0 to 1: Data-Driven Inventory Intelligence
Architecting Clarity: A 0-to-1 Inventory Platform
📊 Impact: Bridging technical backend logic with human-centered design
Overview
Transforming autonomous floor-scrubber data into a 0-to-1 intelligence platform. By bridging complex computer-vision logic with human-centered design, this MVP provides a centralized source of truth for associates and leadership to track item health and benchmark performance—from national trends to individual club operations.
Problem
Design a 0→1 platform to translate raw autonomous data—previously buried in developer tools—into an actionable interface for club managers and home office leadership.
Solution
Created a centralized hub that translates raw computer-vision logs into an intuitive, searchable index of the Sam’s Club network. Key design pillars included:
High-velocity search: Instant access to item-level health, stock, and location data.
Scalable hierarchy: A nested navigation structure for cross-club and regional performance benchmarking.
Operational impact: Empowering teams to act on shared data for faster restocks and improved store standards.
Role
UX, visual design
Duration
5 sprints
Tools
Miro, Figma
Team
3 designers, 1 product manager, 3 developers
Analysis
Where we started:
Designing a tool for cross-functional users at the club and corporate level
Developer Tool
The current tool is only for developers to manage the data, but the UI isn’t still the best for any users.
Confusing UI for any new users
Lacks user-friendliness in usability on top of confusing UI
Not enough contents to guide users
The Strategic Ask
Deliver a desktop- and mobile-friendly interface that lets any Sam’s Club employee (market manager, regional manager, club manager and home-office associate):
Surface instant data - Transform UPC/item inputs into real-time stock and bin-location results.
Provide spatial context - Map aisle images to technical logs for visual shelf-verification.
Search & locate – quickly confirm which club(s) carry the item and where it sits on the floor.
Enable cross-club search - Locate items and compare stock levels across the entire network.
Design Approach
Logic mapping - Benchmarked retail search patterns to define a search-first architecture that minimizes time-to-insight
Technical alignment - Led cross-functional reviews to bridge computer-vision constraints with UI performance
Systemic iteration - Developed a Finder-style navigation and modular components to ensure the MVP scales from national to club views.
Research
Defining the MVP architecture
Determining the core functionality required to move from raw data to a usable product
Key Steps
Requirements Sweep
Collected stakeholder needs (left column of sitemap): navigation levels, searchable fields, filters, and MVP vs. Phase-2 scope.
Audited stakeholder requirements to separate “Mission Critical” navigation from Phase-2 features
Hierarchy Mapping
Translated Chain → Region → Market → Club → Area → Aisle → Bay → Item into the core sitemap to clarify how users drill down to a shelf.
Search & Filter Definition
Captured primary inputs (UPC, item #, location, date) and secondary filters (status, category, price) shown in yellow and cyan nodes.
Result Model Outline
Specified what each result must display—image, stock qty, damages, etc.
Scope Split
Marked data-viz, planogram, vendor views as Phase 2; kept MVP to single-date lookup and direct image retrieval.
Reference Patterns & Inspiration
Internal benchmarks (Sam’s Club)
Website search bar and faceted filters for quick product lookup.
Existing merchandising / supply-chain dashboards for data-dense layouts.
External retail leaders
Home Depot, Old Navy, Zara—strong search + filter flows that guide users from broad queries to aisle-level results.
These examples informed the new tool’s search-first model and filter hierarchy.
Ideation
Landing Page Purpose
Give users an instant starting point with two clear actions:
Search Products – global bar for UPC, item #, or keyword.
Browse Clubs – a guided drill-down that walks them from region → market → club.
The design challenge is making that hierarchical path obvious and effortless without cluttering the screen.
Approach to Region → Market Navigation
Transformed the static region-market map into an interactive explorer: tap a region, zoom to its markets, then select a club.
Progressive disclosure keeps only one level visible at a time, preventing information overload while maintaining quick drill-down.
