Bookt.
Helping Black women in Austin find quality hair stylists.
Overview
Based on the theme “Don’t Mess with Texas” we were assigned to create a valuable business with intent. The key tasks were to understand customer needs (research), validate the ideas (prototype), and position the idea (marketing).
Role & Duration
Product Designer
Research, Information Architecture, Interaction, Wireframes, Prototyping, Visual Design
Aug 2019 - Dec 2019
The Problem
Black women can’t find quality hair stylists in Austin easily or efficiently. Most are relying on social media platforms like Instagram to search keywords to find stylists in their area.
Discovery
I surveyed a total of 23 Black women in Austin Texas to ask them about their experiences trying to find stylists in the city.
Source: Google Sheets
Main Pain Points
The findings of the survey revealed many important details. Firstly, I learned my assumption was true, Black women have a hard time finding stylists in Austing and typically find them by searching keywords on Instagram. Most women are getting their hair done at least five times a year for various styles and trims and were willing to travel far distances to get their hair done. This included both Dallas and Houston where there are larger Black populations and more access to stylists. The most important discover, however, was the four major pain points:
Scheduling
Lack of stylist availability, waiting for service, making the actual appointment
Time
Appointments for most styles take a long time.
Results
Fear of not liking the end style.
Cost
It costs a lot of money to get your hair done as a Black woman
Getting to the Facts
The Money
African American women spend $7.5 billion on beauty products annually and the Black hair care industry is valued at $2.5 billion not including accessories, wigs, etc.
The Workforce
Salons work as franchises so most don’t have direct employees and rely on contractors instead of direct employees. The average wage for hair stylists nationwide is $12.72 per hour or around $26K a year.
Source: Think Progress
Competition in the Space
Goodhair
Goodhair is/was a quick service hair salon that focuses on natural hair. Also using the Drybar model, they have two major services – a straight blowout or a curly style – with the option for add-ons.
Colours
Colours was founded by Debra Shigley. It is an app based service that allows users to browse styles, book a date and time, and a stylist will arrive to your home. The app ceased operations in June 2019.
Styleseat
Styleseat is one of the more well known destinations for clients to find hair services. It offers stylists to showcase their work and clients to find service providers in one place.
More Surveys
I surveyed a total of 15 Black women in Austin to see what they would like their salon experience to be like.
The survey revealed that Black women value experience and will spend a significant amount of money for add on services. 60% of women surveyed would spend $20-$30 dollars more.
Most of the women wanted to enjoy their time doing the following activities while getting their hair done: Watch TV, catch up on work, have optional conversations, charge their devices, read, and have an adult beverage.
Source: Google Sheets
The Solution
Bookt is a hair appointment booking system for Black women in Austin, Texas. Unlike the competition, Bookt curates a network of qualified stylists and gives clients the option to tailor their salon experience based on personal preferences.
