Pan 'n Plan

PAN 'N PLAN

UI/UX Design Case Study

Dec 2025 - Feb 2026

Mobile App Design

Reducing food waste and overspending through lightweight planning.

About Pan 'n Plan

Living away from home, people struggle to manage food without a kitchen or a mess, leading to frequent ordering, unplanned spending, and wasted groceries. This project is a response to that experience, aiming to design a calm, low-effort system that helps people make better food decisions before money or food is wasted.

Tools Used

Product Category

Grocery Budget & Meal Planner

Year

2026

What was the Problem?

Young adults and students often overspend on groceries without realizing it.

They forget what food they already have at home, buy impulsively (especially snacks and drinks), and purchase more than they can consume before it goes bad.

Because meal planning is inconsistent or absent, grocery spending becomes unpredictable and slowly disrupts their monthly budget.

There was a need for:

A simple system that helps users stay aware of their inventory, plan meals realistically, and understand the weekly impact of their grocery choices before money is wasted.

A tool that respects emotional states.

A system that tracks effort, not just output.
A flow-based structure that removes decision fatigue.

The Goal

Reduce decision fatigue around daily food choices

Increase awareness of weekly food spending

Help users remember what food they already have

Encourage planning without forcing rigid habits or routines

Core Insights (From Research + Personal Experience)

Sometimes forget what they already have in groceries and go out to buy more.
Key factor in bankruptcy. Spending way too much that disrupts the monthly budget.
Buying in bulk can save money only when consumption is planned. Without planning, it leads to waste and overspending
Snacking and drinks - a costly buy.

Key Design Decisions