Overview

Moosh is a retail concept educating consumers about psilocybin-containing mushrooms and offering psychedelic mushroom tea. From ideation to execution, it reflects an industry shaped by psilocybin decriminalization in California. We used speculative design and strategic foresight to navigate this emerging sector.

Goal

Lead the design and development of a pop-up experience, guiding a creative team to create a warm and educational brand and environment. Our objective was to blend elements of the medical industry with the natural healing approach of psychedelics.

Outcome

• Successfully tested retail experience with over 25 participants engaging in the final physical pop-up
• Developed a "warm medical" brand identity including look, feel, and messaging
  
• Designed information and layout with live copy for effective communication
  
• Implemented flow and spatial design to enhance user experience
  
• Explored possibilities for extending the concept through UX and e-commerce
  
• Optimized user journeys and interactions to maximize engagement
  
• Enhanced accessibility and inclusivity through thoughtful design decisions

ROLES

• Product Manager
• Exerpience Designer
• Content Creator

METHODS USED

• Challenge Statement
• In-depth Interviews
• Customer Journey Mapping
• Value Proposition Design
• Prototyping
• Usability Testing
• Information Architecture
• Visual Design
• Physical Pop-up Design
• Testing and Validation
• Presentation Design
• Cross-functional Collaboration
• Project Management
• Strategic Planning
• Design Thinking

TOOLS

• Zoom
• Notion
• Miro
• Canva
• Illustrator
• Figma
• InDesign

TIMELINE

September - December 2023 (3 months)

DEFINITIONS:

Psilocybin: The key ingredient in magic mushrooms is psilocybin, a naturally occuring psychedelic compound. Psilocybin containing mushrooms are commonly known as magic mushrooms or shrooms.

Psychedelic Drugs: Affect all senses, altering a person’s thinking, sense of time and emotions. Psychedelics can cause a person to hallucinate, seeing or hearing things that do not exist or are distorted.

Psilocybin Microdosing: The practice of using sub-threshold doses of psilocybin to improve creativity, boost physical energy level, promote emotional balance, increase performance on problems-solving tasks and to treat anxiety, depression and addiction.

Research Process

Our initial charge involved thorough research and analysis of competitive markets, along with conducting interviews with key stakeholders.

Competitive Analysis

1. Cannabis dispensory
2. Supplement store
3. Spice shop
4. Supermarket

Interviews

1. Spiritual Forager
2. Entrepreneur
3. Medicinal User
4. Novice User

Dimensioning

1. Framework Formation
2. Challenge Statement

Storyboarding

Each team member developed storyboards to illustrate initial concepts and customer journeys. Key insights included:

• Analogies enhance engagement (e.g., "Alice in Wonderland").
• Multi-sensory approaches boost memorability.
• Personalized experiences enhance security, particularly for first-time users.

Experience Concepts

Rapid prototyping spurred innovative ideas across technology, sensory experiences, and conceptual designs. This session refined our challenge statement to:

"How might we responsibly inform and guide the purchase and consumption of psychedelic mushrooms?"

Tunnel + Pods

• “Alice in Wonderland” welcome tunnel
• Experience pods

Trip Sitter

• AI powered silicone mushroom “Trip-Sitter”
• Safety features like emergency contacts, location finder, breathing exercises

Tea House

• “You-pick” mushroom selection process (Symbolizing foraging)
• On-site magic mushroom tea ceremony
  

Micropilot

We designed a micropilot to test our riskiest assumptions and uncertainties about our retail experience. Our goal was to learn what worked and what didn't to shape a more engaging, accessible, and educational experience for participants.

Entice

Participant is invited to the Moosh grand openning via Instagram.

Enter

Participant fills out a survey measuring psilocybin knowledge and experience.

Engage

Participant selects the type of strain, dosage, and flavor extract.

Exit

Participant has a consult with a Moosh Trip Guide where safety, microdosing, and intention setting is explained via the Moosh Passport.

Extend

The last page of the Moosh Passport is the Moosh Frequent Flyer Program - participant receives a free Moosh mug with their 6th purchase. 

Key Learnings

• Designed experience without digital UX to align with honoring psilocybin mushroom culture.
• This project served as proof of concept for branding, experience, and information design; next phases would integrate digital interface design.
• Embraced diversity of ideas while remaining flexible throughout the process.
• Focused on improving delegation and leveraging team strengths.
• Emphasized teamwork and collaboration in achieving ambitious goals despite legal challenges.