It's Black Friday morning, and thousands of fashion enthusiasts are frantically refreshing their phones, hoping to snag that perfect piece from Victoria's Secret's latest collection. But instead of seamless shopping, they're met with slow-loading pages, mysterious disappearing products, and confusion about what's actually available. This was the reality our mobile customers faced a broken experience that was costing us both sales and trust.
In the fast-paced world of fashion retail, where trends move at lightning speed and inventory changes by the minute, the mobile shopping experience had become a bottleneck rather than a bridge to purchase. Our data told a concerning story: mobile users were bouncing at alarming rates, conversion was lagging, and customer service was flooded with questions about product availability.
Context
Mobile = 60 percent of traffic
Peak demand during launches
Core problems
Performance failure PLP load >5s during peaks. Users perceived app as broken.
Trust failure Sold-out items vanished, causing confusion and abandonment.
Why it mattered
These failures directly reduced conversion and damaged brand trust during high-intent moments.
Discovery
Discovery
User Journey Map:
Persona
Persona
Sarah Chen Fashionista
Sarah Chen Fashionista
Sarah Chen Fashionista
Role and Background
Trend-driven influencer who shops during high-demand events and launches. Relies on mobile for fast purchases
Role and Background
Trend-driven influencer who shops during high-demand events and launches. Relies on mobile for fast purchases
Role and Background
Trend-driven influencer who shops during high-demand events and launches. Relies on mobile for fast purchases
Pain Point
Wasting time searching for unavailable products
Slow System load
Unclear filter values
Pain Point
Wasting time searching for unavailable products
Slow System load
Unclear filter values
Pain Point
Missing out on limited releases due to vague messaging
Wasting time searching for sold-out products
Uncertainty about restocks and vanishing items
Motivation:
Secure the latest, trending items quickly
Experience seamless, clear mobile shopping
Motivation:
Secure the latest, trending items quickly
Experience seamless, clear mobile shopping
Motivation:
Secure the latest, trending items quickly
Experience seamless, clear mobile shopping
Share chic, exclusive looks with her followers
Goal
Avoid frustration from unclear availability
Effortlessly discover similar items if not available.
Complete shopping journey faster
Goal
Avoid frustration from unclear availability
Effortlessly discover similar items if not available.
Complete shopping journey faster
Goal
Avoid frustration from unclear availability
Effortlessly discover similar items if not available.
Complete shopping journey faster
KeyInsights
KeyInsights
Performance breakdown during peak traffic: Fixed slow (Load time 5 Sec) and unreliable app (Web Based) during high-traffic launches by moving to a native PLP architecture, enabling sub-2 second load times and stable performance at scale.
Lack of availability context reduced trust: Users could not tell whether a product was sold out, temporarily unavailable, or removed entirely, which created uncertainty and skepticism about inventory accuracy.
Inefficient filtering slowed decision-making: The existing filter experience made it hard for users to quickly narrow options on mobile, increasing friction during high-intent browsing.
IdeationandProcess
IdeationandProcess
Brainstorm session : Problem Framing & Stakeholder Insight
Brainstorm session : Problem Framing & Stakeholder Insight
Conducted a collaborative workshop’s digital sorting board, organizing cross-functional team insights for the Victoria’s Secret native app redesign. Sticky notes are grouped under four focus areas Personalizing User Interaction, Optimizing Product Experience, Enhancing User Engagement, and Ensuring App Performance. Each note reflects human-centered ideas or concerns from business, technical, and user perspectives, addressing topics such as filter navigation speed, clarity on sold-out products, personalized recommendations, robust infrastructure, and accessibility. The board visualizes a shared understanding and priorities that will guide the next stages of design and development.
Conducted a collaborative workshop’s digital sorting board, organizing cross-functional team insights for the Victoria’s Secret native app redesign. Sticky notes are grouped under four focus areas Personalizing User Interaction, Optimizing Product Experience, Enhancing User Engagement, and Ensuring App Performance. Each note reflects human-centered ideas or concerns from business, technical, and user perspectives, addressing topics such as filter navigation speed, clarity on sold-out products, personalized recommendations, robust infrastructure, and accessibility. The board visualizes a shared understanding and priorities that will guide the next stages of design and development.
BaymardStandards
BaymardStandards
Baymard for retail is a research-based resource focused on improving online store user experience (UX) for retail ecommerce sites. It helps retailers by identifying common usability problems and providing best practice guidelines based on extensive testing of top ecommerce sites.
Baymard is useful because it shows how to make shopping easier and faster for customers, reduce cart abandonment, improve navigation, product search, and checkout processes, leading to higher sales and better customer satisfaction. Its insights come from thousands of hours of testing and analysis of major ecommerce websites, making it a trusted tool to optimize retail ecommerce UX effectively.
