Centerpiece: Helping every man find their style.

CASE STUDY: UX DESIGN

THE PROBLEM

DELIVERABLES

Working in menswear retail, I am constantly ingesting data

on our customers. And the biggest pain-point for men when it

comes to getting dressed is: Most men aren’t educated in how to

put an outfit together.

Like it or not, how you look says something about you to others.

And in a lot of situations, how you’re perceived is important.

Whether at work, or when your partner wishes you “dressed your

age”, people’s perception of you can be influenced by how you

are dressed.

UX/UI

Content Strategy

Visual Design

PLEASE SEND HELP.

A tale of two men.USER INTERVIEWS

I interviewed a group of 5 men. All were working professionals

aging in range from their 30’s to mid 40’s. What I discovered

is that in general, there are 2 different types of men:

• Men who are confident in their style: These men take the

time to strategize what they are going to wear, but are

always open to styling suggestions.

• Men who are “fashion aloof”: To the dismay of their

partners, these men aren’t aware that there are guidelines

to follow when putting an outfit together.

A tale of two men.CONFIDENT CHRIS ALEX ALOOF

“What do I wear with these sneakers? This hat?

This jacket?”

“My wife hates the way I dress.”

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• PROCESS: Compose outfit around an “anchor piece”

• FIT: How are my clothes supposed to fit to my body?

• STYLE INFLUENCE: Social media, pop culture, friends

and family

• MONEY: I wish I had the money to buy the pieces I really want.

COMPETITORS

Lookscope:Create outfits using your wardrobe.

Mr. Porter:Menswear ecommerce and lifestyle.

WEAR:Social media sharing focused on fashion looks.

YouTube:Video sharing of anything and everything.

INTERACTIVE IN-DEPTH

M E N S W E A R F O C U S ED

Interactive.In-Depth. Menswearfocused.

OPPORTUNITY

OPPORTUNITY

DESIGN APPROACH

Confident Chris was once Aloof like Alex.

Dressing well is a skill. When considering

both personas, I realized that Confident Chris

most likely at one point was an Aloof Alex.

Chris at some point in time got educated in

how to dress. For Alex it never mattered, or

now that it does, he now needs to learn. Once

he does learn, eventually Alex may evolve into

a Confident Chris.

With that said, in focusing on creating a

solution which solves Chris’ pain points,

we can simultaneously educate Alex of the

problems he needs to be aware of, in order

become a better dressed man.

Time

Style IQ

Needs style education

Needs style suggestionsConfident Chris

Aloof AlexEDUCATION THRESHOLD

DESIGN APPROACH

What is your centerpiece?

Of all the Chris personas I interviewed, all

of them had the same type of ritual when

creating a look for the day. They would

pick an “anchor piece”, then figure out

what other pieces would look good around

that piece.

The idea is very efficient and effective, yet

such a simple idea for Alex to adopt.

“What do I wear with these sneakers? This hat?

This jacket?” – Confident Chris

DESIGN APPROACH

MAIN USER FLOW

Welcome What is your Centerpiece?

Confirmation Screen

Results(User uploaded

images)Get Started Guided Search See Looks

Learn More Filters

New Search

Login CreateAccount

SITEMAP

HOME

GET STARTED

GUIDED SEARCH HOW-TO’S

A BRIEF HISTORY

GUIDED SEARCHMY ACCOUNT

TOPSFAVORITES

MY LOOKS

BOTTOMS

SHOES

ACCESSORIES

IMAGE DETAIL

LIST VIEW SHARE

SHARE

COMPOSEUN

COLOR

GRID VIEW COMMENT

COMMENT

DELETEPW

PATTERN

SHIRTNEW FOLDER

ADD LOOK

PANTS

SNEAKERS

JEWELRY

FILTER BY

LIKE

ADD TO FAVS

MESSAGE USER

SHARE

COMMENT

T-SHIRT, BUTTON-UP, ETC.

CHINOS, CARPENTER, ETC.

DETAILS (TYPE, COLOR, BRAND, ETC.)

SLIP-ON, RUNNERS, ETC.

RING, CHAIN, ETC.

OVERCOAT, BOMBER JACKET, ETC.

CARGO, DENIM, ETC.

WORK, COWBOY, ETC.

FEDORA, BEANIE, ETC.

OXFORDS,WINGTIP, ETC.

OXFORDS,WINGTIP, ETC.

AVIATORS, WAYFARER, ETC.

HOODIE, KNIT, ETC.

GOOSE DOWN, WAIST COAT, ETC.

SWEATERS

SLACKS

DRESS SHOES

SCARVES

OUTER WEARREMOVE

REMOVE

SHORTS

BOOTS

HATS

VESTS

JEANS

SANDALS

EYE GLASSES

LOGIN EDITORIAL CONTENT INBOXCREATE/VIEW ACCOUNT

SEARCH RESULTS

PROBLEM:

When given the task

to “create a profile”,

multiple users would

interact with the

username form field,

as opposed to tapping

on the “create profile”

button.

SOLUTION:

By removing the form

fields on the first

screen, there is less

ambiguity as to what

the next step to take

is. A consequence

of this edit is an

additional screen for

the login flow.

USABILITY TESTING - LOGIN SCREEN

Less is more.

PROBLEM:

Given the scenario: “Find

results for a Blue Bomber

Jacket”, Confident Chris type

users, found it cumbersome

to filter their search for blue,

as they we expecting filter

earlier in the search flow. For

this iteration, filters don’t

come until step 4 of the

search flow.

In addition, the Home and

Magnifying Glass icons

directed to two different

types of searches. This is very

confusing. Filter option appears here.2 search options = Confusing

USABILITY TESTING - SEARCH OPTIONS

Education = efficiency.

SOLVE:

I brought the Advanced

Search (Magnifying Glass)

out of the bottom nav so

that it becomes a shortcut in

the main flow, rather than

a competing search flow

altogether.

In permitting search terms to

act as filters, search results

appear 4 steps earlier than

our first iteration.

As our users become more

educated, I expect the

advanced search to be used

more frequently.

USABILITY TESTING - SEARCH OPTIONS

Education = efficiency.

Filter in search terms. Filtered results 4 steps earlier

Home:Guided search for Alex

Quick Search:Advanced search for Chris

FINAL PROTOTYPE

By offering an interactive, guided

experience through the task of composing

and outfit, Centerpiece will gradually

instill the rules that well-dressed men

follow in order to ensure they’re looking

their best.

User-generated content ensures the

inspiration is consistently refreshed. In

addition, editorial deep-dives and How-

To’s give users the resources to increase

their “Style IQ”.

VIEW PROTOTYPE HERE

CENTERPIECENEXT STEPS

Mens style is in constant ebb and flow. With that said,

CENTERPIECE will also have to evolve as trends come and

go. There will always be a need for CENTERPIECE. Here are

a few ideas as to where we can go to keep up with the pace of

menswear evolution.

• COLOR THEORY TOOL: An interactive tool to guide men in

how to mix colors.

• TAILORED MENSWEAR SUPPLEMENT: A supplemental

experience which dives into the detail rich area of Tailored

Menswear.

• PRODUCT TAGS: Product tagging in order to allow for

deeper dives into brand editorials or purchase links.

THANK YOU.