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In the beauty world, nearly every color and formula has been made. The one variable that changes is packaging. It’s the reason why we can convince ourselves to buy a new palette, even if some or all of those shades are practically dupes for what we already own. Colourpop is no stranger to this notion as they are known for their fast beauty products and aesthetically-pleasing packaging design. However, we saw a white-space opportunity for Colourpop to create precious moments around fast beauty products by giving the consumer the power to customize and personalize with a multi-purpose palette without sacrificing packaging aesthetics.
MY ROLE
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Product design
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Packaging design (C4D, Illustrator)
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UX/ UI design (Sketch, Invision)
THE TEAM
Ynes Bouck (XD), Alisha Taylor (CBM)
THE SITUATION
A lackluster choose your own adventure
Colourpop is known as the fast-fashion of beauty due to their ability to quickly concept, manufacture, and distribute their products in their in-house facilities. Part of their continued success is hinged on their creative packaging design that delights their consumer base. However, one area where innovative design has not been touched is the build-your-own-palette feature, which offers 12 to 24 pans of eyeshadow, blush, highlighters, etc in a standard z-palette.
Current Create Your Own Palette Offerings:
small palette
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12 eyeshadows
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4 shadows and 2 cheek pans
large palette
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24 eyeshadows
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6 cheek pans
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Combination of both
visual reference of palette offerings
THE ASK
Develop a create-your-own-palette product extension that can co-exist alongside Colourpop’s current offerings.
surprise and delight
with thoughtful
packaging
stay true to colourpop's brand identity
OUR WAY IN
Tiny, workhorse packaging
Colourpop is a powerhouse in the beauty industry and is constantly riding the trend waves or creating their own. But, like fashion, beauty is cyclical with familiar trends appearing alongside the new. This led us to look towards the past to see how Colourpop can take their next steps forward.
Before plastic packaging took over the makeup industry in the 1950’s/1960’s, many beauty products were housed in stunning metal compacts and clutches. Sometimes, there were multiple beauty products available in one compact (see example), which made traveling easier and created less waste. Notably, the beauty products of the past were often smaller than today’s standards, which made it easier to completely finish a product before hitting (or passing) the expiration date.
STRATEGY
POSITIONING
Encapsulate delectable charm through unconventional, yet versatile design.
A delightfully tiny powerhouse
delightfully tiny
WHAT IT IS
Usdi is a multi-purpose compact palette line that can house your choice of Colourpop eyeshadows, pressed powders, cream sticks, or multistick products.
PACKAGING DESIGN
COMPONENT 1: THE CURATED PALETTE
This palette is for the person that knows what they want, when they want it, and how they want it. They’re resourceful - the type to use their bronzer as eyeshadow or vice versa. They’re looking for a reliable and compact selection of products to take them wherever they need to go.
Curated palette options: 12 eyeshadows + 1 multistick, 8 eyeshadows + 2 cheek pans + 1 multistick, 6 eyeshadows + 2 cheek pans + 1 multistick, 4 eyeshadows + 4 cheek pans + 1 multistick, and 6 cheek pans + 1 multistick
click on images to expand
COMPONENT 2: THE COMMUTER PALETTE
This palette is for the person that wants to add efficiency to their routine without sacrificing options. They’re adaptable -- the type to base their makeup look on the outfit they’re wearing. They’re looking for a way to house their must-have products in one place.
Commuter palette options: 16 eyeshadows + 2 multisticks, 12 eyeshadows + 2 cheek pans + 2 multisticks, 8 eyeshadows + 4 cheek pans + 2 multisticks, 4 eyeshadows + 6 cheek pans + 2 multisticks, and 8 cheek pans + 2 multisticks
click on images to expand
COLOURPOP X USDI
CREATE YOUR OWN PALETTE
We created an extension within the current create your own palette feature on Colourpop's website. The extension allows you to choose your usdi component and select the eye, cheek and multistick products for each section of your palette.
CHEEKS
Sculpt your cheeks with blush, bronzer, contour and highlight-- all in the same soft, finely milled powder that blends out effortlessly.
EYES
The powder eyeshadow of your dreams-- super pigmented colour in a matte, metallic, duochrome, or glitter finish, easily blendable, and velvety soft texture creates a soft-focus effect that’s super longwearing.
MULTISTICKS
When all you need is just a tint. This comfy, hydrating tint adds the perfect sheer wash of colour for lips, cheeks, or eye.
view full prototype here
DESIGN PROCESS
INSPIRATION
In the Philippines, there's a word "gigil" that's translated as "the urge to pinch or squeeze something that is unbearably cute." But as no such word exists in the English language, Yale researchers came up with their own: cute aggression.
read more about this study here and here
We found this same urge applies to packaging, especially when it is “unbearably cute” swaying customers to make a purchasing decision even if the colors are slight variations from ones they currently use. This holds true for Colourpop, which inspired our project to create an "all-in-one" component that fulfills this urge with the freedom to create your dream palette.