Project Overview

Millennials(Born between 1981 - 1996) in British Columbia face a dilemma. They want to look professional and appropriate by dressing formally at work. However, they can't get value from spending money on them. Specifically in BC, the major millennial-targeted labour market doesn't require to wear formal. This cause more hesitation to buy business attire for millennials.
‍
Culture is more flexible than the previous generation, however, wearing a business-appropriate wardrobe is still expected. Furthermore, formal suits can present a positive impression and give a better opportunity.
‍
This report provides a comprehensive analysis of how to help millennials in BC prepare business attire to present a positive impression in the professional world.

Project goal

From this case study, I will be able to uncover BC millennials’ lifestyle and habits to determine what makes them hesitate to buy formal attire. The research aims to help millennials in BC find an affordable way to dress formally and an efficient way to boost their confidence and work performance. And ultimately, help them to get better opportunities in their work.

duration

2022. OCT - DEC (10 weeks)

Role

Solo student project for BrainStation UX BootCamp

UX & UI Designer
UX Researcher
UX Writer

Device

Mobile, iOS

Tools

Figma, Figjam
InVision
Adobe Illustrator

Research

Secondary Research

Millennials wear formal attire rarely and irregularly, so they don’t want to spend more money to dress up.

I discovered millennials’ unique features by conducting secondary research.

Millennials hold only 10% of the wealth compared to the previous generation.

So they much consider the affordance and spend less money.

60% of millennials have embraced the sharing economy.

They have been reluctant to buy luxury goods and unnecessary items because they want to keep less and reduce the burden of ownership.

In terms of the BC labour market, 70% of the industry in BC employees don’t wear formal attire often.

Instead, they wear uniforms or casual.

Wealth gap between boomers and millennials

Millennials are choosing to rent, not buy.

BC labour market, employees mostly wear uniforms or casual.

User Interviews

4 out of 6 my interviewees confirm they find professional wear not worth the price for how little they wear it.

Interview Script

METHODOLOGY

Decontextualized user interviews

6 Participants, live in BC
Video call and phone call, about 15 mins each
Oct. 17 to 19, 2022

PARTICIPANTS CRITERIA

People live in BC
Millennials(age 41-26, born between 1981-1996)
Had a professional situation that dressed formally
Using digital tools with confidence

“I have one piece of formal wear, so it's not enough. But I don't want to buy more because I rarely wear them. It would be better to rent or borrow rather than buy new ones. ”

- Participant #3, Structural steel detailer

Affinity Mapping

6 BC Millennials
60 Data Points
3 Themes + 3 Insights

Affinity Map

Identify Key Themes

theme 1

Affordability

(Chosen Theme)

insight

Millennials in BC don’t want to spend too much money to buy a professional business wear.

“I don't find a point of invest that money to have something. It is good to have one, but don't need 4 or 5 suits.”

- Participant #2, Car Sales Person

theme 2

Limited Need

insight

Millennials in BC want to look professional and appropriate by dressing formally. However, they don’t want to buy it more because they think their lifestyle isn’t involved and rarely wear it.

"I have to wear a uniform at work. Outside work, I only attend a few events and don't have to dress up often. I mostly wear athletic wear. I think formal attire is not involved in the typical average Vancouver lifestyle."

- Participant #5, Registered Nurse

theme 3

Give a Chance to Others

insight

Millennials in BC want to give their formal wear to someone who needs them because it’s still good quality.

“I donate the clothes that are still good quality but don’t fit me at all. Maybe someone uses them at a good price. It feels better than just throwing away.”

- Participant #1, Healthcare Worker

User Stories and Core Epic

EPIC 01

Searching and Filtering

(Chosen Core Epic)

Select Searching and Filtering as a core epic because I want to help users find the most appropriate clothes in different situations. The search result gives guidance to users, which boosts their confidence.

As a Suits Renter, I want to search for suits by occasion so that I ensure I dress appropriately for different situations.

EPIC 02

Shipping and Receiving

To save money and time, users want to rent clothes online. Also, an online pick-up service will increase the donation rate because users don’t have to visit the store to donate.

As a Store Manager, I want to let users know the policy so that I can prevent any accident or damage.

EPIC 03

Interaction Between Donor and Renter

Tracking their donated item usage will increase the donation. Also, not only rent suits but also share the story of the item and positive messages will encourage millennials' rental rates and have a positive impact.

As a Suits Donor, I want to check who rented my suits so that I feel good about I help someone.

Task: Searching and Filtering Interview Attire

Design Iteration

User Testing

Usability Test Plan (Round 1)

Usability Test Plan (Round 2)

With an interactive low-fidelity prototype, I conducted the second round of usability test by following the design iteration process. These allows me to obtain practical, real-time feedback that can be incorporated to improve the design and provide a more optimal user experience.

TEST SCHEDULE

First Round

When: Nov. 09. 2022 (4 pm to 8 pm)
Where: Via Google Meet video call
Who: The total of five testers
How long: About 20 mins each

Second Round

When: Nov. 12 - Nov. 13. 2022 (10:30 am to 10 pm)
Where: Via Google Meet video call
Who: The total of five testers
How long: About 20 mins each

TEST SCENARIO ADN TASKS

Scenario: To search for men’s interview suits for the IT industry and rent one of them.

Task 1: Visiting Men’s wear page
Task 2: Searching for interview suit
Task 3: Filtering by industry and selecting IT & Science
Task 4: Checking the item page
Task 5: Complete the rental process

Overall Testing Results

I confirmed my design iteration was bringing positive impacts and improving the usability of the app. Also, I discovered some potential improvements.

Prototype Major Improvement

Revised low-fidelity prototype

Iteration 1: Make the Date section on the search page more obvious.

