ux case study

TinyTrade

TinyTrade is a mobile resale platform designed to help parents buy and sell children’s clothing quickly, safely, and sustainably. The goal was to create an experience that made secondhand shopping feel as trustworthy and seamless as buying new — without the friction, confusion, or clutter often found in resale apps.

This was an end-to-end UX design project developed as part of the Google UX Design Certificate, covering the full process from research and ideation to prototyping and usability testing.

Parents often face a frustrating resale experience: listings are inconsistent, sizing filters are unreliable, and shipping feels complicated. The goal for TinyTrade was to design a mobile app and responsive website that simplified resale while building trust.

understanding the user

I began by defining the target users: parents and caregivers of young children who frequently buy and resell clothes as their kids grow.

Key pain points included:

  1. Not wanting to learn or adapt to unfamiliar resale platforms

  2. Frustration with complex checkout flows and unclear status

  3. Lack of accessibility to high-quality secondhand items

  4. Shipping logistics (labels, post-office trips) that discouraged participation

  5. Concerns about legitimacy and safety when buying from strangers

These insights grounded every design decision — the app had to feel reliable, simple, and trustworthy.

The solution needed to:

  • 01.

    Streamline the listing and checkout process

  • 02.

    Offer transparent pricing and resale shipping options

  • 03.

    Build confidence through trust signals and clear communication

  • 04.

    Keep the interface light, friendly, and easy to navigate for busy parents

Research & Insights

Going Deep

A competitive analysis of leading resale platforms (like Poshmark, Kidizen, and ThredUp) highlighted common usability gaps: long onboarding, cluttered interfaces, and inconsistent communication around fees and shipping.

The takeaway was clear: users didn’t need more features — they needed fewer steps and stronger reassurance.

From this, I established four UX pillars for the design:

  1. Simplicity — fewer screens and faster decision-making.

  2. Trust — visible verification, reviews, and transaction transparency.

  3. Speed — streamlined listing, purchase, and checkout flows.

  4. Accessibility — clear typography, intuitive icons, and mobile-friendly gestures.

Design Approach & Process

I mapped out user flows and created low-fidelity wireframes focusing on clarity:

lo-fidelity wireframes & Prototype
hi-fidelity wireframes
usability testing

Testing revealed both friction points and validation moments:

Successes: Users found the process fast and appreciated visual trust cues like “Verified Seller” and estimated delivery times.

Improvements: Some struggled to locate account settings and preferred a clearer way to manage resale hub notifications and accessibility options.

Key Challenges

The biggest challenge was balancing simplicity with depth. Parents wanted detailed product info, but not at the expense of speed. The design had to surface the essentials while keeping the flow light.

Another challenge was designing for trust in peer-to-peer commerce. To solve this, I introduced micro-interactions and status feedback (e.g., confirmation toasts, shipping updates, and badges) to reinforce confidence at each step.

What I Learned

TinyTrade taught me how to translate UX principles into trust-building experiences. It proved that even in e-commerce, the most powerful design isn’t about novelty — it’s about removing uncertainty.

By simplifying resale and prioritizing usability, TinyTrade showed how good UX can make sustainability easier to adopt.

Previous

tast coffee
Next

Made By Bittersweet