UX/UI DESIGN

Campera App

Sport Gear E-commerce

A modern e-commerce mobile app designed to simplify the way people discover, and prepare for outdoor adventures. Campera caters to a diverse range of campers, from seasoned backpackers to first-time glampers, offering curated camping gear, personalized recommendations, and a seamless shopping experience.

My role:

Solo practice project

Timeline:

2 months

Tools used:

  • Most camping gear apps and websites are either too technical for beginners or too generic to serve serious outdoor enthusiasts. Users often struggle with overwhelming product choices, unclear specifications, and uninspiring shopping experiences. The core challenge was to design a platform that speaks to both seasoned adventurers and casual campers, making it easy to find the right gear without sacrificing performance, style, or usability.

  • To solve the problem of overwhelming product choices and lack of guidance for both beginners and experienced campers, we introduced the Pack Planner — a unique feature that transforms the shopping experience into a simple, guided process. By answering a few key questions about their trip, users receive a tailored packing checklist along with curated gear suggestions.

Design Process

DOUBLE DIAMOND

Competitor Analysis
Research
Initial User Observations

Discover

Define

Personas
User Journey Map
User Stories
Major Takeaways

Information Architecture
User FLows
Wireframing
Prototyping
Testing

Deliver

Develop

Testing
Iterations
Design System
Final Product
Project Summary

Gear Up. Get Out. Make Memories.

Campera’s brand is rooted in the spirit of exploration. With a strong foundation in the Explorer archetype, the brand promises freedom, confidence, and a seamless path to adventure. Its tone is empowering yet approachable, appealing to both seasoned outdoor enthusiasts and casual nature lovers.

  • CAMPERA - wherever the trail takes you, we’ve got you covered.

  • At its core, Campera is about freedom, discovery, and confidence in the outdoors. The brand empowers people to embrace adventure—whether it’s a remote mountain trail or a weekend in the woods, with thoughtfully curated gear that’s as reliable as it is approachable. Campera combines trust, clarity, and a sense of possibility to make the outdoors accessible to everyone.

    Essence keywords: Adventure, Trust, Simplicity, Exploration, Empowerment

  • EXPLORER 


    Campera embodies the Explorer archetype, appealing to those who seek freedom, self-discovery, and authentic experiences. This archetype thrives on new challenges, unknown paths, and the thrill of the journey, making it a natural fit for a brand built around outdoor adventure.

    Explorer Traits in Campera:

    • Freedom & Independence: Users are guided to find the right gear for their kind of adventure.

    • Authenticity: The app avoids salesy jargon and focuses on real, reliable gear that performs in the wild.

    • Discovery & Curiosity: Product recommendations and content encourage trying new experiences, whether that’s glamping, backpacking, or weekend hiking.

    • Empowerment: Campera is designed to equip people, not just sell to them,removing barriers to entry for new campers and enhancing confidence for experienced ones.

About Campera

Discover

Competitor Analysis

I conducted research and analyzed five similar applications and websites offering outdoor and camping gear. I categorized them as both direct and indirect competitors, and reviewed their structure, user flow, and customer feedback. Based on these observations, I developed the following insights.

Main goals of the analysis:

  • Identify the key and useful features (both Must have and Nice to have) that should be included in the Campera app.

  • Examine user loyalty and engagement with competing apps, based on publicly available reviews and user feedback.

  • Identify flaws and usability issues in existing market solutions, to understand which features or patterns to avoid, and where there’s an opportunity to stand out by delivering a better user experience.

Must have

  • Clear product categorization

  • Filtering and sorting

  • Product description + images

  • Add to cart & online checkout

  • Secure payment options

  • Order tracking

Nice to have

  • Product recommendations / bundles

  • Community features

  • Inspiration and educational content

  • Eco filters

Research

To better understand the needs and behaviors of potential users, I conducted a small round of informal qualitative research with friends and family. The goal was to gather honest feedback about their camping habits, preferences, frustrations, and how they currently shop for outdoor gear. This early insight helped shape the foundation for user personas and initial feature priorities in the Campera app.

Initial Users Observations

Usablity

Shopping Behaviors

Product Information

Education

Personalization

Values

Define

Personas

User Journey Map

User Story

As a young outdoor enthusiast and frequent backpacker,
I want to quickly find lightweight, high-performance gear that's been reviewed and recommended by experts,
so that I can confidently prepare for last-minute weekend trips without wasting time or risking poor-quality equipment.

  • Nicole Sandman

    Age: 38 years
    Profession: Teacher
    Location: Glasgow
    Status: Married with 2 kids

    Persona bio Nicole is a 38-year-old elementary school teacher and mother of two living in a suburban neighborhood. A few times a year, she plans short camping trips with her husband and kids as a way to unplug, bond as a family, and introduce her children to nature.

    While she enjoys the outdoors, Nicole doesn't consider herself an expert camper. For her, camping is about comfort, safety, and making lasting family memories, not braving the wilderness. She values practical, easy-to-use gear, and prefers products that are quick to set up, safe for kids, and affordable.

    Nicole often shops online during her limited free time and appreciates bundled gear deals and clear product descriptions that help her make decisions without needing to do extensive research. She also looks for reliable customer support and flexible return policies in case something isn’t quite right.

