Design

Design
Innovation
Innovation
Process
Process

Industry Partner - Urban Ladder

By Steffi Mathew
10/09/2021
Introduction
In a short span of time, many of us have latched on to online shopping for home décor and furniture. There are
many urban dwellers who opt to shop for furniture online. Based on the huge population in India , we can say
that the consumer base is large.

We are focusing on the fore-runner of this category in India, Urban Ladder. It is a design-led furniture retail
brand that has been redefining the shopping experience for the customers.
Being one of the first company , to enter this market segment of online furniture and home decor shoppers.

Problem statement
Presently ,they need to increase the customer interaction as many would comparison shop and browse online
and are looking to recreate the experience of shopping online

Therefore, we conducted a design process to acknowledge the user needs and additionally redesign the
online shopping journey.

We understand the value and vision of the organisation

Statement Service Core Values

At Urban Ladder, we want you We provide end to end service, To step up
to discover the joy of creating. Starting when you shop with us , from the
with your home. We want you to think of selection of the product, to the
Customer centric
the setting up of a space as an door-step delivery and the
energising, creative pursuit. To breathe installation of the furniture at your
Action oriented
life into empty rooms with your ideas. To house to make it convenient and
take a few square feet of nothing, and hassle-free process for you .
transform it into something beautiful.We Honest & Transparent
are a creative, imaginative, expressive
species. Efficient
And our homes are just one of the many
canvases we have at our disposal.
Secondly, we identify the types of online furnitures shopper's
based on the feedback and review of customers
Since there are different types of users,We can summarise them to
understand our archetypal user and his needs. Hence, we created a
persona . It helps us explore the requirements of the user.

DEMOGRAPHICS BIO
Identifying the user who Shiva works as s accountant at a small

shops online for furniture NAME

Resourceful
Shiva
firm. He is very disciplined and likes
to be organised. He just moved to the
city for his job and stays alone in a
AGE

30 small flat.He spends his weekends

relaxing as he finds his job stressful.

GENDER Male He budgets his expenses and rarely

goes out. He wants to save money to

study an additional course.
OCCUPATION Accountant
QUOTE

" I need to find time to decide on

the interiors of my flat but I get
tired after work "

Users who shop because they have a specific idea and need of the interior
FUSTRATIONS MOTIVATORS INTERESTS
Shiva is constantly working and has some Shiva wants to decorate He likes to play his guitar
leisure time during weekends but does his new flat he recently bought
not want to He joins along his friends to hike often
Users who shop for furniture because they have nostalgic memories with it spend his precious time on shopping He is looking for a easy and
reliable way to shop furnitures
online as he lives alone, he wants to

decorate his flat at a convenient pace. without spending too much time

Wants to have an elegant

He has an idea of how he desires to
design the space but he fails in
interior space for his flat but PERSONALITY
on a budget.
imagining He is responsible and determined
Users who have been influenced or inspired by seeing designs in their daily life the space with the furniture he browses
online and is hesitant to buy and just Enjoys his own company
adds them in the cart on the online
store.
 After the interview , the data collected was synthesized by thematic analysis .We emphasised the insights in a
data - structure framework.

User is comfortable
buying as they have
Thirdly , past experience

We proceeded to audit and further

analyse the The user finds it user
-friendly ,easy and The experience of
accessible to shop
user needs. We led a user-centric online the user when they
shop online
qualitative research
The user finds it easy
and accessible to shop
online and it is less
chaotic and time
consuming
THIS WAS CARRIED OUT BY A SEMI-STRUCTURED INTERVIEWS , TO
UNDERSTAND THEIR BEHAVIOURAL ASPECT AND REASONING BEHIND THE
Provides a variety
PURCHASES. of products

WE INTERVIEWED 3 SHOPPERS LIVING IN METRO CITIES.

