HelloFresh
Reimagining meal planning as a shared, joyful household experience.
Role
Lead Designer
Team
1 Project Lead
3 Researchers
4 Designers
Disciplines
UX Research • UI/UX Design • Prototyping • Client Project
Skills
Figma • Figjam • Qualtrics
• Client Relations
Timeline
September 2025-February 2026
OVERVIEW
Reimagining meal planning as a shared, joyful household experience
HelloFresh is the world’s leading meal kit delivery service, serving millions of households globally and redefining how people cook at home. As meal planning becomes increasingly complex, shaped by busy schedules, dietary needs, and household dynamics, HelloFresh continues to expand beyond delivery into digital planning and personalization.
I led a 7-person design and research team in partnership with HelloFresh to reimagine household meal planning. We designed a collaborative, flexible planning system that reduces mental load and transforms cooking into a shared, coordinated experience.
01 Design
Owned the design for a collaborative meal planning system from concept to high-fidelity prototype, delivering 4 integrated features grounded in user needs
02 Leadership
Led a 7-person research and design team, synthesizing 100+ survey responses and 15+ interviews into key insights, personas, and product direction
03 Product Strategy
Translated user research into a clear product direction, identifying opportunities in personalization, collaboration, and real-life adaptability
OUR CHALLENGE
How might we reimagine meal planning as a household-centered experience that balances diverse needs and transforms everyday dinners into moments of connection?
RESEARCH APPROACH
Understanding how households plan meals and where coordination breaks down
Competitive Analysis
Mapped existing meal-planning tools to identify strengths, gaps, and opportunities for households.
User Interviews
Conducted 16 interviews to uncover behaviors, frustrations, and motivations around planning and cooking.
User Survey
Analyzed 102 survey responses to quantify meal routines, pain points, and priorities across diverse households.
COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS
Assessing current solutions to identify opportunities for a novel HelloFresh experience
We analyzed 15 meal planning solutions across meal kit delivery services, meal planning apps, and AI-powered cooking tools to understand how well existing products support real household cooking behaviors.
Strengths from Other Platforms:
Large libraries of curated recipes
Strong visual inspiration and discovery
Dietary filters and nutrition-focused options
Flexible browsing and customization
Weakenesses
Fragmented workflows that stop at inspiration stage
No collaboration or shared decision-making
Limited adaptability to household routines
Poor visibility into ingredients and schedules
SPEAKING WITH USERS
16 participants across different household types to understand how people plan, cook, and coordinate meals in their daily lives
From college students and busy families to nutrition-focused planners, these perspectives revealed key challenges in managing preferences, schedules, and everyday decision-making around food.
Fragmented Inspiration
“I’ll screenshot and save recipes, but I never know where anything is when it’s time to cook.”
Meal ideas live across too many platforms, making it hard to turn inspiration into action
Social Cooking
"I enjoy cooking way more when someone’s doing it with me. Otherwise it just feels like a chore
Cooking is most enjoyable when it's a social and shared activity, but often becomes a solo responsibility.
Flexible Planning
“Some days I plan to cook, but I’m just too tired or something comes up.”
People need flexible systems that adapt to changing schedules, energy levels, and last-minute decisions
SYNTHESIS
Synthesizing Household Behaviors through User Personas
We developed multiple personas to reflect diverse motivations and anxieties.
Predictable
Percy
Background
•
Lives with partner and thrives on routine
•
She plans meals in advance and prefers consistency
•
Gets frustrated when unexpected changes disrupt her schedule
Goals
•
Maintain an organized, reliable weekly plan
•
Reduce daily decision-making
Pain Points
•
Plans get disrupted easily
•
Decision fatigue when routines break
•
Repetitiveness becomes boring over time
Needs
•
Light flexibility within structure
•
Easy scheduling and planning tools
•
Ability to repeat and reuse meals
Juggling Josie
Background
•
Manages a family household with multiple schedules and preferences
•
She’s the primary planner and cook
•
She constantly balancing picky eaters, time constraints, and coordination
Goals
•
Coordinate meals for the whole household
•
Balance different preferences and diets
Pain Points
•
Conflicting preferences and needs
•
Lack of coordination between members
•
Time constraints and constant planning
Needs
•
Collaborative planning tools
•
Task delegation and visibility
•
Flexible scheduling and coordination
Healthy Haden
Background
•
Lives with a partner and teenage children
•
Struggles to maintain consistency while managing busy schedule
•
Prioritizes fitness and nutrition
Goals
•
Maintain a consistent, healthy diet
•
Track meals and ingredients
Pain Points
•
Hard to stay consistent with busy schedules
•
Difficult to track ingredients and nutrition
•
Limited tools for structured meal planning
Needs
•
Structured planning system
•
Nutrition-focused guidance
•
Consistent, repeatable routines
Minimalist Mary
Background
•
Lives with roommates
•
Has a busy lifestyle and has very low-energy at the end of her days
•
Avoids spending too much time thinking about food
Goals
•
Spend minimal time planning meals
•
Keep cooking simple and quick
Pain Points
•
Overwhelmed by too many options
•
Lacks motivation to plan ahead
•
High effort required for simple tasks
Needs
•
Quick, low-effort decision-making
•
Simplified interfaces and flows
•
Reliable, go-to meal options
IDEATION
Exploring broadly, then converging with intention
We explored a wide range of concepts through mind mapping, identifying key opportunity areas around flexibility, collaboration, and simplified planning.
