Z Cart

System Design

Timeline

3 weeks

Tools

Sketching

Rapid Prototyping

User Testing and Research

Model-making

Solidworks

Keyshot

Challenge

How might we redesign the shopping experience for commercial clothing brands?

Zhop Better.
Zort Better.
Zpend Smarter.

User Journey

The Z-Cart is a shopping cart designed to improve the clothing shopping experience. It features a unique Z-shaped design, allowing for better maneuverability in tight store aisles. The cart's modular nature lets users customize it according to their shopping needs, enhancing flexibility. The Z-Cart prioritizes user comfort and convenience and helps users make smarter decisions while shopping by implementing a cloth sorting system.

Research and Field Study

The amount of weight on a person’s forearm while shopping is unbearable.

It’s hard to select new articles and find sizes when both the shopper’s hands are occupied holding clothes.

The bench inside fitting rooms is too narrow to hold stuff.

Measuring the isles and trial rooms was important in the process of designing for a smoother chain of operations.

The hooks barely hold any clothes, don’t have an organizing system, and everything just ends up being a mess.

Consumer research

ZARA EMPLOYEE “Fitting rooms are a mess. The trial room tables are always cluttered. Clothes always pile up resulting in the staff finding it difficult to find sizes.”

CUSTOMERS AT ZARA “It is impossible to find sizes and extremely difficult to carry so many clothes around the store. The fitting rooms are unorganized, and there isn’t enough space for clothes and personal belongings in fitting room.”

Sketches

Initial Prototyping and User Testing

Prototype A

INSIGHT: Height of hanging rod and handle was too low for an average person’s height.

Prototype B

INSIGHT: The ‘To Try’ label was not required.

Prototype C

INSIGHT: Basket for clothes on center tables should be modular

Prototype D

INSIGHT: Nesting works in a diagonal manner.

Working Protoype

The prototype of the Z cart was crafted using cardboard and PVC pipes, tailored to align precisely with the store's aisle dimensions. Measurements of the store's interior were taken to determine the optimal size. Additionally, the cart's height has been carefully designed to accommodate a diverse range of individuals, ensuring comfort and ease of use for shoppers of varying statures.

Product Features

Sorting System
These tags allow shoppers to organize the clothes they wish to try in a more systematic manner where the clothes they reject, the clothes they are buying and the clothes that need different sizes are hung separately.

Nesting System
The Z-shaped design of the cart enables multiple carts to be nested together digonally, optimizing storage efficiency efficiency. This configuration allows the Z-shapes to interlock seamlessly, making it convenient for stores, such as grocery outlets, to organize and save space.

Nesting Visualized