An on-the-go vending solution for uni students to easily access cheap and healthy meal preps.
Younimeal originated from a proposed brief that called for the “development of a new commercial enterprise in New Zealand, addressing a current, real-world problem.”
In response to this brief, I examined the current challenges in Aotearoa and identified a critical issue that affects vulnerable populations.
Amidst academic pressures, financial constraints and the rise in cost of living crisis, many students struggle to maintain consistent, healthy eating habits.
This shift often leads to reliance on fast food or skipping meals altogether, compromising both physical and mental well-being.
From research, I was able to find alarming statistics about food security that shaped the essence of this project:
By leveraging innovative vending technology, popularised in America and Asia as well as rethinking under-utilised indoor campus spaces, Younimeal is perfectly designed for busy student lifestyles.
Placed throughout indoor campus spaces, the machines provide flexible access to fresh meal preps during university opening hours, offering a self-service solution with weekly rotating menus.
Allowing users to set their dietary preferences for a more personalised shopping experience and ability to adjust at any time using the bottom bar.
Providing users with quick access to kiosk information and special bundle deals available for multiple orders, helping students save money without sacrificing nutrition.
Users can browse a wide range of meal prep options, viewing each item’s description, ingredients and full nutritional information to make informed choices.
Enabling users to easily add or remove items from their cart with familiar interactions and complete their purchase using their preferred contactless payment method.
Curated with fresh ingredients, customers can collect their meal prep boxes from the machine’s automatic open-close compartments upon payment.
Inside also includes a double-sided instruction manual, designed for easy, step-by-step preparation, making healthy eating effortless for busy students.
To deepen my understanding of what could be real-life habits, thoughts and experiences of university students in regards to healthy food security, I conducted a survey with seven respondents.
I organized these results into notes, quotes and data from my research through affinity mapping.
By analysing my research findings, I was able to pinpoint exactly who I was designing for, uncovering a clear demographic and the everyday challenges they face.
Having come up with solution ideas, I analysed competitors in the meal prep space, drawing from both professional and customer reviews to uncover strengths and weaknesses. This process ultimately helped shape Younimeal’s unique value proposition to cover gaps and better serve student needs in an already saturated industry.
Having come up with solution ideas, I analysed competitors in the meal prep space, drawing from both professional and customer reviews to uncover strengths and weaknesses. This process ultimately helped shape Younimeal’s unique value proposition to cover gaps and better serve student needs in an already saturated industry.
From Identifying weaknesses, I was able to create a unique business model canvas:
Community gardens are expanding beyond food cultivation. Research shows that gardens placed in hospitals offer important new benefits. While patients are often too sick to use these spaces, families find refuge and relief in them (Smidl, Mitchell, and Creighton, 2017).
Before further iterations, I conducted user testing with three participants. While there were notable positives, I gauged insights into key issues and areas for improvement:
Conclusion
Conclusion
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