TopChino
**Issue:** The supermarket owner, our client for this project, found it somewhat exasperating to deal with customers constantly asking about specific products. He wanted them to be able to select items directly from the shelves without inquiring about brand differences, quality, or pricing. For example, when shopping for spaghetti in a large store, customers might face a dilemma with multiple brands and price points, making it challenging to choose the one that meets their expectations. Additionally, when purchasing other items like cookies, detergents, or vegetables, it would be beneficial for customers to calculate their total expenses anytime during shopping. Often, customers struggle to tally the total cost before checkout, which can lead to them returning items, causing inconvenience for themselves and other shoppers, wasting time, and creating embarrassment. The supermarket owner desired an application or website that would empower customers to resolve such issues independently, but he was unsure which solution would be most effective.
**Solution:** We not only addressed his concerns effectively, but we also enhanced the solution further! Our approach was to develop an application that allows multiple supermarkets to collaborate by sharing their inventory, providing customers with various options for convenience and satisfaction. This application enables shoppers to see the total cost of their cart online while allowing them to choose their preferred brands and price ranges, thereby helping them shop according to their budget. It presents all available product options, allowing customers to make informed decisions when adding items to their carts. The app processes orders, analyzes them, and forwards them to participating supermarkets. Each supermarket then assesses the orders to identify available items, with products dispatched from the closest store. The software assists users in locating nearby stores, comparing brands, finding desired prices, and evaluating service quality. The development of this smartphone app (for both Android and iOS) and website took four months, including time dedicated to testing and debugging.
**Features:**
- **Marketplace:** Enables purchasing through various payment gateways integrated with PayPal.
- **Product Listings:** Offers comprehensive listings sorted by supermarket categories, product types, and pricing across over 60 main categories.
- **Social Features:** Allows users to like, comment, and manage content to provide feedback, suggestions, and critiques on products, supermarkets, and services.
- **User Profiles:** Facilitates profile creation with location submissions, quality rankings of supermarkets, and product preferences.
- **Performance Monitoring:** Provides real-time statistics on customer preferences in terms of product selection, delivery options, store types, etc.
- **Order Tracking:** Permits users to check the status of their orders online at any time.