Alongside reviewing the relevant Baymard Guidelines, I conducted a focused competitor analysis to ground the feature in real market practices and user expectations. I closely evaluated how leading brands such as Savage X Fenty, Aerie, ThirdLove, and SKIMS approach this space, studying their patterns, strengths, and gaps. This helped me identify proven solutions, avoid common pitfalls, and shape a more informed, user-centered design direction for the feature.
Alongside reviewing the relevant Baymard Guidelines, I conducted a focused competitor analysis to ground the feature in real market practices and user expectations. I closely evaluated how leading brands such as Savage X Fenty, Aerie, ThirdLove, and SKIMS approach this space, studying their patterns, strengths, and gaps. This helped me identify proven solutions, avoid common pitfalls, and shape a more informed, user-centered design direction for the feature.
Rather than treating these as separate problems, I approached them as interconnected challenges requiring a holistic solution. The ideation process unfolded in two key phases:
Phase-1 : Understanding the Ecosystem
I mapped the complete mobile shopping journey, identifying where performance issues and transparency gaps created compounding frustrations. This revealed that users experiencing slow load times were even more frustrated when products then disappeared, creating a double negative experience.
Phase-2 : Native-First Thinking
Instead of optimizing the existing web-based experience, we decided to rebuild the it as a truly native mobile experience. This allowed us to solve both performance and functionality challenges simultaneously.
UserFlow
UserFlow
Ideation&Decisions
Ideation&Decisions
The design process involved extensive sketching, wireframing, and prototyping, with particular focus on filter interactions and sold-out state communications.
Critical Design Decisions
Decision 1: Rebuild Web App as Native
Rejected incremental web optimization
Accepted higher upfront cost for long-term scalability
Decision 2: Show sold-out items by default
Risked visual clutter
Preserved user trust and comparison behavior
Decision 3: Accordion filter layout
Prioritized tech feasibility over delay
Validated via usability testing
Testing ( Sold Out & Filter)
SOLD OUT / OUT OF STOCK:
For the sold-out messaging, we tested multiple approaches:
Badge placement and visibility
Messaging clarity ("Sold Out" vs. "Currently Unavailable")
Alternative product suggestions
Key insight: Users preferred seeing sold-out items and Out of stock item. Also an option to get notified when the item will come back. This maintained transparency while providing control.
FILTER:
The most critical design decision involved the filter and sort experience. I led comparative usability testing between two approaches:
Prototype A: Traditional accordion-style filters Prototype B: Two-column filter layout
Through task-based evaluation and think-aloud protocols with 6 out of 10 participants, we discovered that the two-column approach (Prototype B) provided better discoverability and felt more modern, aligning with users' expectations for native app experiences.
SOLD OUT / OUT OF STOCK:
For the sold-out messaging, we tested multiple approaches:
Badge placement and visibility
Messaging clarity ("Sold Out" vs. "Currently Unavailable")
Alternative product suggestions
Key insight: Users preferred seeing sold-out items and Out of stock item. Also an option to get notified when the item will come back. This maintained transparency while providing control.
FILTER:
The most critical design decision involved the filter and sort experience. I led comparative usability testing between two approaches:
Prototype A: Traditional accordion-style filters Prototype B: Two-column filter layout
Through task-based evaluation and think-aloud protocols with 6 out of 10 participants, we discovered that the two-column approach (Prototype B) provided better discoverability and felt more modern, aligning with users' expectations for native app experiences.
The most critical design decision involved the filter and sort experience. I led comparative usability testing between two approaches:
Prototype A: Traditional accordion-style filters Prototype B: Two-column filter layout
Through task-based evaluation and think-aloud protocols with 8 participants, we discovered that the two-column approach (Prototype B) provided better discoverability and felt more modern, aligning with users' expectations for native app experiences.
For the sold-out messaging, we tested multiple approaches:
Badge placement and visibility
Messaging clarity ("Sold Out" vs. "Currently Unavailable")
Alternative product suggestions
Filter behavior (should sold-out items be hideable?)
Key insight: Users preferred seeing sold-out items by default but wanted the option to filter them out. This maintained transparency while providing control.
