Plus Closet
The first resale platform built exclusively for plus-size fashion.
Plus Closet is an e-commerce platform created to make fashion more accessible, and inclusive for plus-size women. While many platforms claim size inclusivity, most fall short, offering outdated styles, limited fit guidance, and little assurance of quality. In response, our client asked us to design a functional prototype that centers the needs of plus-size buyers and sellers at every step.
Overview
Style guide
Sign-up experience and seller onboarding
Unifying our team’s individual high-fidelity screens into one cohesive prototype
Exploratory usability testing
Buyer and seller onboarding
Reseller dashboard
Personalized product discovery
Inclusive product presentation
Design a mobile-first prototype that addresses the frustrations of plus-size shoppers and resellers, with functionality that includes:
Goal
My Role
UX researcher and UI/UX designer on a 3-person team. Key contributions:
Reflections
Problem Space
Understanding the Problem
Plus-size women face significant barriers in the resale market - from limited style options to poor filtering tools and inconsistent sizing. While many platforms claim to be inclusive, they often fail to center plus-size users in their UX, visuals, or merchandising strategies. This leads to a frustrating, discouraging experience for users who are already underserved in traditional retail.
Research Questions
To better understand the needs of plus-size buyers and sellers, we centered our research around the following questions:
What are the biggest challenges plus-size users face when shopping for clothes, especially online?
How do plus-size shoppers feel about their experience on existing resale platforms?
What makes a resale platform feel inclusive or exclusive to plus-size buyers and sellers?
What frustrations do plus-size sellers face when trying to list and sell their items online?
How do plus-size users want to present themselves when selling?
Research Methods
Research Insights
Our research focused on understanding the gaps in existing resale experiences for plus-size users, using the following methods:
Secondary Research – We reviewed articles, blog posts, and community forums to understand the lived experiences of plus-size buyers and sellers in fashion and resale.
Competitor Analysis – We analyzed platforms like Poshmark, Depop and ThredUp to identify usability patterns, gaps in filtering, and how plus-size users are represented in content and design.
Plus-size shoppers struggle to find fashion that feels current, flattering, and easy to browse.
Buyer Frustrations
Most platforms offer outdated styles and rely on ineffective filters.
Relevant sizing and styles are often hidden, requiring extra effort to discover.
Trend-forward items are rare in plus-size categories.
Resale platforms limit self-expression and often feel extractive or unclear.
Seller Frustrations
Sellers have little space to show personality or build a recognizable closet.
Many platforms automate pricing and restrict control, creating confusion or mistrust.
Commission splits and payout processes are often vague or hidden.
Sellers are forced to choose between too much control or too little.
User Personas
The digital shopping experience creates cognitive overload and emotional discomfort.
Emotional Experience
After synthesizing the research, two primary user types began to emerge - buyer and seller. We created personas for each type which were utilized throughout the design process to stay grounded in the needs of our users.
Endless scrolling, confusing filters, and irrelevant listings lead to fatigue.
Shoppers rarely see bodies like theirs represented, which contributes to feelings of exclusion.
Platforms feel impersonal, leaving users emotionally detached from the experience.
Erica shops with purpose. She knows what she wants and is frustrated by platforms that make her feel like an afterthought. Her needs shaped how we approached fit details and personalization.
Sandra treats her closet like a brand. She’s creative, expressive, and wants selling to feel intuitive, not like a chore. Sandra inspired our reseller onboarding flow and customization options.
The Challenge
Designing the Solution
Design a mobile-first resale experience that truly centers plus-size buyers and sellers, not as an afterthought but, as the intended audience. The platform needs to:
Reflect the lived experiences of plus-size users, both emotionally and functionally
Support stylish, easy-to-browse discovery that doesn’t overwhelm or exclude
Empower sellers with clear, customizable tools that balance control and ease
Build trust through inclusive visuals and transparent processes
User Flows
To meet the business goal of acquiring and retaining buyers and sellers, while keeping the process user-friendly, I focused on creating a streamlined sign-up flow and seller onboarding flow. Here's how those experiences take shape:
This flow was designed to balance efficiency and personalization. The goal was to keep the initial steps light, while offering an optional step for users to share their style, size, and brand preferences.This optional input supports more tailored browsing later (like in the “Made For You” section) without creating too much friction during sign-up.
