Rebel Foods / EatSure·Lead Product Designer·2020–2022
Simplifying group food decisions for India
Group ordering experience that transformed how Indians order food
+25%
total orders through group feature
3x
average order value vs individual
2,323
pilot orders, 40% from new users
75+
cities launched
Problem
Group food ordering was chaotic. 15-30 minutes deciding restaurants, multiple phones for variety, 25-minute delivery gaps. Traditional platforms treated group orders as separate transactions, missing that group dining is about shared experiences.
Constraints
Co-ordination
People are acting in parallel, so coordination becomes tricky.
Attribution
You need clear ownership. Who ordered what.
Shared State
Everyone needs to know when the order is ready.
Key Insight
We assumed users wanted faster group ordering, but shadowing revealed they wanted to feel included in decisions. This meant designing for belonging, not just logistics.
Solution
Designed EatSure's Digital Food Court: unified multi-restaurant browsing, real-time shared carts, transparent payments. A lobby pattern where one person creates a session, shares a link, and everyone joins with their own order.
My Role
- Lead Product Designer
- 24 in-depth user interviews across 4 cities
- Owned ordering + checkout + post-purchase flows for 5M+ users
- 4-month timeline, launched Nov 2021
Duration
4 Months, Launched November 2021
Team Collaboration
UX Research, Product Manager, Engineering Manager, Developers, Customer Support
Impact
+25%
total orders through group feature
3x
average order value vs individual
2,323
pilot orders, 40% from new users
75+
cities launched
The choices that shaped the product
Key Decisions
Decision 01
A lobby, not a cart
The obvious solution was a shared cart. But research showed the coordination problem wasn't about what to order, it was about when and where. We designed a lobby pattern where one person creates a group session, shares a link, and everyone joins with their own order. The host sees all orders in real-time and submits when everyone's ready. This increased order completion by 25% because it removed the back-and-forth that caused abandonment.
Decision 02
Belonging over efficiency
We could have optimized for speed: auto-suggest restaurants, pre-fill orders. But the research told us speed wasn't the problem. Users said: "By the time we agree, I've lost interest." The real problem was feeling excluded. So we designed for visibility: everyone sees what everyone else is browsing, adding, considering. This turned ordering from a chore into a shared activity.
Decision 03
Host empowerment without burden
User research uncovered a paradox: hosts wanted to feel like good organizers, but the coordination made them feel like project managers. We designed the host flow to give control (set restaurant, manage timeline) while automating the overhead (payment splitting, order status). The result: hosts felt empowered, not burdened.
Context
India’s food culture is inherently social; digital platforms hadn’t caught up with this reality. Swiggy and Zomato dominated individual ordering but hadn’t solved group ordering.
India’s ₹4,200 crore food delivery market had untapped potential. Group orders represented 23% of total volume with 2.8x higher values than individual orders.
73% used multiple phones for variety, 40% faced wrong orders, groups spent 15-30 minutes deciding where to order.
Problem Statement
“Design a group ordering experience that gives users both variety and convenience at the same time.”
Pain Points
Multiple phones for variety
73% of groups used multiple phones to order from different restaurants.
Wrong orders
40% faced wrong orders because there was no way to tag who ordered what.
15-30 min deciding
Groups spent 15-30 minutes just deciding where to order from.
Delivery gaps
Delivery gaps reached 25 minutes when ordering from multiple platforms.
Research
Sixteen weeks from market analysis to human truth, validated at every step.
Phase 01·Weeks 1-5
Market Reality Check
- Every platform treated group orders like individual orders happening to same address.
- Solutions addressed logistics but missed the social dimension.
- No one had cracked the social dining code in India.
Phase 02·Weeks 6-10
Human Truth Discovery
- Users wanted to feel included in decisions, not just fed.
- Hosts experienced emotional weight of responsibility.
- Speed optimization removed social joy from the process.
By the time we agree, I’ve lost interest. It’s not about food anymore. It’s about whether I still feel included.
User interview . The Belonging Crisis
Ordering food for my team makes me feel like a good manager. When it goes wrong, I feel like I’ve let them down.
User interview . When Care Becomes Burden
We used to love deciding together. Apps made it efficient but killed the fun.
User interview . Efficiency That Killed Connection
Phase 03·Weeks 11-16
Solution Validation
- Clear mandate to build for collaboration over automation.
- Transparency over convenience.
- Individual agency within collective experience.
- Good group experiences don’t eliminate friction. They make friction visible and manageable together.
Design Pillars
The principles that guided every decision from sketches to ship.
Social-First Design
Every interaction should strengthen the group dynamic.
Transparent Collaboration
All participants should feel informed and included.
Effortless Coordination
Complex logistics should be invisible to users.
User Flows
Two roles, one shared system. Built so coordination feels invisible.
Host Flow: The Caring Coordinator
“I want to make everyone happy without the stress of coordination.”
Guest Flow: The Empowered Participant
“I want to contribute my preferences without complicating things for others.”
Tracking Flow: Live Group Visibility
“We all want to feel connected and informed throughout the process.”
Before & After
Iterations from user testing that meaningfully shifted behavior.
Homepage Group Order Promo
Before
Homepage group order promo was easily missed as users quickly scrolled past.
After
Animated PIP component with explainer and dismiss option grabbed user attention.
Group Ordering Option Introduction
Before
Group ordering option appeared without context, users didn’t understand or explore it.
After
Feature introduced with an illustrated card depicting a group, making purpose instantly clear.
Savings Display
Before
Savings shown as plain text, leaving users uncertain how/where savings occurred.
After
Savings now use an icon for trust and detail exactly where money was saved, boosting user confidence.
Group Ordering Menu Motivation
Before
Group ordering in menu lacked motivation, users saw no clear reason to tap.
After
Card layout and "Save BIG Together!" tag provided clear value proposition and incentive.
Gallery
Reflections
Empathy Over Efficiency
Valuing belonging over speed taught that solving the right problem beats optimizing the wrong one.
Research Reveals What Users Can’t Articulate
Observation and deep listening reveal insights users themselves don’t recognize they need.
Iteration Isn’t Failure. It’s Progress.
Each iteration improved the experience, proving real user feedback drives meaningful design improvements.
Social Design Requires Different Thinking
Designing for groups (not individuals) means accounting for multiple roles, social dynamics, and shared visibility.