    Camping Style Family-Friendly Car Camping

    Needs
    + Family friendly products (large tents, comfy sleeping bags)

    + Budget friendly deals & bundles

    + Easy returns & customer support

    + Safety focused gear (first aid kits, lanterns, etc.)

    Frustrations
    - Hard to find reliable product recommendations for families

    - Complicated setup instructions

    - Doesn’t want to spend too much time researching

    “I just want to make sure my family is comfortable and safe, without spending hours researching on gear we’ll only use a few times a year.”

    User Story

    As a busy mom planning occasional family camping trips,
    I want to quickly find affordable, family-friendly gear bundles that are safe and easy to use,
    so that I can make sure my family is comfortable and prepared, without spending hours researching or worrying about complicated setups.

  • Emily Clarkson

    Age: 29 years
    Profession: Marketing Manager
    Location: Geneva
    Status: Single

    Persona bio Emily is a busy marketing professional who loves traveling, weekend getaways, and trying new experiences. She lives in the city and enjoys escaping to nature but isn’t an experienced camper. Instead of roughing it in the wild, she prefers comfortable, aesthetically pleasing, and beginner-friendly camping experiences—often opting for glamping or car camping.
    Emily is also eco-conscious and prefers sustainable products when possible. Since she doesn’t camp often, she doesn’t want to invest in bulky, heavy-duty gear she might never use again. Instead, she looks for multi-purpose items that can be used for outdoor trips as well as in her daily life.
    She loves convenience and efficiency, so she appreciates curated shopping experiences, pre-packed gear bundles, and beginner-friendly guidance. She’s also very active on social media and enjoys capturing beautiful outdoor moments for Instagram.

    Camping Style Occasional Camper & Glamping Enthusiast

    Needs
    + Find stylish and comfortable camping gear that fits her aesthetic
    + Buy sustainable, eco-friendly products
    + Make camping easy with beginner-friendly gear
    + Discover unique outdoor experiences that aren’t too extreme

    Frustrations
    - Finds most camping gear too bulky, rugged, or not visually appealing
    - Overwhelmed by technical product specs she doesn’t understand
    - Struggles to know what to buy as a beginner camper
    - Doesn't want to spend money on expensive gear for rare trips

    “I love the idea of being in nature. I want gear that looks good, works well, and doesn’t feel like I’m prepping for Everest.”

    User Story

    As an occasional camper who values style, simplicity, and sustainability,
    I want to discover curated, beginner-friendly camping gear that’s both eco-conscious and aesthetically pleasing,
    so that I can enjoy nature comfortably and confidently—without feeling overwhelmed or investing in gear I’ll barely use.

Takeways

Necessary Utilities

Clear product categorization

Filtering and sorting

By weight, season, ocassion (ex. weekend trip, family safety), eco

Visible return policy

Order tracking

Ordered, in progress, order and return history

Recommended

Real photos of users

Community features

Inspiration and educational content

PACK PLANNER

Personalized gear checklist

Design decision

Pack Planner - the standout feature of Campera

One of the key elements that sets Campera apart from other outdoor gear apps is the Pack Planner — a smart, user-guided tool designed to simplify the packing and shopping process for every kind of camper. Unlike typical shopping platforms that leave users scrolling through endless product lists, the Pack Planner invites them to answer a few quick questions about their trip — destination, duration, weather, season, and experience level.

Based on their answers, Campera automatically generates a personalized gear checklist with curated product suggestions, which users can review, save, or purchase directly in the app. This feature turns Campera from just a gear store into a practical planning assistant, providing confidence, convenience, and a tailored experience that speaks directly to the user’s needs.

The Pack Planner not only helps beginners who feel unsure about what to pack but also saves time for experienced campers who want a quick, ready-to-go setup. It’s a distinctive touch that positions Campera as more than just a marketplace — it becomes a trusted partner in every outdoor adventure.

Develop

Information achitecture

Wireframes, First Lo-fi Prototype and First Testing and First changes

As the prototype came together and users began testing it, some clear gaps and initial flaws in the app started to surface. Here are the most critical insights.

2.

1.

During the assembly of the low-fidelity prototype and the first animation testing, one major issue became immediately clear: the bottom navigation bar. Having it split into five separate floating buttons didn’t work visually or functionally. It lacked structure, felt disjointed, and was confusing for users. This was obvious even during prototype building, and later user testing only confirmed it.

While evaluating the Explore screen, another problem became clear: it was boring and lacked real purpose. It didn’t address user needs, especially for beginners or time-pressed campers, who, as our early interviews showed, were looking for quick solutions, recommendations, and direction, not just an open-ended scroll zone.

After a solo brainstorming session (yes, it was a one-person storm), I concluded that Explore needed to be reimagined from scratch. That’s when the idea for the Pack Planner was born.

Time for first prototype

Deliver

Design System

Instances properities

Creating the Design System

Design Tokens

What I’ve learned

Building the design system for the Campera App was the first time I approached a fully scalable, organized component structure. It was also the first project where I worked with advanced component building in Figma — including nested structures, Auto Layout logic, and flexible variants.

I spent a lot of time understanding and applying component properties, which turned out to be one of the most powerful and time-saving tools in the entire process. I learned how to set up and manage various property types such as:

  1. Boolean properties

  2. Instance swap properties

  3. Text properties

  4. Variant properties

Mastering these properties allowed me to make the design system both highly reusable and easy to scale, which will be essential as the app continues to grow.