Simply Skin was founded at a time when skincare was changing. They first came to us in 2016 and together we built a brand about beauty free from vanity, rooted only in love and care for one's self. Through the years and several branches later, the concept of skincare as self-care became widely accepted and Simply Skin's once unique messaging—values they've always held dear—no longer stood out. It was then up to us to understand how beauty had evolved, to find what people valued most about skincare as self-care, and once again, set Simply Skin apart.
We analyzed how the competition communicated, visited their branches and tried some of their services to find where gaps lay. We also surveyed Simply Skin's clientele to learn what motivates them to care for themselves and their skin. We found that the everywoman (and man) always craves for continuous progress and is willing to work to achieve it, as much for their skin as for their lives. And so we designed the new Simply Skin to embrace beauty and life as always growing, always unfinished, and built a brand experience around progress that can be easily felt, owned and sustained.
The central idea of progress guided all our creative decisions. The logotype and primary brand mark uses letterforms with gentle progressions from thick widths to thin, and from sharp edges to graceful dew drops. The color palette is also derived from the changing colors of the earth, grounded by a strong earthy red.
The brand's key elements were all also designed to celebrate progress through the brand's three pillars. First, simple and gentle frames highlight a diversity of faces, celebrating progress one can own. Second, textures mostly found in nature express the tactility not just of skin, but also of moods and experiences. The variety of textures acknowledges all skin types and promotes a kind of progress that can be seen and felt. Lastly, ripples through the textures illustrate the movement of progress that keeps going, that isn't contained in a single moment, but rather a habit one commits to for the better. Icons were also designed as abstract expressions of skin concerns, grounded in progressing lines.
We then applied the brand's strategic and visual foundations into intentionally designed experiences in-store, on social media and on their website.
The Simply Skin team beautifully expanded our brand direction into a deep and engaging brand experience. Check out how you can adopt a mindset of progress through their Instagram or visit their branches or their website.