CASE STUDY

Sugar
& Spice

A cake carries more than flavor: it carries intention.
Sending it should be simple, not stressful.

UX DESIGN
PRODUCT DESIGN
AI-ASSISTED DEV
WEB PLATFORM
RETRO-MODERN UI
Funfetti cake, click to change
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Miki in the bakery
THE BAKER'S PERSPECTIVE

My Story

"Before becoming a product designer, I spent 8 years in professional kitchens as a pastry chef. Working in high-end restaurants and gift-oriented bakeries, I saw the 'magic' of a surprise cake, but also the friction behind the scenes: customers struggling with complex orders, last-minute logistics, and the stress of transporting fragile products."

This project pulls together my kitchen experience and my design work, solving a real problem I lived every day.

THE PROBLEM

A Logistical Mess

From working in the industry and talking to people, three pain points came up again and again, for both senders and recipients.

🍞
Preparation Burden

The time and effort required for baking, ingredient shopping, and cleanup creates a high barrier to entry for spontaneous gifting.

EFFORT & TIME
🚗
Logistical Friction

High anxiety surrounding the safe transport and delivery of delicate cakes. Fragile products demand careful handling that most people can't guarantee.

DELIVERY STRESS
📅
Planning Fatigue

Traditional artisanal orders often require planning far in advance, which doesn't suit the spontaneous, emotional nature of gift-giving.

ADVANCE NOTICE
RESEARCH & INSIGHTS

Data-Validated
Pain Points

Market study and survey conducted to validate assumptions.


📊   54 PARTICIPANTS  |  MARKET STUDY + SURVEY
70%
Would love to receive food delivery as a gift
Strong unmet demand for gifting-focused food services
55%
Prefer interacting via a dedicated application
Digital-first preference validates the app/web platform approach
50%+
Interested in complementary add-ons
Balloons, candles, greetings cards alongside the cake
55%
Prefer curated options over full customization
34% want modifiable templates; only a minority want to build from scratch
EVOLUTION

From App to
Web Platform

The project changed a lot along the way, from an academic mobile concept to a responsive, AI-assisted web platform.

UX Flow, mobile concept
UI Design, mobile concept

ORIGINAL MOBILE UX FLOWS & UI SCREENS

Sugar & Spice web platform

THE REDESIGNED WEB PLATFORM

PHASE 01 MOBILE APP
The App Concept

An academic mobile-first concept focused on the "on-the-go" cake gifting experience, using native navigation patterns.

  • Mobile-first interaction model
  • Native navigation patterns
  • Touch-optimized UX flows
  • Core gifting functionality
PHASE 02 WEB PLATFORM
The Web Redesign

Transitioned to a fully responsive web application to increase accessibility, introducing a bold Retro-Modern visual identity with AI-assisted development.

  • Retro-Modern visual identity
  • Press Start 2P + Anybody typefaces
  • AI-assisted development (Claude)
  • Fully responsive system
  • Faster prototyping workflow
CURRENT VERSION
CONCLUSIONS & LEARNING

Key Takeaways

01 📊
Data-Driven Simplification

The research shifted the focus from "full customization" to "smart templates," which significantly improved user flow and reduced decision fatigue.

02 🎨
Brand Boldness

Moving away from traditional "soft" bakery aesthetics to a high-contrast pixel style created a more memorable and unique brand identity that stands out.

03 🤖
Technological Synergy

Integrating AI into the design and development workflow allowed for faster prototyping and a more robust responsive system with consistent design language.

SEE IT IN ACTION

Explore the
Live Project

Browse the full Sugar & Spice ordering experience.

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