Skip to Content

Recreating the ethereal in-store experience of Shen Beauty through ecommerce.

Recreating the ethereal in-store experience of Shen Beauty through ecommerce

Since opening the Brooklyn storefront in 2010, Shen has made a name for itself as a go-to destination for beauty lovers from around the globe. The calm, ethereally lit in-store experience inspired by Atelier Bow-Wow provides the perfect lighting for customers and truly captures the brand’s unique identity and elegance. This made for an exciting and ambitious project for the Half Helix Design team, tasked with bringing that same energy to life in Shen Beauty’s new web store. A hub of top-tier wellness and beauty products curated by founder and industry expert Jess Richards, the site needed to make a collection of various brands and products feel like a unified, cohesive whole — and bring a frictionless, easy-to-shop experience to customers beyond NYC.

01

Matching the storefront’s energy

Walking into the brick and mortar Shen Beauty shop is like taking a breath of fresh air — but the previous online shopping experience just didn’t line up. The Half Helix team worked hard to bring the same care and attention to every feature of the site that Jess and her team bring to their in-person customers. Now shopping at the online Shen store feels as personal and intentional as the Brooklyn storefront.

Image description
Image description
Image description
Image description
Image description
Image description
Image description
02

Multiple labels, one brand

Shen has always offered a selection of the best-in-class beauty and wellness products, carefully selected by founder Jess Richards, a renowned industry expert. The Half Helix team had to find creative solutions to craft a cohesive shopping experience despite varying image and copy standards across labels. Now, navigating from one item to another is smooth and seamless — and customers have no doubts they’re still in the Shen shop.

Description
03

A more modern customer experience

The whole site was ready for a revamp, so Half Helix’s 4-person team set to work bringing everything up to date for a more modern, frictionless customer experience. New search, email, discounting, and upsell features were added for better usability. And shop the look, quick add, quick view on hover with product details, and gift with purchase functions all bring an extra delight for shoppers.

Description
Back to top