Using an impact–effort matrix, we prioritized high-value, feasible ideas, narrowing down to four core features that address the most critical user needs.
Impact-Effort Matrix
Mind Mapping
OPPORTUNITIES
I guided my team to four main features for the MVP
Based on the overarching themes and market research, I mapped this to several features focused on collaborative, household cooking:
Planning Dashboard
Central hub for meals, tasks, and grocery needs at a glance
Team Spaces
Shared space to plan meals, vote, and assign tasks across households
Meal Discovery
Swipe-based browsing to quickly find and save meals to cookbooks
Cookbook System
Personal and shared recipe collections with integrated grocery lists
ITERATION
Wireframes and Lo-Fidelity Screens
Hey, John Doe!
choose team
su
m
t
w
th
f
st
breakfast
lunch
dinner
snack
Confirm!
Pick Your Day
Pick Your Meal
What are you eating?
7th 8th 9th 10th 11th 12th 13th
Open Cookbook
Add options from cookbook
notify everyone in my group of this event
ST
SP
ML
AZ
My Profile
choose team
My Upcoming Tasks
pick up kimchi from H-mart
11/25
11/20
11/05
11/25
cook with mother on weds
return spoiled milk
add task
MY WEEK
11/05
weds
Lunch: Black Bean Noodles
@ Paik’s Noodle - Eat Outside
Dinner: Creamy Tuscan Chicken
MY WEEK
11/05
weds
Lunch: Black Bean Noodles
@ Paik’s Noodle - Eat Outside
Dinner: Creamy Tuscan Chicken
TB
My Profile
OR
MY WEEK
11/05
weds
11/06
thurs
11/07
fri
Lunch: Black Bean Noodles
@ Paik’s Noodle - Eat Outside
Breakfast: Eggs and Toast (Katie Makes)
Pack lunch for Shaylyn and Claudia
Lunch: Collaborate with Madison and Amy
accepted your invite
did not respond
ML
AZ
Lunch: Fried Rice and Sausage
Dinner: Creamy Tuscan Chicken
Liked by Soleil, Shaylyn, Madison
Disliked by Katie, Amy
3/5
2/5
Dinner: Vote! (click on one)
Welcome Back, John Doe!
Ready to cook?
Plans Today
Sunday
Monday
Weekly Tasks
User Activity
Filter by group/date
Sarah saved this recipe
See More
Filter by group/date
Buy Utensils
Sea Salt
Blueberries
Cheddar Cheese
Prep Rice
Grocery List
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Chicken Bowl
12-1pm
5-6pm
Burrito
9-10am
Nothing Planned
Due in 5 days
Due in 7 days
Pancakes
Fried Rice
9-10am
3-4pm
12-1pm
9-10am
2-3pm
Chicken Bowl
Omelette
Steak
5-6pm
Burrito
Pancakes
Fried Rice
9-10am
3-4pm
12-1pm
9-10am
2-3pm
Chicken Bowl
Omelette
Steak
5-6pm
Burrito
FINAL CONCEPT
Home Dashboard
A centralized hub that brings together upcoming meals, tasks, and grocery needs, giving users a clear, at-a-glance view of their weekly plan and helping reduce the mental load of coordinating everything in one place.
FINAL CONCEPT
Team Space
A shared planning environment that enables households to collaborate on meals, vote on options, and assign tasks, making coordination visible and ensuring everyone stays aligned throughout the week.
FINAL CONCEPT
Cookbook System
A personal and shared recipe library where users can save favorites, organize meals, and seamlessly add ingredients to grocery lists, helping build a reusable and efficient meal planning system.
FINAL CONCEPT
Meal Discovery
A gamified, swipe-based experience that allows users to quickly browse and save meals, turning scattered inspiration into actionable choices that can be easily added to their planning flow.
LEARNINGS AND IMPACT
Designing for real life, not ideal scenarios
Through our research, I learned that products should accommodate changing schedules, decision fatigue, and shared responsibilities rather than assume perfect user behavior. This reinforced the importance of creating flexible experiences that fit naturally into people's everyday lives.