Prototype A
Prototype A
Prototype B
Prototype B
Final
Final
Lowfi-CategoryPage
Lowfi-CategoryPage
Shipped Solution
The final solution delivered a comprehensive mobile commerce experience that addressed both core challenges:
Native Product Listing Page Experience:
Performance: Achieved <2 second load times through native implementation
Navigation: Horizontal subcategory swiping with clear visual hierarchy
Search Integration: Combined keyword, visual, and barcode search in a unified interface
Smart Filtering: Intuitive filter system with real-time product count updates
Enhanced Product Cards: Quick-view color swatches, ratings, and promotional messaging
Intelligent Sold-Out Communication:
Contextual Messaging: Different approaches for completely sold-out vs. partially available items
Smart Recommendations: "Similar Items" suggestions when restocking isn't expected
SEO Optimization: Maintained product page presence for search performance
Cross-selling Opportunities: Strategic guidance toward available alternatives
Key Features Delivered:
Infinite scroll supporting ~44 product cards per load
WCAG-compliant accessibility throughout
Integrated promotional messaging for limited-time offers
Seamless transition between browsing and purchasing
Shipped Solution
The final solution delivered a comprehensive mobile commerce experience that addressed both core challenges:
Native Product Listing Page Experience:
Performance: Achieved <2 second load times through native implementation
Navigation: Horizontal subcategory swiping with clear visual hierarchy
Search Integration: Combined keyword, visual, and barcode search in a unified interface
Smart Filtering: Intuitive filter system with real-time product count updates
Enhanced Product Cards: Quick-view color swatches, ratings, and promotional messaging
Intelligent Sold-Out Communication:
Contextual Messaging: Different approaches for completely sold-out vs. partially available items
Smart Recommendations: "Similar Items" suggestions when restocking isn't expected
SEO Optimization: Maintained product page presence for search performance
Cross-selling Opportunities: Strategic guidance toward available alternatives
Key Features Delivered:
Infinite scroll supporting ~44 product cards per load
WCAG-compliant accessibility throughout
Integrated promotional messaging for limited-time offers
Seamless transition between browsing and purchasing
High-fidelityDesign
High-fidelityDesign
NativeApp
NativeApp
Outcome
Outcome
Outcome of this implementation:
Performance & Speed:
Infinite scroll for approximately 44 product cards per load.
Load time <3 seconds, ideally ≤2 seconds.
Accessibility & Compliance:
Compliance with WCAG standards consistent with web platforms.
Design & Implementation:
Utilized a standardized app style guide (Figma-based design systems).
High-fidelity designs completed to 95% readiness.
Ensured design consistency through collaboration between UX, Engineering, and Product teams.
Stakeholder Collaboration
Coordinated extensively with product owners, merchandising, legal compliance, marketing, analytics, and digital adoption teams.
Engaged in ongoing alignment meetings to confirm scope, design, and deployment timelines.
Post-deployment monitoring and continuous improvements driven by analytics:
Conversion Rate (CVR)
Average Order Size (AOS)
Revenue impact measurement.
Outcome & Success Metrics
Target page loading time ≤3 seconds.
Target ~3% improvement in PLP-to-PDP conversion rate.
Measurable increase in Average Order Size (AOS) and overall revenue uplift post-launch.
Performance & Speed:
Infinite scroll for approximately 45 product cards per load.
Load time <3 seconds, ideally ≤2 seconds.
Accessibility & Compliance:
Compliance with WCAG standards consistent with web platforms.
Design & Implementation:
Utilised a standardised app style guide (Figma-based design systems).
High-fidelity designs completed to 95% readiness.
Ensured design consistency through collaboration between UX, Engineering, and Product teams.
Stakeholder Collaboration
Coordinated extensively with product owners, merchandising, legal compliance, marketing, analytics, and digital adoption teams.
Engaged in ongoing alignment meetings to confirm scope, design, and deployment timelines.
Outcome & Success Metrics
Target page loading time ≤3 seconds.
Target ~3% improvement in PLP-to-PDP conversion rate.
Measurable increase in Average Order Size (AOS) and overall revenue uplift post-launch.
Release Strategy & Metrics
Dark deploy strategy (from 1% to 100% users).
Post-deployment monitoring and continuous improvements driven by analytics:
Conversion Rate (CVR)
Average Order Size (AOS)
Revenue impact measurement.
LovelyWords
LovelyWords
So appreciate this one! Will help us so much with driving urgency and brand heat!
Thank you wholeheartedly from Marketing. This has been on our wish list for years.
I literally can’t keep up today. This is obviously hugely important, as PINK Friday proved and our Fashion Show will hopefully reiterate.
Huge shoutout to everyone who made this happen. Game changer!
Conclusion
Conclusion
This project reinforced that impactful UX at scale comes from solving systems, not symptoms. Treating performance and transparency as connected problems enabled a native-first solution that improved speed, trust, and conversion simultaneously. Rebuilding the PLP as a native experience unlocked capabilities that incremental web optimizations could not, while transparent handling of sold-out and out of stock products proved that honesty outperforms artificial scarcity.
Success depended on tight cross-functional partnership and disciplined iteration. Early tradeoffs and comparative testing prevented costly post-launch fixes and ensured the solution held up across platforms and traffic spikes.
Looking ahead, this foundation enables predictive availability, personalized sold-out experiences, and AI-driven alternatives. Overall, the work shows how thoughtful UX can turn operational constraints into durable competitive advantages.
