Role
UX Designer
August 2024 – December 2024
Team
Sara Her
Ariel Li
Nállely Martínez Almonte
Tool
Sketch / Figma / Photoshop / Illustrator / Keynote
Overview
Thryft is on a mission to make secondhand furniture shopping secure, seamless, and enjoyable, transforming a fragmented resale experience into a trusted digital marketplace. The platform addresses common barriers like unreliable communication and limited security.
The project involved extensive user research to uncover the specific needs and pain points of both buyers and sellers in the secondhand market. Through observations, interviews, and usability testing, we refined Thryft’s flow and functionality to create an intuitive, frictionless experience. My role included developing research, wireframes, prototypes, and visual designs that make Thryft feel welcoming and trustworthy, encouraging a thriving community of furniture enthusiasts. The end result is a marketplace where style meets reliability, supporting users in finding unique items they’ll love for years to come.
Process
01 – Interviews
User research revealed frustrations with transaction security, product trust, and buyer-seller communication in the secondhand furniture market, leading to features like Thryft SecurePay for a safer, more transparent experience.
02 – Archetypes
Research revealed key user motivations such as speed, affordability, and style, which informed Thryft’s design to effectively meet diverse needs and enhance the user experience.
03 – User Journey
The user journey was designed for a seamless experience from browsing to purchase, with a focus on clarity, ease of use, and building trust through secure transactions and transparent pricing.
04 – Sketches
Initial sketches mapped out Thryft’s core structure, focusing on key user interactions and layout. These early sketches helped define the flow and navigation, ensuring easy access to essential features like browsing, item details, and checkout.
05 – Mid Fidelity
We refined the layout and interactions, adding more detail to the wireframes. This phase focused on structuring content and improving navigation flow, testing key features like browsing and checkout to ensure clarity and usability.
06 – High Fidelity
We created interactive prototypes to test usability, focusing on smooth navigation and intuitive interactions. Testing helped refine the design, ensuring a seamless and functional user experience.
Interviews
We interviewed 10 potential users including both resale buyers and sellers to uncover their pain points and expectations.
Below are the key insights:
Timing
Furniture resale value shifts with city move-in and move-out seasons.
Negotiations
Sellers may lower prices to secure deals, while buyers often leverage seller urgency to find the best price.
Privacy and security are key concerns, especially for sellers. Using public locations for pickups reduces risks, while buyers should stay alert for scams.
Payment Flexibility
Transactions need payment flexibility, as people prefer methods like cash, Venmo, and have varying negotiation styles.
Logistics
Delivery and pickup are a crucial decision factor for users in second-hand furniture transactions.
Archetypes
Bulk Furniture
Looking to purchase multiple items, often for large spaces or quick setups. They prioritize convenience and may seek deals for furnishing entire rooms or homes at once.
Deal-Driven
Focused on finding the best bargains. They are flexible with specific items and are willing to wait for sales or discounts to get the best value for their money.
Unique Needs
Specific requirements for furniture to meet particular needs, such as unique sizes, styles, or functionalities. They prioritize finding items that perfectly fit their personal or professional requirements.
Time-Driven
Focused on completing transactions quickly, often juggling multiple buyers and listings. They prioritize efficiency and speed, seeking to move items fast without lengthy negotiations or delays.
Money-Driven
Aim to maximize the value of their items, focusing on recouping as much as possible from products they no longer need. They are strategic about pricing and may invest more time in finding the right buyers to ensure higher returns.
To further refine our design, we’ve compiled a list of “How might we” questions – a design thinking method to organize our thoughts and uncover additional design opportunities.
How might we efficiently match listed items with potential buyers?
How might we help sellers set the most competitive price?
How might we assist with last-minute/urgent sales?
How might we make the post more appealing to the target audience?
How might we help sellers communicate with buyers when they are busy/offline?
How might we help buyers find what they need efficiently? How might we compare prices across platforms?
How might we make post details clear without overwhelming the audience?
How might we build trust between buyers and sellers?
How might we make transportation more flexible?
User Journey
The user journey mapping for Thryft captures the emotional and practical challenges buyers and sellers experience, from listing items to finalizing sales. Sellers often face hurdles like app navigation, price setting, and negotiation stress, while buyers struggle with item quality assessment, communication delays, and logistics. Insights from interviews, observations, and affinity diagramming revealed key opportunities for improvement, such as streamlining communication, enhancing product information, and providing clearer support during the transaction process. Addressing these pain points aims to create a more seamless, user-friendly experience for both buyers and sellers on the platform.
Branding
Thryft’s branding uses a color palette of sage green and lavender to create a welcoming and trustworthy atmosphere. Sage green represents sustainability and eco-friendly values, while lavender adds a sense of calm and approachability. Together, these colors convey warmth and reliability, aligning with Thryft’s mission to build a trusted, community-focused platform for secondhand furniture.