THE INTERVIEWEES WERE IN THE AGE RANGE OF 20-30 YEARS OLD
THE INTERVIEW WAS CONDUCTED AS TO COLLECT THE INSIGHTS AND It is all in one
website or place Benefits when The areas to look
EXPLORE THE DESIGN SOLUTION. and has more
options of design they shop online into for
for home decor
improvement
It has better deals
and discounts

The interview was structured with many questions that aided in gaining
meaningful insights to succinct the main themes we wanted to discover :
There is no option of
customiszation or
personalization of the
product
WHAT ARE THE IMPORTANT FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE IN SHOPPING

The display image

WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES THEY FACE WHILE SHOPPING ONLINE and description of
the product may vary Disadvantages when
FOR FURNITURE OR HOME DECOR from the actual
product that is the
relatibility of the
they shop online for
product is not present

home decor

WHAT CHANGES THEY WOULD LIKE IN THEIR ONLINE SHOPPING EXPERIENCE

Users are unsure of the
products whether they
may fit or suit the
interior space the
product (purchased)
was intended for

 The conceptualising the components , we have identified From the indications of the research we find that to
create a immersive experience , we would be aiming
that the user has certain hassles when it comes to
to imbibe technologies to create it.
shopping online for furnitures. After the deep research
and condensing the given design tools outcomes and data As per the recent trends of technology being used
, we come acrosss the indications from it . in retail , we see that Augmented reality and Virtual
reality are the fore-runners.

We could indicate the

As far as VR/AR and other technologies going mainstream is
findings from the concerned, 37% of businesses think it will happen in two to five
years, 25% within 2 years, 17% in the next 5-8 years, 15% in less

research as : than 2 years, and 6% in 8-10 years (Perkins Coie, 2020).

The global virtual reality software and hardware market size was
valued at $2.6 billion in 2020, which will jump to $3.7 billion in
2021, $4.6 billion in 2022, and 5.1 billion by 2023 (SuperData,
2020).
BETTER AID IN
THE
CUSTOMER VISUALISATION
CUSTOMISATION
EXPERIENCE OF THE The VR technologies being used in the retail e-commerce
OF THE PRODUCT
WITH INCREASED PRODUCT IN A industry would be a boon and is seen being used by global
ON THE ONLINE
EFFICIENCY SPACE BY THE brands already.
PLATFORM
USER

As many consumers are looking for an exciting shopping

experience , we can look at the design solutions derived based
on this technology.
Design Solution
Urban Abode Service
This is a in-house service to enable the users to customise the space of the interior with VR based technology. The customer will have to book an appointment for the consultation
and to avail this service. The VR consultant arrives along with the VR headset for a demo and guide the customer with the headset. With the headset, the space is visualised in a
virtual environment and the user can choose to customise the furniture as the 3d renderings are shown and change the colour, style and limited modification to the furniture. It is an
interactive guide in helping customise the items of furnitures as they prefer and require ,helps them feel personal and part of the shopping journey. It is immersive and engages the
customer actively .

The furniture
Its time consuming has been
and I want to spend The experience was
I want to select custome
something unique and
my available time furnitures that made to
I could shop quicker
leisurely matches my taste order
Trying to find a explicitly
Customer Journey

I think this service will Shivu has few

suitable time to visit I hope the products
save my time and will more items to
the store is difficult arrive as I had
be hassle-free purchase and
ordered would use the
Urban Abode
Service again

NEED TO PREFERS GOES TO SEARCHES COMES ACROSS UTILISES THE

PLACES ORDER FURNITURE IS
REPEATS
PURCHAS THE THE FURNITURES FOR THE DELIVERED AS PER SUPPORTS
TO SHOP THE THE URBAN SERVICE ARE CHOOSEN CUTOMISED THE THE SERVICE PURCHASE
E ONLINE WEBSITE FURNITURES ABODE SERVICE FURNITURE CUSTOMIZATIONS

