Retail Pack
Complex Systems UX, UI Design & Iterative Prototyping
This project is part of my ongoing work at Foods Connected, where I designed a Retail Pack modelling tool to help major retailers manage pricing, yield, and benchmarking in one central system. I worked closely with stakeholders from Musgrave, Tesco and Delhaize to understand complex, spreadsheet driven workflows and turn them into a clearer and more intuitive digital experience.
Through iterative prototyping, exploring ideas in Figma and moving into high fidelity designs, the tool was tested with users on usertesting.com and received really positive feedback around clarity, usability and workflow support. Due to confidentiality, I am not able to share the Figma files publicly. I am however very happy to walk through everything on a call and share my screen if an employer would like to see more.
Project Overview
This project focused on designing a Retail Pack modelling experience for Foods Connected, driven initially by requirements from Musgrave and growing interest from other large retailers. The goal was to create a solution that could manage pricing, yield modelling, benchmarking and version control in one place, rather than relying on spreadsheets and disconnected tools.
The existing system wasn’t able to fully support Retail Pack workflows, so a lot of the work was being handled manually outside the platform. Spreadsheets were being used to track costs, yields, benchmarks and historical changes, which created a lot of room for error, duplication and inefficiency. My role was to understand how retailers were actually managing this work today, identify what the system needed to support, and design a scalable, intuitive solution that aligned with Foods Connected’s broader product ecosystem.
This is an ongoing, iterative design project where I worked closely with stakeholders, reviewed their spreadsheets and processes, and gradually shaped the Retail Pack model into something both powerful and usable.
Problem & Goals
The main challenge was that Retail Pack workflows were fragmented and heavily dependent on manual effort. Critical financial and operational information was spread across multiple files, tabs and tools, making it difficult to trace changes, compare benchmarks or maintain accuracy over time.
There was also no single source of truth. Costs, yields, product specs and benchmarks all existed, but they weren’t connected, and different teams were updating information independently.
The goal was to bring everything together into one structured model that could:
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support cost changes over time
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link yield trees, recipes and pricing periods
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provide a reliable audit trail
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reduce reliance on spreadsheets
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allow retailers to benchmark and calculate variance in a consistent way
Ultimately, the aim was to give retailers better visibility and control over their Retail Pack performance, while also creating something scalable that could support other customers beyond Musgrave.
Users & Research
I worked directly with stakeholders from Musgrave, Tesco and Delhaize, spending time understanding how they currently managed Retail Pack processes. Much of this knowledge lived inside spreadsheets, so gaining access to those documents was incredibly valuable.
I walked through their workflows step by step, asking questions about what each file did, why certain fields existed, how often they updated them, and where things typically went wrong. This helped reveal pain points like duplicated data, manual calculations, lack of version control and confusion when information changed over time.
Alongside this, I reviewed internal documentation, Jira requirements and conversations within the wider Foods Connected team to ensure I had a clear picture of the technical considerations and business expectations.
This research shaped the foundation of the design, making sure we weren’t just copying spreadsheets into a UI, but actually building something structured, traceable and easier to manage long-term.
Mapping the Experience
From there, I mapped out the end-to-end journey of how someone would build, maintain and review a Retail Pack inside the platform. I looked at what needed to happen first, which pieces depended on one another, and how information should flow through the system.
I paid particular attention to areas where data changes over time, such as costs, benchmark prices and yield versions, and made sure these transitions could be handled clearly.
This mapping exercise helped define the key building blocks of the model and ensured that every screen supported a real workflow rather than existing in isolation.
Ideation & Concepts
I explored multiple approaches for how Retail Pack modelling could be structured, starting with simple conceptual layouts and gradually layering in complexity.
Because this project was so data-heavy, the main challenge was designing screens that remained clear and approachable without sacrificing functionality. I experimented with different layouts, grouping strategies and information hierarchies to find a balance between flexibility and clarity.
Throughout this process I worked closely with stakeholders, sharing early explorations and validating whether what we were showing aligned with their real-world needs.
Information Architecture & Flows
From there, I built out the structure of the tool. I focused on creating predictable flows that guided users through building and managing Retail Packs logically, rather than making them hunt for information.
I ensured important relationships such as pricing periods, yield trees, cost files and recipes were visible and connected, while also supporting version control and historical accuracy.
This step was crucial in transforming spreadsheets into something structured and scalable.
Final Screen Design
Once the structure was solid, I began developing higher-fidelity designs. I initially worked in Figma Make, using AI to accelerate early iteration and allow us to explore directions faster with stakeholders.
After validating layouts and interactions, I transitioned into our Foods Connected design system and refined everything to match product standards and patterns.
The final designs focused on clarity, alignment with our broader product experience, and ensuring data-heavy screens still felt organised and approachable.
Prototyping & Testing
I created prototypes and continually shared updates with stakeholders, gathering feedback quickly after each iteration. This constant back-and-forth helped ensure expectations remained aligned and that we were solving the right problems.
More recently, we tested the experience using usertesting.com, and the results were really positive. Users found the layout intuitive, and the structure made sense in relation to their workflows, which helped validate many of the design decisions made earlier in the process.
Collaboration & Delivery
This project involved a lot of cross-functional collaboration. I worked with product managers, domain experts and stakeholders from multiple retailers, making sure requirements were understood and documented clearly.
I also worked closely with the internal team to ensure designs were feasible, clearly annotated and aligned with development constraints.
Impact & Results
This project involved a lot of cross-functional collaboration. I worked with product managers, domain experts and stakeholders from multiple retailers, making sure requirements were understood and documented clearly.
I also worked closely with the internal team to ensure designs were feasible, clearly annotated and aligned with development constraints.