Weekly updates, not monthly

You don't need a revolutionary idea. You need a problem you care about solving.

The Real Lesson

Gitskinz isn't special because of the tech stack or the templates. It's special because:

I built it to solve a problem, shared it with others, and helped thousands of developers in the process.

That's what side projects should do.

Check out Gitskinz: gitskinz.netlify.app

From Mumbai with code. If you use Gitskinz, tag me—I'd love to see what you create!