Alyssa Forman | Senior Capstone | 2026
Mop UX Case Study
Time Frame
3 months
Role
UX/UI
Research
Branding
Marketing
OVERVIEW
Mop bridges the gap between community and commerce by creating a frictionless hair-care shopping experience built around trusted recommendations, personalization, and shared routines.
PROBLEM
The problem isn't a lack of information; it's a lack of relevant information
Despite abundant reviews and user generated content, users still struggle to find hair-care products that work for their unique needs, defaulting to trends or aesthetics and ending up with a pile of products that never deliver.
RESEARCH
36%
of user of consumers feel frustrated when shopping is impersonal
90%
of consumers are influenced by UGC over other forms of marketing
~60%
of consumers struggles to find answers about their haircare.
During user interviews, participants consistently expressed frustration with the hair-care shopping experience. Hair is deeply tied to confidence, culture, and identity. When users are unable to properly for their hair, participants reported that all three were affected. At the same time, the global hair-care market is projected to surpass $100 billion in the coming years, reflecting continued demand for hair-related products and services. As beauty e-commerce continues to grow, consumers are increasingly purchasing hair-care products online despite lacking personalized guidance or trusted community support.
JOURNEY MAP
Understanding users' current struggles finding hair-care products that work for them
USER PSYCHOGRAPHIC
DESIGN PROCESS
To begin I started thinking of what would be the best way to solve our user’s problems. I began to look at competitors and user’s current experiences dealing with existing apps. When journey mapping and interviewing what stood out to me was the lack of personalization. Competitor apps such as Ulta and Sephora push products that don’t always align with a user’s needs while social media pushes products based off views and likes over relevance. Again the problem is the lack of of relevant information.
Key Feature | AI-Profile Builder
I wanted to explore the possibilities of using AI in a app like Mop….
Key Feature | Showing the Why
While going through early rounds of user testing I began to notice a problem. Users flagged that they wanted to know why the app was recommending certain products. I realized that users are weary especially when it comes to AI-features that information won’t be accurate so when when iterating I tested out different ways to build trust with users.
Key Feature | Community Page
Hair is more than just hair. That became clear early in the design process, when I started interviewing people about how they care for their hair. More of them turned to friends and family for advice than they did social media. Hair is personal, and people trust the people who know their hair, their texture, their history, over a stranger's tutorial.
Community wasn't a feature I decided to add, it was already how people were solving this problem. My job was to design for that.
DESIGN SYSTEMS AND BRANDING
To figure out where Mop's branding should live, I started by looking at competitors — Ulta, Sephora, Prose. A pattern emerged fast: most were leaning on the same outdated, gendered color palettes, paired with a polished, intimidating aesthetic that felt more exclusive than welcoming.
That gap was the opportunity. Mop's values — confidence, self-discovery, empowerment — needed a visual language that felt approachable instead of aspirational. I moved away from the gendered palette convention and built a design system around softer, more neutral colors and slightly imperfect, human shapes. The goal was a brand that felt like a knowledgeable friend, not a beauty authority —so users could feel confident.
DEFINTION
A "mop of hair" is an informal term for a large, thick, and often untidy mass of hair.
Mop of hair" is usually said with a sigh — shorthand for hair that's too thick, too big, too much to deal with. Growing up, I heard it plenty, mine included. I named the app Mop on purpose, because that sigh is exactly the feeling I wanted to get rid of. The name takes a phrase that usually sounds like a soft complaint and turns it into something worth celebrating. Big hair, thick hair, hair with a mind of its own — that's not a flaw to manage, that's just what natural hair looks like.
