1. People find it challenging to prepare meals with the limited ingredients available to them in their kitchen.
2. They are cautious regarding their food suppliers and ingredients.
3. They desire variety and are interested in trying new foods.
I conducted 5 in-person interviews and found that — although people cared about cooking meals quickly and trying new recipes often — they were primarily concerned with reducing food waste and ensuring ethical sourcing.
“I would rather choose quality over quantity to make sure foods are ethically sourced.” (E.S.)
”I consider myself a conscious shopper. It is very important for me to avoid food waste.” (N.M.)
Surprised by how strong interviewees felt about food waste, I did some research to understand its impact on the average UK family. According to Resources and Waste Minister Rebecca Pow, "every year, UK households waste 4.5 million tonnes of food that could have been eaten. This costs the average family an astonishing £60 per month — a terrible waste of money — and has a massive environmental impact.”
These insights reshaped my user experience strategy for CookBook. Going forward, I emphasised the app's role as a solution to food waste that would positively impact the environment and people's wallets.
Initially, I considered food subscription services like Mindful Chef, Hello Fresh, and Gousto as CookBook's main competitors, especially since over 26% of the British population use these types of services. However with the market nearing saturation my perspective shifted. 91% of British people who are not yet subscribed have no plans to join and notable providers are facing customer and revenue drops due to budget (36%) and underuse (23%).
Interviewees shared that media outlets like BBC Good Food or NYT Cooking were their primary sources for cooking inspiration — not ready-meal boxes. This insight clarified to us that CookBook could find its niche by providing culinary inspiration not by competing directly with subscription models.
I crafted two personas, Serena and Lena, and paired them with scenarios to discern user tasks. This strategy gave me a clearer picture on how target users might interact with CookBook in real-life scenarios.
User stories act as a framework for future designs by offering an informal yet insightful explanation for software features from the end user's perspective.
User stories act as a framework for future designs by offering an informal yet insightful explanation for software features from the end user's perspective.
Hand-drawn prototypes let me focus purely on the execution and feasibility of my ideas because they don't have any design attached to them yet.
To lay the groundwork for high-fidelity prototypes, I first defined the overall brand language. Drawing inspiration from top-tier visual references, I established the photography style, selected fonts and colours, refined the type hierarchy, and developed the UI kit.
My focus was on the mobile version, anticipating that most users would access the service via their smartphone. Once the designs were finalised, I developed a clickable prototype for further testing.
Product design is a continuous journey, and the conclusion of this project marks the beginning of another for CookBook. User testing of my prototypes yielded insights for potential enhancements of the flow. Key learnings and future adjustments include:
→ Placing greater emphasis on the 'using leftovers' feature to recognise it as the app's standout function (according to user feedback).
→ Revisiting the onboarding process as it proved overwhelming. A potential improvement could involve separating filters across screens to declutter the experience rather than aggregating all elements on a single screen.