Apples to Oranges: Compare a price in stores near you

A2O is a grocery store application inspired by getting the best deal when shopping for groceries. It was created with features such as locating an item's price near you.

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Inspiration

A problem that most people currently have: we all would like to find the best price for the item we’re looking at in the store. Sometimes the best price might be at the next store and we don’t even know it.

The goal of this app is to solve this problem by providing an easy way to look up items and then view comparable prices at local grocery stores so you can decide where to shop for your items before you head out to the store or when you’re out shopping.

What it does

It’s a money saving application where you can search for specific products and find the best price nearby.

The app uses a search to find products by name and then it takes you to a products page where comparable products are listed, with their price, location, and potential discount.

It displays the location of the store where the product is that they would like to buy.

It also features login/logout functionality and a profile page so that a user can save their favorite/frequently purchased products.

How we built it

We decided to use a stack that would fit our current knowledge and that will challenge us at the same time. We used: React the main library for the app.

Tailwind CSS for responsiveness and design.

MapBox component for displaying product location with markers and popup windows.

MapQuest API for finding the user's location.

Firebase for the user's authentication part.

React Router for page routes.

We mocked the project in Figma to start and chose a specific color palette.

Challenges we ran into

Deciding what to include and what not to include in the MVP.

Narrowing the number of features to implement in the MVP.

Defining the idea and the structure of the project at the beginning.

Finding an API that has access to store inventory and prices.

Data we needed was found behind a paywall.

No free resources to utilize for updated price data on grocery store items.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

A visually pleasing design that is put together.

The purpose of the app can help many people to save money.

Having a usable, viable MVP with its core functionality.

We are proud we pushed ourselves outside of our comfort zone and picked an ambitious project.

What we learned

Communication is key and to always estimate the amount of work we want to put on for specific tasks.

API and data is not free so we often hit roadblocks with creating features to would depend on particular API and data.

We would need funding to create our own API and data for accurate item prices and their store location.

We learned more about Firebase, how to implement maps and location, and how to create responsive designs using Tailwind.

We learned agile development as we collaborated and developed the app.

What's next for Apples to Oranges: Compare a price in stores near you

There is still a lot of new features we can add such as: Photo scanning technology so you don’t have to type in the item name. A button to link to your native navigation app on the phone to get directions. User created shopping list to find the best prices for everything on the list. Turning A2O into a native app on the iPhone and Android devices. Including the distance from the user to the store so they can determine how far away the chosen product is. Reminders/notifications for the user when a product in their favorites goes on sale.

To generate revenue besides the ones we already have in mind such as in-app advertising: We will partner with well-known retail chains and offer discounts to items. We will partner with local mom & pop stores that are not usually on the map.

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