Stay Focused on the Core Purpose
During working sessions with product and engineering, we tightened the MVP scope to just two goals: (1) search for any product and (2) drill down to a specific club. Extras like interactive maps or shortcut tiles added complexity and pushed us beyond that mandate, so we stripped them away to keep the experience laser-focused.
Simplicity wins: a single search bar and a browse-by-club path cover all core tasks, so we dropped everything else.
Smart Filters, Open Browsing
Our filter system follows one rule: show only what’s asked for—otherwise stay out of the way.
When users enter a UPC, keyword, or location, filters instantly narrow results to the relevant items and clubs.
With no criteria, the tool defaults to an unrestricted view, letting users freely explore the full catalogue and drill down at their own pace.
This balance keeps power users laser-focused while still supporting open discovery for everyone else.
Start Open, Stay Relevant
Most managers either arrive with a precise SKU in mind or begin by browsing broadly. Our filter strategy respects both behaviors:
Open by default – The first view shows the full inventory, encouraging quick scanning and serendipitous discovery.
Relevance on demand – As soon as a user enters a term or picks a location, contextual filters appear to trim results without cluttering the screen.
Borrowed best practices – Inspired by Sam’s Club e-commerce and leading retail apps, the design balances exploratory freedom with rapid funneling—setting the stage for our more detailed Progressive Discovery Design approach.
Progressive Discovery Design
Start broad, then narrow – Surface the full inventory first, then let users add filters to zero in on specifics.
Top-to-bottom navigation – Enable free exploration through Region → Market → Club without forced steps.
Pattern-backed – Mirrors successful approaches from Sam’s Club e-commerce and best-in-class retail apps.
Interactive, Filter-Driven Navigation
Inspired by mall-kiosk maps: tap a region, zoom to its details.
Leverages Sam’s Club’s existing club-search pattern for instant familiarity.
Adopts macOS Finder’s column view for rapid drill-down—from Region to Market, Club, and bay.
All-in-One Product Snapshot
Auto-scrubber shelf images combine with live SKU data to give managers a complete view of any item: category, condition, on-hand quantity, and units per pallet. The same screen lists every other club that stocks the product, making transfers and restocks effortless.
Borrowing from the Customer Playbook
In early discussions we dissected Sam’s Club’s consumer product page—images, specs, reviews, “also bought” modules—to gauge which elements could translate to an internal tool. The takeaway: while rich media and cross-sell ideas inspire usability, most marketing-level details add noise for managers focused on inventory.
An Inventory-First Product Page
The final design centers on operational data: a live shelf photo with nearby SKUs highlighted, real-time stock metrics (on-hand, per-pallet, status), and quick links to every club carrying the item. No marketing fluff—just the essentials managers need to restock and re-route product fast.
Final Design
Sam’s Club Product Finder — Real-Time Stock & Shelf Locator
🎯 Landing Hub — Clear Entry Point
Built on Sam’s Club’s design system, the page gives two obvious choices—search products or browse clubs—cutting past the old tool’s clutter.
🔍 Search & Filters — Pattern-Aligned Clarity
Uses Sam’s established field order (description → item # → UPC) in a minimalist UI, guiding users to precise results without distractions.
Search results and applying filters (Desktop)
Search results and applying filters (Mobile)
📹 Auto-Scrubber View - Live Shelf Data
Shows captured shelf images alongside item description, item #, and UPC in the familiar sequence, all in a clean layout that surfaces key details at a glance.
Auto-scrubber captured product info
🧭 Shelf Finder — Area → Aisle → Bay
Finder-style panes—Area → Aisle → Bay—let users jump straight to any shelf; choosing a bay opens a live shelf photo with that item and nearby SKUs for instant restock checks.
Browsing a specific location at Club
Conlusion
Takeaway
By translating complex autonomous data into a human-centered interface, this MVP moved Sam’s Club from technical logs to actionable intelligence. The platform successfully unified a diverse user base—from the home office to the club floor—creating a scalable foundation for the future of automated inventory management.