Working with the Los Angeles Food Policy Council (LAFPC) to advise a local bodega, we set out to help Emma’s Market improve its business. The LAFPC provides training, guidance, and upgrades to stores helping them distribute fresh produce to food deserts, or areas without equitable access to produce. Consulting with them, we developed a roadmap with recommendations to help Emma’s market based on opportunities for customer growth and business improvements.
After going to the bodega and conducting customer interviews, I discovered the small, mostly local customer base visited due to proximity and bought only a few items.
Interviews with the owners uncovered a tough acquisition history and financial struggles. They explained that the locals often choose to patron a nearby competitor with greater variety and inventory.
Research into other LAFPC-supported bodegas showed higher customer traffic and purchases, along with enhancements to organization, product visibility, and signage.
Other stores used modern point-of-sale (POS) systems and merchandising strategies, while Emma’s relied on manual inventory tracking and restocked unpredictably with little strategy to stocking, tracking, or presentation.
Emma’s faced multiple issues: low foot traffic, a hidden location, and weak sales left the store just breaking even. Though aware customers wanted more variety, the owners couldn’t afford more than what the LAFPC supplied.
Beyond location and variety, merchandising was a challenge. Without a POS system, it was hard to plan purchases or introduce new products strategically.
Based on our research, we developed a plan to improve customer experience and boost profitability by updating the store’s layout, organization, and branding.
I created a design system with a new logo and signage, planned a new layout guided by grocery merchandising best practices, recommended technology upgrades to support merchandising, and created a roadmap for future improvements.
When thinking about using design to increase profitability, we spent a lot of time researching how grocery stores layout merchandise and how they plan what to sell based on what is bought using technology like point-of-sale (POS) systems.
I created a design system with font, signage, and color scheme recommendations to start the development of a recognizable brand, including the renaming of the store to simply “Emma’s Market” to reflect their product selection.
We used moodboarding to conceptualize cheap and effective improvements to the design and layout of the store which would increase profitability or customer experience. When thought about what it would look like to include mobile shelves, better signage, and small dining areas both inside and out.
In presenting our solution to the LAFPC, we outlined a roadmap detailing specific tasks and timelines related to the larger projects we recommended, summarized in three distinct phases.
By supporting Emma’s Meat Market through this type of redesign, they create intentionality in the physical space within the store to better showcase healthy options, encourage community members to patronize the store, and subsequently increase access to fresh produce in the surrounding food desert.
By engaging our proposed redesign, customers will know what they can expect when they go to Emma’s, increasing patronage while leveraging technology to decrease lost time and revenue.
Emma’s could have a reputation for consistency, predictability, and quality. Customers will know what they can find, and where to find it, and the owners can benefit from merchandising, stocking, and tracking, taking comfort in the knowledge that their customers’ needs are being prioritized.
When we visited, the owners asked for advice on pricing products, were open to business suggestions, and freely shared their struggles and hopes. They work long hours seven days a week and have razor-thin margins, yet despite their difficult circumstances they still have a spirit of hospitality and positivity. The English translation of Juan’s outlook was: “The sun comes out for everyone.”
In the time since our presentation, Emma’s would go on to make changes to their business including updating their store with new branding, shortening their name, and designing a new logo.
Using contemporary art and tech-enabled solutions to draw visitors to a forgotten historical site
Find events near you and save money while drinking with your friends and meeting new people.
Designing an enhanced approach to purchasing clothing online regardless of body types and sizes.
I'd love to help with your next project and I'm always available for a chat. If you have any questions or you'd like to get in touch, feel free to contact me.