To minimize the confusion, change the title from ‘Date’ to ‘Select Rental Period.'
Change the date picker design more straightforward and add the meaning of each date (pick up and drop off).
Include the calendar icon to make users easily understand.

Iteration 2: Move the ‘by industry’ filter on the filter menu.

Remove the ‘by industry’ filter on the list page and add it to the filter menu to reduce confusion.
Place the total number of the item on the same line.

Iteration 3: Change the billing address and payment method sections.

Merge the ‘Billing Address’ and ‘Payment Information’ section in one card.
Provide primary credit card information.
Based on the user feedback, changed the order of payment information (1. Card Info, 2. Billing info).

Final Solution

Final High-Fidelity Prototype

High-fidelity prototype

Features

Search suit by occasion

Search by interview, business, wedding and so on and find perfect matched one.

Reserve your rental pick up and drop off location & time

Select location and time to pick up the item at your convenience.

Discover the story of suits

Check out who was preowners, when they worn it, and what they’ve achieved with their formal wears.

Happy Path User Flow

wrap up

Impact

Increase community engagement more sustainable way.

Re:formal will create a new way for people to interact. People not only donate or rent suits but also share the story of their preloved items; this business model will increase the rental rate and reduce fashion waste.

Empowering the underrepresented people.

Not only for millennials, Re:formal is dedicated to helping everyone who wants to dress for success in an affordable way. The app supports underrepresented people and helps them get better job opportunities with confidence.

Key Learnings

Separate me from the target audience

It was challenging to separate myself from the target audience because I am also a millennial. But I kept focusing on finding patterns of users without my personal thinking. This effort enables me to create a consolidated persona.

Importance of UX laws and heuristic evaluations

During the usability test, I discovered that some participants mentioned, ‘I think I saw in a different way in the fashion eCommerce.’ It reminds me of Jakob’s law, which I learned in the course. I checked the UI inspiration board back and forth and studied more about usual patterns to improve usability and keep user flow more smoothly. Also, I’ve learned that it is important to consider UX laws and heuristic evaluations to make a better user interface.

Re:formal

Project Overview

Project goal

duration

Role

Device

Tools

Initial Problem Discovery

63%

38%

Research

METHODOLOGY

PARTICIPANTS CRITERIA

theme 1

Affordability

insight

Millennials in BC don’t want to spend too much money to buy a professional business wear.

theme 2

Limited Need

insight

Millennials in BC want to look professional and appropriate by dressing formally. However, they don’t want to buy it more because they think their lifestyle isn’t involved and rarely wear it.

theme 3

Give a Chance to Others

insight

Millennials in BC want to give their formal wear to someone who needs them because it’s still good quality.

How Might We...

Defined a potential digital solution

After finding a key theme and key insight, I created a realistic and reliable representation of my key user groups. This persona will helps to understand user’s behaviour, motivation and frustration more deeply.

EPIC 01

Searching and Filtering

Select Searching and Filtering as a core epic because I want to help users find the most appropriate clothes in different situations. The search result gives guidance to users, which boosts their confidence.

EPIC 02

Shipping and Receiving

To save money and time, users want to rent clothes online. Also, an online pick-up service will increase the donation rate because users don’t have to visit the store to donate.

EPIC 03

Interaction Between Donor and Renter

Tracking their donated item usage will increase the donation. Also, not only rent suits but also share the story of the item and positive messages will encourage millennials' rental rates and have a positive impact.

Persona

Daniel, looking for renting formal interview clothes.

epic

Searching and Filtering

main user flow

As a Suits Renter, I want to search for suits by occasion so that I ensure I dress appropriately for different situations.

Design Ideation

I made an InVision UI inspiration board to brainstorm the idea, including UI components, patterns, and interactions that will benefit the user in completing the job they need to do.

Design Iteration

With an interactive low-fidelity prototype, I conducted the second round of usability test by following the design iteration process. These allows me to obtain practical, real-time feedback that can be incorporated to improve the design and provide a more optimal user experience.

TEST SCHEDULE

TEST SCENARIO ADN TASKS

I confirmed my design iteration was bringing positive impacts and improving the usability of the app. Also, I discovered some potential improvements.

Iteration 1: Make the Date section on the search page more obvious.

Iteration 2: Move the ‘by industry’ filter on the filter menu.

Iteration 3: Change the billing address and payment method sections.

Branding

Using the most classic font style, Baskerville, for the wordmark. I adjusted the font spacing and added some touches to create my own unique style.

Use a deep blue as a primary colour and deep wine red as an accent colour. The light ivory colour is well-matched with a deep blue that makes calm and elegant moods.

design system

During the design component redlining, I fixed the size of card and spacing between the element a lot because it didn’t followed the 8px grid system. I learned that it is very important to set the standard design system to deliver a consistent experience.

Final Solution

Marketing Campaign

Alternative Platform

For the next step, I am working on different platforms, including an iPad and website, to increase user retention and attract new customers.

wrap up

Increase community engagement more sustainable way.

Re:formal will create a new way for people to interact. People not only donate or rent suits but also share the story of their preloved items; this business model will increase the rental rate and reduce fashion waste.

Empowering the underrepresented people.

Not only for millennials, Re:formal is dedicated to helping everyone who wants to dress for success in an affordable way. The app supports underrepresented people and helps them get better job opportunities with confidence.

Separate me from the target audience

It was challenging to separate myself from the target audience because I am also a millennial. But I kept focusing on finding patterns of users without my personal thinking. This effort enables me to create a consolidated persona.

Importance of UX laws and heuristic evaluations

Design solutions for different users

e.g. New users, donors, store staffs

Make the app fully functional

Platform Expansion