Herbalife Nutrition

Herbalife Nutrition is a global health and wellness company specializing in nutrition products, protein shakes, and supplements. Operating through a direct-selling model, Herbalife supports three primary user groups:

  • Distributors – Independent business owners who sell Herbalife products.

  • Customers – Individuals purchasing Herbalife products for personal use.

  • Nutrition Clubs – Distributor-owned physical locations where customers can purchase and experience Herbalife shakes, teas, and nutritional products in a social setting.

My work at Herbalife focused primarily on customers and nutrition clubs, ensuring that ordering, purchasing, and engagement experiences were seamless, user-friendly, and optimized for sales growth.

My Role

At Herbalife Nutrition, I played a key role in shaping the UX design team, improving digital experiences for customers and nutrition clubs, and driving strategic product decisions. I started as a Senior UX Designer, advanced to Principal UX Designer, and eventually became the Manager of UX Design, where I led a diverse team of 9 professionals, including full-time employees and consultants.

As Manager of UX Design, I was responsible for overseeing and directing the team, which included interaction designers, visual designers, and UX researchers. I ensured that our team collaborated effectively, produced high-quality UX outcomes, and aligned with business objectives. I also played a crucial role in establishing user research at Herbalife, becoming the first UX team member to conduct user interviews, leading to a more data-driven approach to design.

Key Contributions & Responsibilities

  • Growing & Leading the UX Team

    • Scaled the UX team by improving hiring, mentorship, and process development.

    • Built a cross-functional team of designers and researchers, fostering collaboration and innovation.

    • Established team processes, research workflows, and design standards to enhance efficiency and quality.

  • Product Direction & eCommerce Strategy

    • Led the UX strategy for Herbalife’s eCommerce platform, which drives the majority of the company’s sales.

    • Designed end-to-end customer experiences for ordering, product discovery, and retention, ensuring a frictionless purchase journey.

    • Collaborated with stakeholders, product teams, and developers to align UX with business growth and revenue objectives.

  • Introducing User Research & Data-Driven Design

    • Became the first UX leader to conduct user interviews, integrating customer feedback into the design process.

    • Advocated for a research-backed UX strategy, leading to improved usability, engagement, and conversion rates.

    • Ensured that all design efforts followed ADA compliance standards and best practices for accessibility and inclusivity.

Through my growth from Senior Designer to UX Manager, I helped elevate Herbalife’s UX team into a high-functioning, research-driven group, delivering impactful design solutions that enhanced both customer experiences and business performance.

Process - Data-Driven UX & Continuous Discovery at Herbalife Nutrition

At Herbalife Nutrition, we established a user-centered, research-driven design process that directly influenced our roadmap, product decisions, and feature improvements. By implementing continuous discovery, we ensured that real user insights shaped every stage of our design and development process.

Step 1: User Research to Define the Roadmap

To ensure we were solving the right problems for customers and nutrition club owners, we prioritized user research as the foundation of our roadmap:

  • Conducted customer and distributor interviews to uncover pain points and opportunities in the ordering, purchasing, and nutrition club experiences.

  • Analyzed quantitative data (engagement metrics, conversion rates, and drop-off points) to validate which areas needed the most attention.

  • Used research findings to shape our product roadmap, prioritizing features and enhancements that had the greatest impact on the user experience and business goals.

Step 2: Concept Development & Initial Prototyping

Once we defined high-impact features, we moved into the ideation and design phase:

  • Created low-fidelity wireframes to explore multiple UX solutions for each feature.

  • Developed interactive prototypes that simulated real user flows and interactions.

  • Aligned with stakeholders, product managers, and developers to ensure that our concepts were both technically feasible and aligned with business needs.

Step 3: Usability Testing & Iteration

Before moving into development, we conducted usability testing to validate our designs and ensure they met real user needs:

  • Ran moderated and unmoderated usability tests, gathering feedback from customers and nutrition club owners.

  • Measured task success rates, completion times, and user satisfaction scores to assess effectiveness.

  • Iterated based on findings, refining navigation, UI elements, and feature flows to eliminate friction and improve usability.

Step 4: Development Handoff & Implementation

After refining the designs, we collaborated with engineering teams to ensure smooth implementation:

  • Provided detailed design specifications, annotations, and interaction guidelines.

  • Conducted design QA to ensure that the final product matched the intended UX.

  • Supported development with ongoing feedback and adjustments as needed.

Step 5: Continuous Discovery & Iterative Improvement

To maintain a user-driven product evolution, we adopted a continuous discovery approach after launch:

  • Monitored post-launch analytics and customer feedback to assess how changes impacted users.

  • Conducted follow-up research and surveys to identify new opportunities and pain points.

  • Used these insights to inform future roadmap updates, ensuring that our product continued to evolve in response to real user needs.

Products

Conclusion

My time at Herbalife Nutrition was an invaluable learning experience that helped me grow as a designer, leader, and strategist. It was not just about improving customer and nutrition club experiences—it was about elevating UX as a key driver of business success.

From a design perspective, I gained deep expertise in scalable UX solutions, design system integration, and accessibility compliance. Leading the eCommerce experience for a global brand gave me insights into conversion-driven design and customer engagement strategies.

In the project management space, managing a cross-functional team of UX designers, visual designers, and researchers strengthened my ability to lead complex initiatives, balance stakeholder expectations, and drive product vision from concept to execution.

From a research perspective, introducing user interviews and continuous discovery reinforced the power of data-driven design, ensuring that every decision was rooted in real user needs. Conducting qualitative and quantitative research helped me understand how to bridge the gap between customer insights and business priorities.

And from a business perspective, contributing to Herbalife’s primary sales-driving eCommerce platform taught me how UX directly impacts revenue, user retention, and market growth. Collaborating with product, engineering, and business teams provided me with a holistic understanding of how UX integrates into broader company objectives.

Overall, Herbalife Nutrition was a pivotal experience that strengthened my leadership, research, and strategic thinking skills, shaping me into a more well-rounded UX leader.