Sparkle

the solution for urban busy professionals using shared laundry systems

Team me + Kshitija Dhumal, Lakshmi Ajayan Skills Research, Ideation, Branding, Wireframe, UI Duration 3 weeks

TL DR - What's Sparkle?

Sparkle is a laundry service designed for buildings with shared laundry rooms, a common arrangement in urban areas where rent is high. This autonomous system offers comprehensive services for each step of the laundry cycle, including picking up laundry from the unit, sorting, cleaning, folding, and dropping it off.

Instead of having to carry their laundry to the laundry room and set alarms to unload, users can now simply schedule the Sparkle cart at their convenience. They will then find their laundry conveniently delivered back to their unit, all handled with just a few taps on their phone.

What was the problem?

Shared laundry rooms are common in urban areas with high rents. However, this task is often the least anticipated on people's weekly to-do lists. It becomes particularly burdensome when they have to haul their laundry down hallways, occasionally use elevators, and ensure they return on time for the finished load.

Talking to more people

regardless of their different laundry habits, there were common themes among all:

Time-consuming

“I can't make other plans for those 2 hours because I have to return halfway through to move the clothes from the washer to the dryer.”

Carrying laundry basket

“Having to physically carry the huge laundry basket down the hallway is physically tiring”

Mental burden

“Both planning when to do the laundry and knowing what I have to go through is very stressful.”

Feeling unsafe

“Sometimes when I do laundry late at night, I get a bit scared. If there's someone else in the laundry room, I'll wait until that person leaves before I enter.”

Studying the laundry-related tasks further

We captured the tasks in the entire flow in a journey, in order to visualize more opportunities

Sparkle Journey Map

What additional insights did the journey map tell us?

8+ touch points during the entire flow

at least 3 visits to the laundry room

many decision making in sorting and setting up the machine

HMW narrowed down

create a seamless system that reduces the touch points as well as the effort and time spent sorting, carrying, and folding laundry?

Key features & final experience

Scheduling a pickup

Factors influencing slot availability

  • Availability of laundry machines

  • Other units’ schedules

  • Maintenance of machines

Pattern recognition over time

  • Learns scheduling habits and reminds people to schedule

Sparkle cart arrives at unit

The app sends notification, just like ringing a doorbell

Loading Sparkle cart with dirty clothes

User opens the cart door following the instruction on the app, loads the laundry, and confirm when done

Input preferences & scheduling drop-off

Beyond the basic cleaning feature, there are optional add-ons such as sorting, folding, steaming, and scent

Cart transfers laundry into cleaning system

Based on the cleaning preferences and add-ons, the cart will drop clothes in the corresponding compartment to start the cycle

While the Sparkle cleaning system is working, the process can be tracked on the app

Cleaning & tracking

Sparkle cart drops off clean clothes

Cart delivers clean clothes back to the unit at scheduled time, with the option to reschedule drop off

Illustration credit: Kshitija Dhumal

Edge case scenarios

1. The obstacles in the hallway

  • Sparkle automatically notifies admin/maintenance and informs the user about the situation

  • If it’s after office hours, Sparkle will offer appropriate options

2. The busy day before
holiday/travel seasons

  • Prevention: Sparkle reminds users to do laundry before typical peak times

  • During peak time: Sparkle offers the option to pay an express fee to cut the line

3. Cleaning machine breaks down during the cycle

  • Clothes will be transferred to the next available machine

  • The app notifies the user about the situation and informs change in ETA if any

  • The app notifies other scheduled users in case of subsequent unavailability of machines

Learnings

This system will be public and shared by all tenants in the building. While we aim to provide the best experience by offering sorting, cleaning, folding, and even scent-enhancing services, we recognize that some people are less concerned with the specifics of their laundry process. Therefore, the product must ensure flexibility for all users. It should be as easy to opt out of certain services as it is to add them.