The Seller Onboarding Flow was designed to be clear and intuitive, while seamlessly integrating key requirements like Stripe account setup and terms agreement.
Seller Onboarding Flow
Wireframes
The wireframes below were originally designed for a laptop layout, based on the client’s initial request for a desktop platform. As the project progressed, the client decided to shift to a mobile-first experience. While our final prototype is mobile-based, these early wireframes reflect the foundational thinking behind the user flows we would later adapt for mobile.
This flow was designed to make account creation quick and motivating. I wanted to balance functionality with emotional resonance. The optional personalization step, where users can set their size, style, and brand preferences, helps create a sense of ownership and relevance right from the start.
This flow guides new sellers through setting up their closet in a way that feels approachable and transparent, without overwhelming them. The steps are broken into manageable sections, covering closet info, shipping, payment, review and reseller agreement.
Style Guide
High-Fidelity Designs
Affirming messaging, inclusive imagery, and an optional style preference step help users feel seen and supported from the start. The goal was to balance emotional resonance with quick onboarding.
Seller onboarding was designed for clarity and self-expression. The onboarding process is divided into manageable steps, and encourages Sellers to personalize their Plus Closet to build their brand and connect with Buyers.
User Testing & Iteration
Prototype
Iteration
I led exploratory testing to assess overall impressions and usability, while my teammates focused on task-based flow testing. Exploratory testing was conducted with five plus-size women who had experience buying or selling on resale platforms within the past year.
Exploratory User Testing
The ‘Made For You’ section was explored first. Users praised the inclusion of measurements in listings. Most ignored areas like Cart or Wishlist, but understood their purpose when asked.
Buyer Experience
Onboarding Experience
While most users appreciated the optional style, size, and brand preferences step, there was some confusion as to how it would be used to personalize their experience throughout the app.
Users appreciated the plain-language Reseller Agreement. The closet bio was a favorite among seller-leaning users. Stripe setup caused hesitation given the request for personal information.
Seller Experience
Exploratory testing revealed two main areas for improvement in the sign-up and seller onboarding flows. Clarity regarding the purpose of entering style/size/brand preferences and reassurance when creating a Stripe account.
Reflections & Next Steps
Designing Plus Closet was an opportunity to create a space that feels affirming, intuitive, and tailored for a community that’s often overlooked in both fashion and tech. Working closely with my team, I learned how to balance business needs with inclusive design decisions, especially in areas like tone, visual representation, and seller onboarding.
Exploratory testing pushed me to think more critically about trust, emotional resonance, and the small moments that shape user perception. I also saw firsthand how important clarity is, not just in navigation, but in explaining why certain steps matter, like Stripe setup or preference selection.
This project deepened my belief that thoughtful UX can be a form of advocacy, and I’m proud to have contributed to a product that reflects that.
Next Steps
While our prototype validated many key design decisions, there’s still room to evolve. Based on testing insights and scope constraints, here’s where we’d focus next:
Build out the buyer experience: Functional search, filters, and wishlist interactions to support deeper browsing and discovery.
Refine the seller dashboard: Add tools for managing active listings, viewing earnings, and editing profiles with ease.
Test bundle checkout flows: Since multi-seller bundle purchases were out of scope for this round, a future version should test how to make that experience feel seamless.
Connect
Thanks for taking the time to check out this case study. If you're curious to hear more about my design process, want to share feedback, or just want to connect with a fellow designer, I’d love to hear from you.
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All users quickly understood Plus Closet’s purpose as a plus-size resale app. The tagline “resale for real bodies” resonated. Participants described the app as “inviting,” “non-corporate,” and “needed.”