Client
SalonCentric (L’Oreal)
Role
Lead Product Designer
Timeline
~4 months (Shipped late 2021)
*This body of work includes a visual design refresh in 2024
SalonCentric, a subsidiary of L’Oreal is one of the largest wholesale salon and beauty supply distributors, serving more than one million licensed beauty professionals in the US. Their goal is to become leaders in the professional beauty space, supporting the growth, education and success of all beauty professionals.
Challenge
Supply chain shortfall
Beauty supply distribution was slowed during the height of the pandemic, stylists weren’t able to stock up on their usual supplies and were forced to shop elsewhere. SalonCentric didn't have the infrastructure needed to provide additional pathways to put beauty products in their customers’ hands, underscoring the urgent need for an onmi-channel approach.
Low customer confidence
The majority of online purchases are from salon owners who typically repeat orders, while independent stylists and students preferred in-store visits to explore new products and brands firsthand. As the world shifts from brick-and-mortar to e-commerce, the majority of SalonCentric customers didn't have the confidence to make purchases online, where the brand and product education was lacking.
Approach
Auditing the current experience
Loud promotions saturate the experience paired with a disconnected browsing and discovery experience, resulted in a frustrated and overwhelmed customers and vague identity for the SalonCentric. Additionally, the shopping experience is impersonal, forcing more work upon users to find what they're looking for.
The lack of design system and information hierarchy throughout the site contributes to an incohesive look and feel making it untrustworthy and inconsistent.
Scaling the Product Detail Page (PDP)
The product selection panel needed accommodate all the use cases for different marketplace sellers, product types, and shopping options for each product type (swatches, sizes, collections, ranges, categories, etc.) We landed on an approach with clearer information hierarchy that was scalable and easy to process.
Configuring the Product Selection Module
We needed to come up with a solution that can accommodate 1) seller types (SalonCentric vs 3rd party sellers); and 2) many product types: shades, collections, sizes, styles, colors—as well as any combination of the above.
Experience Outcome
A product detail page that educates and inspires
As more purchases are moving online, ensuring our customers have access to product education and building their shopper confidence was top of mind. We created different modules for product features, promotions, cross-sells, and social proof via brand and user generated content.
Category pages that tell a story
Three types of intermediary category pages (CLP and PLP) for types of users who either know what they're looking for or those undecided that need some navigational guidance. Each page type—category, brand, and deals—encompasses configurable modules to provide additional information and context.
