Cartlyst

A grocery cart with a tablet on it. It keeps a running total, flags allergens, and lets you skip the checkout line.

The problem

Grocery shopping is full of small annoyances. You don't know what you're spending until the end, labels are hard to read, and then you wait in a long line to pay.

How I researched it

We didn't jump into screens. Here's how we got there:

1. AskedWe ran a survey and a class activity to see how people actually shop and what bugs them.
2. MappedWe made two personas, Sam and Sarah, and walked through their trips. Browsing, the cart and checkout were where it hurt.
3. SketchedI started on paper and tested with 5 people. Everyone got the live total right away, so we cut the extra instructions.
4. Tested againNext was a clickable Figma prototype, with 5 more people. 4 of them said the store map was too small, so we made it expandable. We also switched to a scrollable product grid and fixed a nav bar that kept disappearing.

What we made

Set a budget, scan as you go, and watch your total and any allergens update live. Find things on the map, then check out right on the cart.

Looking back

Testing on paper first saved us a lot of time. Next, I'd want to try it in a real store with real barcodes, and add voice and bigger text so more people can use it.