Africart Express
Africart Express is a tech-driven solution catering to Canadians of African descent, providing instant, convenient, and affordable access to a wide range of authentic African groceries. The digital platform aims to simplify the grocery shopping experience, addressing key pain points identified through comprehensive user research.
Product Experience
Problem Space
E-commerce/Grocery delivery
Problem Statement:
How might we make African grocery shopping instant, convenient, accessible, time-efficient, and affordable for Africans living in Canada (students and new immigrants), particularly within urban cities?
Summary:
Africart Express empowers individuals of African descent in Canada to access their essential groceries conveniently and affordably. The platform brings together local African stores, offering a diverse selection of products to enhance accessibility and redefine the grocery shopping experience.
Background:
The digital age and increasing migration to Canada underscore the need for convenient grocery solutions. Africart Express addresses this by unifying local stores, focusing on convenience, affordability, and a tailored shopping experience.
Research Insights:
Conducted extensive surveys targeting Canadians of West African descent, revealing critical pain points in traditional grocery shopping.
Identified key user personas and their preferences, guiding the development of user stories and scenarios.
Landing on the Solution:
Based on target users' pain points, Africart Express will prioritise features enhancing convenience and accessibility.
Explanation of Solution:
Africart Express aims to provide instant delivery of African groceries, simplifying and redefining the grocery shopping experience for Canadians of African descent. It addresses the inconvenience and high prices faced during in-store shopping.
Goals:
Provide instant delivery of African groceries.
Simplify and redefine the grocery shopping experience.
Ensure convenient, instant, and affordable access.
Promote competition among local African stores.
User Stories:
Easily find and purchase essential African grocery products online.
Access a wide variety of fresh produce, spices, and other African grocery items.
Receive African groceries through an instant delivery service.
Proposed Solution:
A digital platform aggregating local African stores, offering authentic African groceries for instant online procurement with an instant delivery service.
Learnings
Product Manager Learnings:
Jadesola Surakat
Co.Lab provided valuable insights through the lectures and resources. I particularly found the templates for submission very helpful.
Designer Learnings:
Designer Learnings:
Jo Sturdivant
- Adapting to an Established Team: Joining the team in week 6 of 8 was challenging, as I had to quickly adapt to existing workflows, dynamics, and goals. This mirrors real-world situations where you often integrate into teams mid-project, and flexibility is essential.
- Work-Blocking for Efficiency: With only two weeks to complete the project, I learned the importance of a structured work-blocking system. This approach allowed me to manage my time effectively and meet deadlines under pressure.
- Making Data-Driven Design Decisions: Unlike my past projects, I had to rely on research conducted by others. This was a valuable experience in using pre-existing data to guide design decisions, helping me focus on the core insights without starting from scratch.
Developer Learnings:
Developer Learnings:
Vanady Beard
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As the back-end developer, I learned how important it is to create efficient and reliable systems that support the entire application. This experience also taught me the importance of optimising the database and ensuring the backend is scalable and easy to maintain.
Developer Learnings:
Stephen Asiedu
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As a back-end developer, I've come to understand the importance of being familiar with various database systems and modules. This knowledge enables me to build diverse applications and maintain versatility in my work. I've also learned that the responsibility for making the right choices rests on my shoulders, guided by my best judgement.
Developer Learnings:
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Developer Learnings:
Maurquise Williams
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- Process of Creating an MVP: Developing a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) taught me how to focus on delivering core functionalities balancing between essential features and avoiding scope creep.
- Collaboration in a Real-World Tech Setting: This experience taught me how to collaborate efficiently in a fast-paced tech environment, keeping the team aligned and productive, even while working remotely across time zones.
- Sharpening Critical Thinking and Problem-Solving Skills: This experience honed my ability to think critically and solve problems efficiently. By tackling challenges and finding quick solutions, I sharpened my decision-making and troubleshooting skills in a dynamic, real-world setting.
Developer Learnings:
Jeremiah Williams
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All in all this experience was very awesome I learned that in coding with others being transparent is key
Developers Learnings:
Justin Farley
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I learned how important communication is when working with a team. Communication provides understanding, advice, ideas, and much more. While working with the product team, I’ve found that communication keeps everything flowing smoothly. Working with a team also showed me that every member brings something different to the table and we all have to work together in order to align and meet our end goal.