Imagine a world where children’s closets aren’t overflowing with outgrown clothes, where the guilt of contributing to fast fashion fades, and where finding affordable, quality clothing for your little ones doesn’t feel like a treasure hunt.
Duration Oct 2024 - Dec 2024
Tools Figma, Adobe CC, Miro
My Role
As the UX Designer and UX Researcher, I was responsible for the app’s design and development from conception to delivery. This included conducting user research, creating wireframes, developing low and high-fidelity prototypes, performing usability testing, and iterating on the design based on feedback.
The Challenge
Buying clothes for kids is no easy job and managing outgrown clothes is an even bigger hassle. Rising costs, the environmental impact of fast fashion, and the constant need for new sizes as children grow create a perfect storm of stress and waste. Studies have found that a third of parents throw kids's clothes in the trash because they don't know what to do with them.
More than 3 billion pieces of children's clothing are thrown away each year!
The Solution
Loop tackles this challenge and offers a digital marketplace where parents can buy and resell preloved children's clothing, creating a community of sustainability and smart shopping.
Research
To better understand the needs, motivations and pain points of users regarding children's clothing, I conducted user interviews with parents and caregivers aged 25 to 65. The interviews uncovered a shared narrative of frustration and revealed user shopping patterns, the guilt of discarding barely worn items and the time consuming struggle to find cute, appropriate and comfortable clothing for their kids.
Key Insights
1. Disposal Dilemmas: Most parents lacked a practical solution for getting rid of outgrown clothing, leading to an accumulation of unwanted items.
2. Quality over Quantity: Even with busy schedules, parents refused to compromise on the quality of clothing for their children.
3. Online Oasis: The convenience of online shopping was a clear winner, preferred by over half of the interviewees.
4. Financial Fatigue: The ever-increasing cost of clothing and childcare added to the already strained budgets of families.
Based on these insights, two user personas were created - Samantha and Helen.
Competitive Analysis
To analyze the current market and existing solutions, a competitive analysis was conducted, exploring both direct and indirect competitors in the online secondhand marketplace. Though there were quite a few online secondhand shopping marketplaces, there was only one that focused exclusively on kids clothing and toys. This research highlighted the strengths and weaknesses of existing solutions, providing valuable insights to guide the development of Loop.
Ideation and Design
The ideation phase began with a deep understanding of user needs and the competitive landscape. The app's core functionalities, 'Shop' and 'Sell', were defined to ensure a seamless and intuitive experience for both buyers and sellers.
User flows for both Shop and Sell functionalities were outlined, mapping the steps users would take within the app to complete each task.
User flow for a buyer buying an item
User flow for for a seller selling an item
Wireframes
The design process started with sketching on paper and transitioned to low-fidelity wire-framing using Figma. Paper wireframes allow rapid iteration. Several versions of the same screens were created and the best elements from each were identified.
Low - Fidelity Prototypes
SHOP
SELL
Usability Testing
Usability testing was conducted and it revealed the strengths and issues with the design. Participants were able to quickly find clothes with minimal clicks. Some liked the 'favorites' feature for keeping track of items they were interested in. However, one issue that was identified was the lack of a search function. Users wanted to quickly find items they wanted rather than browse through categories and they also wanted to easily shop for New or Used clothes.
Final Design
Accessibility was prioritized throughout the design process and the color palette was thoughtfully selected to meet accessibility standards, guaranteeing a comfortable experience for a wider range of users. The designs went through multiple rounds of iteration based on feedback and testing to enhance usability and refine the user experience.
Featuring vibrant colors and playful illustrations, the app creates an engaging and fun shopping experience for parents and kids alike. The products are labelled with 'Used' or 'New' tags for easy identification and the product details page offers more details on the condition, size and fabric. The app provides a fast and effortless shopping experience with simple and clear layouts for quick and easy browsing.
Sell preloved items effortlessly
Users can easily sell their preloved items without the hassle of listing and managing them. Simply upload photos, fill in the details and wait for confirmation from the team. Once confirmed, just drop off the items and the rest is handled by the app team, including professional photos and listings. Sit back and earn credits!
Reflection
Iteration makes the design better - The design was continuously refined and iterated based on feedback and testing. Each version brought new insights, whether from testing, feedback, or self-reflection, allowing me to improve the user experience.
Real user feedback is essential - My personal learnings from working on this design concept emphasize the importance of seeking external feedback throughout the design process. Regular feedback from potential users, peers and mentors helped identify areas for improvement that might have otherwise been overlooked.
Next Steps
1. Simplify the selling process by adding more features such as AI based categorization of clothes uploaded.
2. Personalize the app for each user - Automatically generate suggestions based on search terms and offer personalized recommendations based on user preferences and previous searches.
3. Test with a larger user base and gather feedback.
