A growing German direct-to-consumer (DTC) e-commerce brand specializing in lifestyle and home decor products had a mobile app with rising downloads—but poor retention and low conversion rates.
With reviews citing confusion and navigation issues, they reached out to Code Elevator to redesign the app experience.
- The app was facing:
- A 30% user drop-off within the first 3 minutes of session time
- Poor navigation structure with inconsistent design patterns
- Unresponsive components on mid-tier Android devices
- Lack of brand alignment in color schemes, typography, and iconography
- Complex checkout flow leading to abandoned carts
- The client needed a full UI/UX overhaul without disrupting the existing user base or backend functionality.
Code Elevator assigned a dedicated team of mobile app designers, along with a UX researcher, to lead a complete design audit, conduct user interviews, and implement a new design system.
Team Composition:
- 2 Mobile App Designers
- 1 UX Researcher
- 1 Project Manager
- 1 Frontend Consultant (for hand-off and implementation QA)
- We focused on improving the user journey, visual hierarchy, and micro-interactions that drive engagement and trust.
Execution
Phase 1: User Research & Behavior Analysis (2 Weeks)
Conducted heatmap and session recordings on high-traffic pages
Interviewed 15 frequent and 15 churned users
Mapped key pain points in navigation and checkout flowPhase 2: Wireframes & Design System (2 Weeks)
Built low-fidelity wireframes to simplify the product discovery and checkout flow
Established a scalable design system aligned with the client’s brand palette
Defined standard UI components for future design consistencyPhase 3: High-Fidelity Design & Prototyping (2 Weeks)
Created interactive prototypes for stakeholder and user testing
Integrated motion design for transitions, hover states, and loading screens
Optimized layouts for both Android and iOS, including mid- to low-end devicesPhase 4: Design Handoff & Implementation Support (1 Week)
Delivered final Figma files with implementation specs
Coordinated with the client’s in-house development team for seamless rollout
Conducted QA and post-launch design adjustments based on live data
The design changes from Code Elevator gave our app the polish and functionality it needed. Users now love the experience—and it shows in our sales.
Head of Digital Product, German E-commerce Brand
Results
Engagement: 45% increase in average session time
Conversions: 28% increase in checkout completion
User Retention: 35% improvement in returning users within 30 days
App Store Rating: Improved from 3.2 to 4.5 in 60 days
Visual Identity: Consistent, modern UI aligned with brand aesthetics
Tech & Design Tools Used
- Design: Figma, Adobe Illustrator
- Prototyping: Figma Interactive, Lottie
- Collaboration: Zeplin, Notion
- Research: Hotjar, Google Analytics, Maze
