The challenge:

Rent-A-Center was losing market share to competition. Renters were angered at high prices for “raggedy” furniture and strict pay-back terms. A large demographic of savvy shoppers were missed - those that wanted less commitment and customization.

My Role

My role covered full UX research, strategy, concept design, branding and the development of a modular design system ready for dev handoff. The tone? Approachable, stylish, and confident.

Personas of the customer base revealed purchase habits and affinity to long commitments; customers wanted flexibility

Outcome & Impact (from testing)

• End-to-end concept approved across design, logistics, and executive teams—including warehouse ops and delivery partners

• Real-world feasibility mapped: furniture SKUs and delivery trucks identified for white-label Lilypad rollout

• Positive customer validation: early testers responded favorably to AI stylist, AR placement, and flexible subscription models

• AI stylist increased selection satisfaction—users were 2× more likely to favorite recommended bundles

Hi fidelity protoype was utilized in a guerilla style marketing approach to get buy in and path forward tor Lilypad app.

Hypothesis

Creating a white labeled brand within Rent-A-Center could offer customers options for furniture rental that grows with them and would increase revenue for the company. Utilizing exiting merchandise, logistics and warehousing, the launch would be relatively seamless and less impactful to the bottom line.

Rapid wires and prototyping led to quick discoveery and validity of app design to progress to user feedback.