to improve product visibility
IREKS Russia aimed to improve how customers access product information by replacing printed materials with a mobile-first digital catalog. The solution needed to provide a seamless, on-the-go experience, allowing users to scan a QR code on product packaging and instantly view a detailed product page.
The key business goals were to enhance product visibility, streamline product discovery, and deliver a modern, intuitive web app tailored to the expectations of the Russian market.
User and Market research
Personas
Map of the app structure
Low-Fidelity-Prototypes
User Testing
High-Fidelity clickable Prototype
Handover for Developer and Validation
Increasing customer satisfaction and loyalty
Customers can browse products at their convenience, compare options, and make better purchasing decisions without visiting a physical store. This led to a 35% increase in new customer engagement.
Cost Savings and promt update
Replacing printed materials with a web catalog helped reduce printing, paper, and shipping costs. As a result, 84% of products became more discoverable through improved SEO and online visibility.
Fewer support requests
By providing clear product information online, the catalog reduced first-line customer support inquiries by 50%, freeing up time for the service team.
IREKS Group is one of the world’s largest manufacturer of high quality baking ingredients and brewing malts. Russia is the biggest key market for IREKS Group.
Business volume: 570,3 million (2023)
Company size: 5,000+
Process
To understand user pain points and needs, we conducted user interviews and surveys, as well as a competitive analysis.
User Research Findings
Users lacked quick and easy access to product information.
There was no way to ask questions or write product reviews directly in the app, or view responses from others.
Users wanted better access to all recipes, including unit conversions (weight/volume) for baking and cooking ingredients.
Finding a nearby dealer was difficult.
Competitor Analysis Findings
We also examined similar apps and industry standards, and found that:
Most competitor apps also lacked fast, intuitive access to product and recipe information.
None offered the ability to ask questions or leave reviews directly within the platform.
Unit conversion for ingredients was either missing or not user-friendly.
After identifying key user archetypes and aligning them with our phasing strategy, we were able to prioritize which customer types to support early in the design process. Personas were used throughout the project to guide design decisions, define priorities, and build empathy across the team and with the client.
We developed two core personas to represent the distinct needs, goals, and frustrations of our users. These helped us focus on their real-world contexts and shape a more relevant, user-centered solution.
After getting an idea of what content and features were needed, I created a map of the app structure.
As a first step, I built a custom design system with reusable components tailored to the project’s needs. This approach allowed me to move directly into prototyping with built-in visual and structural consistency, eliminating the need for traditional wireframes.
It enabled faster iteration, reduced redundancy, and improved efficiency across both the design and development phases.
Automatic QR code generation in CMS for each product with saved URL for printing on packaging
Ability to view recipes for products and recalculate the amount of product per kg
Ability to recalculate the price per kg of product by entering the price of all ingredients in the recipe, the result can be saved as a PDF
Dealer search and sorting by city and district