Empowering conscious consumers to shop sustainably with instant product verification
Saveability is a mobile app that helps conscious consumers make sustainable purchasing decisions through instant barcode scanning and AI-powered product verification. In a market full of greenwashing and information overload, Saveability provides transparent, trustworthy sustainability ratings at the moment of purchase.
This project explores how design can help people align their values with their shopping habits—turning complex research into a simple 3-second barcode scan.
Browse & Profile: Category navigation and user account management
Consumers want to shop sustainably, but they can't trust brand claims. With 52% of shoppers encountering false or misleading sustainability marketing, and 23% wanting to buy sustainable but not believing brands, there's a critical trust gap in the market.
I want to do the right thing, but I don't have time to become an expert on every certification. I've been burned by greenwashing before—I need something I can actually trust. — User research participant
Multiple certifications, conflicting claims, and vague marketing create confusion rather than clarity. Consumers spend hours researching without finding trustworthy answers.
In-store shopping requires instant decisions. Consumers don't have time to Google every product while standing in the aisle, leading to analysis paralysis.
Even when consumers find sustainable products, they're unsure if the premium price is justified or just greenwashing markup.
Evaluating environmental impact, labor practices, packaging, and company ethics for every purchase is exhausting and unsustainable.
The problem isn't lack of information—it's inability to verify and act on information at the moment of purchase. Consumers need instant, trustworthy answers, not more research homework.
I conducted extensive market research and competitive analysis to validate the problem space and identify opportunities for differentiation.
| Feature | Good On You | Saveability |
|---|---|---|
| Product Categories | Fashion only | All retail categories |
| Discovery Method | Manual search | Barcode/photo scanning |
| AI Alternatives | None | Intelligent suggestions |
| Speed to Decision | ~30-60 seconds | <5 seconds |
| Visual Recognition | No | Yes |
| Real-time Comparison | Limited | Side-by-side scoring |
Good On You reached 3 million users with ONLY fashion and ONLY manual search. Saveability's scanning + multi-category approach addresses their core limitations while serving a broader market.
Saveability transforms complex sustainability research into a simple 3-second barcode scan. Users get clear, trustworthy scores backed by third-party certifications, plus AI-powered alternatives when better options exist—all at the moment of purchase.
Certification guide: Educating users on sustainability standards and their meanings
Point your camera at any product barcode and get results in under 3 seconds. No typing, no searching—just instant verification while you shop.
Overall score (0-100) with detailed breakdowns: Environmental Impact, Social Responsibility, Company Ethics, and Transparency. Letter grades make it instantly understandable.
When a product scores low, our AI suggests 3 better alternatives at similar price points—available at nearby stores or online with carbon-neutral shipping.
See all relevant certifications (B Corp, Fair Trade, Organic, etc.) with explanations of what they mean and why they matter.
Track your sustainable shopping impact over time: plastic avoided, carbon saved, ethical brands supported. Real metrics, not vanity numbers.
"The Good" and "The Bad" for every product—honest, clear information about trade-offs so users can make informed decisions.
Product insights: Low-scoring product report and comprehensive scan history
The core interaction is the barcode scan. We designed it to be fast, forgiving, and reassuring—critical for in-store usage where users feel self-conscious scanning products in public.
Live scanning: Animated feedback with tips and real-time guidance
When a product scores poorly, we don't just tell users—we help them find better options. Our AI suggests 3 alternatives matched by price, availability, and category, ensuring recommendations are actually actionable.
Better alternatives: Price-matched sustainable options with clear benefits
We show long-term cost comparison (e.g., "$32.95 vs $155.48 over 1 year") to reframe sustainable products from "expensive" to "cost-saving." This helps users justify the upfront investment.
Early testing revealed users would abandon the scan if it took more than 5 seconds. I optimized the entire flow to show results in under 3 seconds, even if it meant progressive loading of detailed information.
In-store decisions happen in seconds, not minutes. The app must match the pace of real shopping behavior.
Users seeing "82/100" didn't know if that was good or bad. Adding letter grades (A-, B+) and contextual labels ("Excellent Choice" vs "Room for Improvement") made scores instantly interpretable.
When products scored low, users felt guilty if no affordable alternatives existed. I designed the system to only suggest alternatives within 20% of the original price, and to frame it as "helpful guidance" not moral judgment.
I don't want an app that makes me feel guilty. I want one that helps me do better when I can afford to. — User testing participant
The initial design showed all information at once (environmental, social, company, certifications, sources). Users felt overwhelmed. The final design shows: Score → Summary → Tap for details. 85% of users never scroll past the summary.
Early concepts included badges, streaks, and leaderboards. User testing revealed this felt "gimmicky" and "preachy." The final design shows only real metrics: carbon saved, plastic avoided, ethical brands supported.
Analyzed 177M eco-friendly shoppers, greenwashing crisis data, and consumer behavior trends. Validated $217B market opportunity and identified 52% trust gap.
Deep dive into Good On You (3M users), identifying gaps in multi-category coverage, scanning technology, and AI alternatives engine.
Mapped 5 journey phases from awareness to habit formation, identifying critical moments of truth and designing interventions at each friction point.
Designed the info hierarchy: instant score → quick summary → detailed breakdown → learn more. Shows the basics first, lets people dig deeper if they want.
Created low-fidelity wireframes focused on scan speed, score clarity, and seamless alternative discovery. Tested with 15 target users.
Developed clean, minimal aesthetic that feels trustworthy not preachy. Nature-inspired palette (sage green, warm terracotta) signals sustainability without clichés.
Tested with 25 users in real shopping environments. Key learnings: scan speed is critical, scores need context, alternatives must show price transparency.
Tracking real impact is central to Saveability's value proposition. The dashboard shows users the tangible difference their choices make—not gamified points, but actual environmental metrics.
Impact dashboard: Real metrics showing CO₂, plastic, and water savings
Based on Good On You's performance (3M users over 10 years with fashion-only + manual search), Saveability's conservative target is 500K users in Year 1 with multi-category + scanning. The broader scope and improved UX position Saveability to capture market share faster while addressing verified user pain points.
85% of consumers want to shop sustainably, but only 26% do. The gap isn't motivation—it's friction. Reducing verification time from minutes to seconds can close this gap.
After experiencing greenwashing, users don't trust ANY claims without third-party verification. Showing data sources and methodology isn't optional—it's essential for credibility.
Users don't need more information—they need interpreted information. "This product contains PFCs" means nothing. "Contains PFCs (harmful chemicals that persist in environment)" drives understanding.
Suggesting $80 alternatives for a $30 product creates guilt, not behavior change. AI must filter for price parity or users lose trust in recommendations.
What works for e-commerce (lengthy research, comparison shopping) doesn't work in-store. Physical shopping demands instant answers and minimal friction.
Gen Z doesn't just want scores—they want to understand WHY. The layered approach works for both: instant answer for quick decisions, detailed info for those who want to learn.
This project reminded me that good design isn't about adding features—it's about removing friction. The biggest decision wasn't what to show users, but what NOT to show. By keeping things simple and prioritizing speed, Saveability turns a 30-minute research task into a 3-second decision.
The greenwashing problem isn't just about marketing—it's about how we present information. When 52% of consumers see false claims, adding more claims isn't the answer. Trusted verification is. Saveability shows that with the right design, we can help people act on their values in real time.
If 500K users each make just one more sustainable purchase per month, that's 6 million conscious decisions per year. At scale, verification tools like Saveability don't just help individual shoppers—they create market pressure for brands to become more sustainable or risk being exposed.