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ChefSpice UK Case Study
ChefSpice UK, Food Commerce Case Study
End to End Ecommerce
Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
About.
ChefSpice is a web and mobile food commerce platform that offers African food menus with a user-friendly ordering system and admin-controlled promotions. Built over a 3-month period as an MVP, ChefSpice is continuously updated based on user feedback and growth metrics.
Phase 1: Discovery & Research
To understand the pain points, needs, and behaviors of potential customers in the African food delivery market, while analyzing competitors like HelloFresh to benchmark features.
User Research & Interviews:
We conducted interviews with 20 potential users, including African food enthusiasts and individuals seeking convenient meal delivery options. The goal was to gather insights into user preferences for African meal kits and service expectations.
Competitive Analysis:
A detailed comparison was conducted with similar meal delivery platforms, including HelloFresh, focusing on user experience, customization options, and retention features.
Journey Mapping:
I created user journey maps to visualize the typical steps from discovering ChefSpice to completing an order, identifying key pain points like meal customization and delivery scheduling.
Persona Development:
From the research, we developed key personas, such as "Busy Professionals" who seek convenience and "African Food Enthusiasts" who desire authenticity and variety.
65% of users indicated a preference for highly customizable meal kits.
80% of users reported that regular promotions would make them more likely to use the platform.
Phase 2: Define & Ideation
To translate research insights into clear problem statements, user stories, and initial design solutions that address user needs while aligning with business goals.
Problem Statements:
I reframed the insights into clear problem statements, such as: "How might we offer highly customizable meal kits for African food while keeping the ordering process simple and intuitive?"
Feature Prioritization:
Using MoSCoW prioritization, we categorized must-have, should-have, could-have, and won’t-have features. This ensured the MVP focused on essential features like customizable meal kits and promotions.
Wireframing & Initial Prototyping:
Low-fidelity wireframes were created to visualize core user flows, including meal selection, order customization, and checkout.
We reduced the number of required steps in the ordering process by 20% to minimize friction.
45% of users in user tests indicated that meal customization was critical to their decision to order.
Phase 3: Design & Development
To create design assets & systems and to transform wireframes into high-fidelity designs and prototypes while working closely with the engineering team to ensure design specifications are met.
High-Fidelity Prototypes:
We designed high-fidelity prototypes in Figma, focusing on an intuitive user interface for both the web and mobile platforms. Special attention was given to meal customization, dietary preferences, and easy checkout options.
Personalized Meal Plans
Users enjoy the ability to create meal plans tailored to their dietary preferences, portion sizes, and weekly schedules. This flexibility has helped busy professionals, students, and families save time and effort while staying consistent with their health and cultural needs.
Auto-Recurring Orders
Recurring orders have simplified meal planning for regular users, eliminating the need to reselect meals weekly. It has particularly benefitted users with tight schedules, ensuring their kitchens are always stocked with fresh, authentic meals.
Timeline Creation Feature
The Timeline Creation feature has enabled users to effortlessly plan and visualize their meal orders, upcoming deliveries, and overall meal schedule. This feature has been particularly impactful for users who rely on ChefSpice for consistent meal planning and event preparation, ensuring they stay organized and avoid last-minute hassles.
Collaborative Sprints:
The design and development teams worked in agile sprints. During each sprint, I provided detailed design specifications and conducted regular reviews to ensure implementation matched the design vision.
Admin Dashboard Design:
A key component of the product was the admin dashboard, allowing ChefSpice’s team to manage orders, promotions, and customer feedback. This was designed with simple navigation and real-time analytics.
Handover Process:
Using Figma, I provided annotated designs to the engineers with clear instructions on spacing, interactions, and responsiveness for various screen sizes. Weekly syncs were held to address any design challenges during implementation.
95% design accuracy in the implementation, thanks to the smooth Figma-to-engineering handover process.
Reduced time-to-market by 15% due to effective sprint collaboration between design and development teams.
Phase 4: Testing & Iteration
To validate design decisions through usability testing and iterate on the product based on feedback.
Usability Testing:
We conducted usability tests with a group of 20 users, focusing on the meal customization flow, the clarity of promotions, and the overall checkout process. Feedback was collected on ease of navigation and design aesthetics.
Iterative Refinement:
Based on user feedback, adjustments were made to the meal customization interface, simplifying the layout and adding more visual cues for dietary preferences. Additional tweaks were made to the checkout process to reduce cognitive load.
Phase 5: Launch & Post-Launch Improvements
The MVP was successfully launched within the 3-month timeline. Post-launch, we closely monitored user engagement, retention, and overall performance metrics.
Post-Launch Improvements:
Over the past years, regular updates have been made based on customer feedback. Enhancements include improved meal personalization, a faster checkout process, and expanded admin dashboard capabilities for automating promotions and analyzing sales trends.
30% increase in user retention within the first year post-launch.
45% increase in average order value due to enhanced meal customization features.
15% improvement in checkout completion rates after refining the process based on user feedback.
70% customer satisfaction as measured by post-purchase surveys.
