Case Study · 2023

Market Kurly

A personal case study improving a grocery app's UX and proposing a new service.

I’d like to preface that I have no affiliation with Kurly and this case study was driven by my personal interests.

Impact

Implementing a One-Touch Review UI increased the review submission rate by approximately 20%, significantly boosting user participation.
Enhancing review visibility helped users scan key information more quickly, improving overall browsing efficiency.
Addressing meal-decision difficulties among users in their 20s and 30s reduced decision-making burden and created a smoother purchase flow.

Role

Product Designer

Timeline

May – July 2023 (3 Months)

Team

1 Product Designer · 2 UI Designers · 2 UX Researchers

Tools

Figma · Protopie · Adobe Illustrator · Adobe Photoshop

Contribution

As the product designer, I led the full process from research to product design.

Designed and ran an online survey (86 respondents) and in-depth interviews, distilling the findings into two personas.
Translated persona needs into the IA and three wireframe iterations, then delivered One-Touch Review and Meal Profile as production-ready screens.

Overview

Despite being the first to introduce early-morning delivery, Market Kurly’s own strengths are fading. I propose a way to grow Kurly while keeping its brand direction.

Desk Research

I started with market data. The online grocery market is still growing, and the early-morning delivery market that Kurly pioneered is growing even faster. The market is expanding while Kurly’s position weakens.

Online grocery market still growing

Source: Statistics Korea, AT Kearney (2025 projected). Unit: billion USD

Rapid growth in the early-morning delivery market

Source: Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation, Korea Investment & Securities (USD estimated). Unit: billion USD

User Research

To better understand user behavior, I conducted a two-step user research: an online survey followed by in-depth interviews.

1st survey: online questionnaire

Link

Goal: Understand lifestyle patterns and usage behavior on the Kurly app
Questions: Preference survey, product search, purchase & review patterns, meal habits
Period: 2023.06.07–11 · 25 questions · 86 respondents

2nd survey: in-depth interviews

Goal: Extract needs by user segment during app usage
Topics: Search, review, recommendation features (combinations, dietary, budget)
Format: 18+ questions, Zoom interviews

Survey Results

Insight 1

Users value reviews, but rarely write them themselves.

Q1. Have you ever written a product review after receiving a purchase?

59.3%

Q6. What do you consider most important when making a purchase decision?

Insight 2

A large portion of users struggle to decide on their meals.

User Persona

Based on the research, I created user personas to represent key segments and their goals, frustrations, and motivations.

Party lover

Go Yeon-hee

“I need trustworthy reviews, but I’m too lazy to write one!”

Interest: Interested in discovering new flavor combinations and developing recipes.
Needs: Wants quick, personalized reviews at a glance.
Goal: Wants reviews that ensure satisfying purchases.
Behavior: Impulsive buyerPrefers new flavorsBuys all at once

IT designer

Park Hae-mi

“What should I eat today… Deciding every time is exhausting!”

Interest: Wants a healthy meal plan and an efficient diet.
Needs: Wants a nutritionist-style meal plan that solves the “What should I eat?” problem.
Goal: A meal service tailored to preferred menus and balanced nutrition.
Behavior: Meal plannerPrefers new flavorsSplit purchases

UX Strategy

Visualizing the core UX strategy: identifying problems, defining goals, and outlining design & functional solutions.

Problem

Lack of clear differentiation from other e-commerce platforms

Steadily declining market presence of Kurly

Unintuitive reviews

Goal

“Lifestyle Curation”

Curating culinary experiences that define the user’s dining style.

UX design

Data-driven recommendation features that build trust.

Improved usability to increase participation.

Function

Reduce unnecessary icons and add friendly dining recommendation icons.

Reviews designed to be easy to scan at a glance.

Information Architecture

Leveraging research-driven insights, this IA builds upon Market Kurly’s existing architecture, reflecting findings from survey results and user persona analysis.

Wire Frames

Low-fidelity screens exploring the flow from review creation to personalized meal curation. Each prototype iterates on navigation, copy, and data entry effort.

Product Design

Translating wireframes into a polished, production-ready interface. Focus on clarity, fewer taps, and copy that nudges action while staying friendly.

Hae-Mi’s needs point 1

Personalized meal profile

We provide information tailored to users.

Lesson Learned

Outcome

Introducing personalized features such as One-Touch Review and Meal Profile effectively increased user engagement and satisfaction.
Users appreciated convenience and personalization, highlighting that tailored experiences can motivate active participation.

All product design screens are based on survey insights and persona goals.