Everything African: One shop for the diaspora's kitchen
I designed Everything African's shop, a UK platform where the African diaspora buys groceries, fresh produce and ready meals in one place. Sourcing was scattered across vendors, chats and phone calls, so the brief became one continuous journey: find, order, pay, and follow the delivery.
In diaspora commerce trust matters as much as speed. Every product says what it costs, what it weighs and how many are left before anyone commits, and the operations team runs orders from the same system the customer sees.
One journey: from discovery to the doorstep
- FindSearch, categories, featured products, favourites
- OrderVariant, quantity, cut to order, basket
- DeliverWeight-based shipping, next working day
Browsing, checkout and delivery were designed as one flow rather than three features. An order keeps its shape from the product page to the doorstep, and the shopper never has to leave the journey to find out what happens next.
Two modes, one system
- CustomerQuick, and needs reassurance
- OperatorInventory, order stages, logistics
- SharedSame orders, same stock, same status
Perishable goods leave no room for two systems disagreeing. Stock, order stages and delivery updates are kept in the platform, so the customer's status and the operator's queue read from the same order.
Selected screens: from the marketplace to the basket
What perishable goods changed
- Cut to orderChosen on the product, prepared before dispatch
- Weight in the basketThe total weight sets the delivery
- Next working dayOrder today, delivered tomorrow, nationwide
Meat and fresh produce cannot wait in a queue. The decisions that affect preparation and shipping are made by the shopper up front, where they can see them, so the operations team never has to ask.
How the operator sees it
- InventoryStock counts on every variant, kept current
- Order stagesOne lifecycle from paid to delivered
- Delivery notesStructured updates instead of phone calls
The experience follows how the business actually runs rather than how an e-commerce template assumes it does. Inventory, the order lifecycle and delivery communication are part of the product, not a spreadsheet beside it.
Decisions I took
I designed the shop and the operator's side of it as one system, working with the founders and the engineering team. Above is what perishable goods changed, followed by the decisions that shaped the product and what each one cost.
-
Design discovery, checkout and delivery as one journey
Why Sourcing was scattered across vendors, chats and phone calls, and every hand-off lost people. On Everything African the shopper finds, orders, pays and follows the delivery without changing context.
Cost Any change to how an order works touches every screen from the product to the doorstep.
-
Put the price, the weight and the stock on the product
Why A shopper buying fresh food wants to know what they are getting before checkout. Each variant shows its price and how many are available, so there are no surprises later.
Cost Stock counts have to be kept current by the operations team, or the trust runs the other way.
-
Offer cut to order on the product, not at checkout
Why Cutting is a preparation decision, so it belongs where the product is. A toggle on the product page tells the kitchen to prepare it before dispatch.
Cost One more step in fulfilment for every order that asks for it.
-
Work delivery out from weight, before checkout
Why Fresh produce and meat ship by weight. The basket totals the weight alongside the price, and delivery is settled before anyone reaches the payment page.
Cost A basket total that moves as quantities change, which has to be explained rather than hidden.
-
Run operations from the same system as the shop
Why Perishable goods leave no room for two systems disagreeing. Stock, order stages and delivery updates live in the platform the customer sees, so the status page and the operator's queue read from one order.
Cost The interface carries states and controls a customer never sees, which is more to design and keep simple.
-
Reward loyalty in the shop's own currency
Why Repeat purchase is the business. EA coins are earned on every order and spent in the shop, which keeps the reward inside the journey rather than in a separate scheme.
Cost Another balance to explain, and to reconcile with the books.