Revolutionizing Retail: Macy's App Redesign

Award-winning Redesign Boosts User Engagement

Launched in 2019, the redesign was a direct response to customer feedback calling for improvement. The result was a clean, simple, and fashion-inspired design that resonated with users. The unique properties of this design lie in its simplicity and fashion-forward aesthetic, which have been instrumental in increasing user engagement.

The redesign was realized using native app technologies, including camera-based features for scan and pay, and augmented reality features. The team developed native apps for both Android and iOS platforms, ensuring a wide reach. The redesign project, which spanned from October 2018 to October 2019, was undertaken by a team based in San Francisco and New York.

Extensive user experience research underpinned this redesign. The team conducted user surveys, user interviews, A/B testing, formal usability lab testing, remote usability testing, and guerrilla-style usability tests at Macy's stores. This comprehensive research approach ensured that the redesign was user-centric and met the needs of the target audience.

Despite the creative challenges of creating a user-friendly, fashion-inspired design at scale and supporting a variety of business goals for a large and complex traditional organization, the team was successful. The culture transformation that was crucial to realizing and operationalizing the new design was achieved, leading to a successful redesign.

The Macy's mobile app now allows customers to shop Macy's offerings online, including a host of shopping and style-oriented features, as well as augmented reality features from beauty to home furnishings. This allows customers to preview products virtually through their mobile device. The redesign has been so successful that it was awarded Silver in A' Mobile Technologies, Applications, and Software Design Award in 2020.