I booked the
appoinment for the
ABODE VR
Shivu bought a new
Consultation at my I could customise the
flat and needs to
convenient time design of the doors of the
decide on the wardrobe, the colour of my
furnitures for the study table and many more
interior. furnitures as per my style
I was assisted and
guided by an VR The VR headset was user
expert friendly and I was able to
virtaully see the interior based
on the 3d layout of my flat I
already provided them and
choose furnitures from the
pleothara of options
Business case study
The business case study is built to IMPACT
analyse the design solution and to SOLUTION
understand the challenges, ,impact The use of VR technology to build Urban Ladder will be a market leader in
online virtual change rooms can introducing this technology aligned as a The solution that is proposed is built on the
of the solution and the impact of it on
help retailers improve conversion service , which opens a new segment of
the company. research and analysis of the problems indicated
rates by more than 6.4%, increase AR/VR shoppers by the users .The solution is :
order value by 1.6%, reduce
The combined augmented
fulfillment costs by 5%, and lower
reality and virtual reality Enchanced shopping experience
WHY returns by 5.2%. (Virtual
markets were worth $12 billion The Urban Abode VR Service-
Perceptions)
To engage the customer in an immersive in 2020 with a massive annual Better customer retention To launch a service of in-home shopping with
experience with a shopping journey that is growth rate of 54%, resulting in VR technology that customises the furniture as
engaging when they decide to make a a projected valuation of $72.8 Increased sales with big items of per their preferences.
purchase online. billion by 2024 (IDC, 2020). furniture

More brand awareness

BUSINESS NEED
attain loyal customers
As there are many technologies present In 2020, anticipated to
currently in the E-commerce industry, to have the most immersive
create an enveloping way of shopping for the technology (including Can be used for effective marketing
55% of VR users found
customers would be a huge oppurtunity for AR/VR) disruptions -
the experience to be
Urban ladder as it would increase in repeat retail (15%)
extremely or
customers, more brand awareness and as
well as used as a marketing tool .
moderately satisfying RISKS
(AR Insider, 2020).

Stress due to information overload

The new teams that
will be added to the
TIME SCHEDULE Prolonged usage leads to disorientation,
management - vision blurring and hearing impairment
Product development
The Digital VR team : The legal rules and regulations will be a
Product Testing
1.It will be managed and risk
maintained by the team ,
Product Launch
with regular updates as per
reluctance of customers due to lack of
customer needs. Review and Feedback
trust

2. They will ensure the

functioning of it. 0 4 8 12 16
Weeks
Evaluate
We have chosen to evaluate the parameters that affect the success of the product as it is required to acknowledge
the ways we can achieve the desired result and the product positioning in the market as it helps us recognise the
paths the company can take to promote the product . PRODUCT POSITIONING
Market development : Diversification :
The product could be marketed The product could be used in
as a app for defined reason and the logistics and supply chain
IDENTIFYING THE PARAMETERS FOR SUCCESS OF A PRODUCT also create a campaign that as well using VR

New
promotes it to be user friendly technologies.The product can
and an unique shopping also be modified and adapted
Top management New product development experince to newer technologies such as
support AI
strategies and process

Market
Market Penetration: Product Development:
The product should have a
Customer Communication of This product would open a
new segment of market for smooth user flow and facile
review the product to AR/VR technology used in the navigation and a guide

Existing
and feedback internal management Retail E-commerce and it explaining how to use it .The
would place the company as a customer should feel safe and
market leader for this segment comfortable while using it and
in India the same message is to be
convened to them.
Market orientation Tracking the functioning
Existing New
of the product
Product

The main factors that affect the success of the product that would be created for Urban The matrix explains the product positioning based on the above four categories.
Ladder are as stated in the diagram. The mentioned product would be the App/Service We are using it to elucidate how the new product which would be the Urban
based on AR/VR technology .These factors are detrimental to access the success of the Abode VR Service would be positioned. The suggestive methods of penetrating
product and aids in adapting the product as per the necessities. the new market segment and promoting the service can be seen here.
Thank you