In 2024, Food Lion and Stop & Shop updated default store settings after customers experienced confusion and pricing mismatches. Shoppers expected online prices and coupons to match in-store, and discrepancies led to dissatisfaction and lost revenue.
I conducted a default store experience audit, mapping the current experience across 5 ADUSA brands to understand how customers interact with the default store and identify key pain points within the flow.
default store mapping
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Unclear shopping method selector causing frustration
Shopping method selector lacks clarity, and defaulting to “In-Store” can misrepresent user intent, leading to incorrect selections with no clear confirmation for method, location, or time slot
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Lack of visual confirmation drives mistakes
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Lack of clear visual confirmation when making selections, leading to confusion, missed inputs, and increased backtracking and cart abandonment
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Late availability visibility breaks trust
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Carts are built without visibility into item availability, and when issues surface too late, often at checkout, it leads to wasted time, failed orders, and loss of trust
From there, it became clear that the current shopping method experience was limiting and unclear, leading to an analysis of competitor brands to identify clearer patterns and opportunities for a more seamless experience.
Selection Feedback
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immediate confirmation after method selection
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reinforces user choice to reduce uncertainty
Shopping Method Selector
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prominent selector for pickup, delivery, store, and time
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icon-driven design for fast recognition and selection
Real-Time Availability
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live updates based on selected pickup/delivery method
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availability shown in cart and product browsing
After identifying patterns for a more seamless experience, I defined key design requirements to guide ideation and concept development.
design requirements
I developed 3 low-fidelity wireframe concepts exploring ways to reduce confusion in the shopping method experience and prevent customers from unintentionally shopping in the “wrong” store context.
Setting customers on the right path
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removes “in-store” mode to streamline pickup and delivery
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simplifies method selection to “pickup or delivery” with a prominent navigation feature
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replaces center modal with a optimized sidebar layout, centralizing all information
From these low-fidelity wireframes, the sidebar, shopping method redesign, and location reminder emerged as the strongest solutions, with user testing validating their effectiveness and impact on clarity and user understanding.
ios demo
method selector pill
selected method selector pill
store locator reminder
method selector pill
selected method selector pill
store locator reminder
side bar panel
save selections
method selector pill
desktop demo
🔨 Building Alignment Across Teams:
Partnered with with researchers, product managers, and cross-functional teams to create customer-centered experiences
📖 Telling the Story Behind the Design:
Shared the “why” behind design decisions in ways that helped teams have alignment around customer need
💪 Adapting With Curiosity:
Approached complex challenges with flexibility, learning new tools and iterating quickly based on feedback
