Method 1. Measuring
I started by using the Measure app on my phone to check the size of different shelves in M&S, like the food shelves, wine shelves, and freezers. I wanted to see if there were any patterns between the shelf sizes and the products they carried. What I found was that the shelves were not the same size, even when placed next to each other. For example, shelves A and B were the same, D and E were also the same, but C was the widest of all. This made me think about how shelf size might relate to the type of products. My guess is that shelves for refrigerated items need more internal space, so their external size becomes different. But at the same time, these differences may also reflect design choices about how products are displayed.
Method 2. Photographing
After looking at the physical space, I turned my attention to product labels. I collected and photographed price labels to see how information was presented. From my perspective as a foreigner, the first thing I noticed was the hierarchy of information. Some labels use big, colorful fonts to highlight promotions or discounts, while other details like unit price are pushed into small print. I also saw some interesting uses of language, like “I’VE JUST ARRIVED,” which makes the product sound alive and friendly. But I also found moments that confused me—for example, two labels showing exactly the same information placed side by side. Maybe this is a way to fight for the customer’s attention, but it also shows how communication in supermarkets can be repetitive or even unclear.
Method 3. Diagramming
Finally, I focused on how people actually behave in the supermarket. I placed my phone in the shopping cart, recorded my route, and marked customer actions on a timeline using different colors. By doing this, I was both a researcher and someone inside the system being observed. I saw different patterns: some people walked straight to their target and quickly grabbed what they wanted, some walked back and comparing products, some asked staff, while others just chose items with signs like “No.1.” I described this as a sequence of decision → focus → acquisition, a kind of new “hunting.” But unlike traditional hunting, it’s shaped not only by personal choice but also by the layout of the space and the way information is designed.
In this sense, the food hall becomes a dynamic social lab, where patterns of behavior offer an entry point to understanding modern life, perception, and the interplay of technology and culture.