For Thryft’s typography, we chose Satoshi for its clean, modern look that aligns with the brand’s approachable and trustworthy vibe. Satoshi’s rounded, balanced letterforms contribute to a welcoming feel, enhancing readability and creating a seamless visual flow. We also prioritized generous padding to give the interface a spacious, uncluttered look, ensuring a comfortable browsing experience and allowing users to easily focus on key information. Together, the typography and padding create a refined, user-friendly aesthetic that reflects Thryft’s commitment to simplicity and transparency.
Sketches
Home Screen
We explored different layouts and iterations of what a home screen would look like.
–– Wishlist
Initially, we sketched wireframes with a streamlined checkout process in mind, removing the traditional shopping cart button. Instead, users could directly proceed to checkout from the product page, simplifying the flow and reducing unnecessary steps in the purchasing process. However, after testing and gathering feedback, we found that users preferred the ability to review their selections before finalizing the purchase. As a result, we reinstated a shopping cart button to give users more control over their transaction and improve the overall shopping experience.
Guide to Seller Listings ––
We sketched an onboarding screen for sellers that guided them through a simple, step-by-step process to quickly post their furniture. The design focused on making it intuitive by asking for key details—such as item description, price, and photos—without requiring any prior sales knowledge, ensuring a smooth and easy listing experience.
–– Thryft SecurePay (Escrow)
The sketching process for Thryft’s SecurePay focused on mapping out the escrow flow, with screens showing payment initiation, status updates, and transaction completion. Early sketches emphasized clarity and security, ensuring both buyers and sellers felt confident throughout the process.
Mid Fidelity
–– Home Screen
We struggled to decide on the layout, trying different variations to find the most intuitive and visually appealing option. For the global navigation bar, we initially used a floating "+" button on the home page, similar to Twitter and Hinge, instead of a dedicated "create" button. After testing, we decided to switch to a fixed "create" button for better clarity and easier access.
–– Thryft SecurePay (Escrow)
The focus was on enhancing security, clarity, and privacy throughout the transaction process. The page was designed to show the progress of both buyers and sellers in a clear, visual way, with status indicators for each party (e.g., payment held, awaiting confirmation, or transaction complete). Security features, such as encrypted payment details and clear communication about the escrow process, were prominently displayed to build trust. The design also included privacy settings, ensuring users felt confident their personal information was protected. These elements were strategically placed to ensure a smooth, transparent transaction experience, reflecting each user's progress along their journey.
Guide to Seller Listings ––
User research revealed that many potential sellers felt overwhelmed when listing items on platforms like Facebook Marketplace or eBay. We aimed to create a low-barrier, intuitive experience that would empower anyone to feel confident in selling, regardless of their prior knowledge.
High Fidelity
–– Guide to Seller Listings
User research revealed that many potential sellers felt overwhelmed when listing items on platforms like Facebook Marketplace or eBay. We aimed to create a low-barrier, intuitive experience that would empower anyone to feel confident in selling, regardless of their prior knowledge.
Home Page ––
The Thryft home page features wide preview images, making it easy for users to scroll and quickly take in essential details about each listing, creating a seamless, visually engaging browsing experience. Additionally, we included a “Community Spotlight” carousel that allows sellers to promote their listings for increased visibility. This approach lets us introduce ads while keeping the platform community-oriented, as the promoted content is directly from other users, helping them reach more buyers and fostering a supportive environment focused on community engagement.
–– Thryft SecurePay / Order Page
The Thryft SecurePay and Orders page is an all-in-one hub for managing transactions, providing seamless updates for both buyers and sellers. Users receive notifications when someone requests to purchase one of their items, and buyers can easily see if their purchase request has been approved. The page also allows access to past orders for quick reference. Additionally, SecurePay integrates a QR code feature for secure, in-person exchanges, enabling users to scan or display the code to finalize transactions. This streamlined, comprehensive setup ensures a transparent, convenient experience from start to finish.
Project Takeaways
01 – Understanding User Needs
The project emphasized the importance of deeply understanding user needs and motivations, which were essential in shaping Thryft's core values and user experience. Identifying pain points around transaction security and simplicity informed our approach to building a platform people trust and enjoy using.
02 – Building a Community-Centric Platform
Developing Thryft reinforced the value of community-driven elements. Features like the Community Spotlight fostered user engagement by allowing sellers to gain visibility within a supportive, peer-based environment, making Thryft feel more like a community than a typical marketplace.
03 – Accessibility and Inclusivity
Ensuring Thryft’s accessibility was key to creating an inclusive platform. By focusing on an approachable layout, intuitive navigation, and thoughtful color choices, we made Thryft easy to use for a diverse audience, which broadened its appeal and usability.
04 – Balancing Business Goals with User Experience
This project taught me how to align business goals with user satisfaction. For instance, the approach to ads through community-based promotions allowed us to support seller visibility and generate revenue without compromising the user experience or overwhelming users with external advertisements.
05 – Value of Iterative Feedback
Ongoing feedback and iteration were crucial to refining the product. User insights guided adjustments to features and flows, helping us continuously improve Thryft’s usability and better meet our community’s needs.