Beauty Reset.
Re-staging a trusted beauty brand for environmental performance in the 21st century.
Client: Paris Presents Inc.
Industry: Beauty & Wellness
Services: Product & Service Design, Experiential and Visual Design, Sourcing and Manufacturing, Strategy Development, Industry Research
Design Brief.
Paris Presents is a leader in the beauty and bath market. Notably, they were the first company to incorporate sustainable materials into mass-market beauty tools through their brand EcoTools over a decade ago. While initially they came to FutureTogether to renew their sustainability commitment by restaging products and the brand, our collaboration produced innovation at every level of the company.
Outcome.
New patentable products, functionality, and environmental efficiency resulted in significant sales growth as well as cost saving for the Paris Presents brand. In addition, our visual team renewed the EcoTools brand with a refreshed logo, color palette, packaging information hierarchy and a clear customer and environmental centered message—refinements that ultimately strengthened EcoTools’ position as a market leader in the environmental beauty sector.
Social Impact.
During our extensive research of the brand and its customers, we developed a new brand language and design strategy to communicate inclusive beauty messaging. Our strategy focused on emotional health, empowerment, and the elimination of products or beauty routines that were unnecessary or harmful to the environment.
Environmental Impact.
The management at Paris Presents asked FutureTogether to think boldly, so our team evaluated EcoTools holistically. By conducting market, ethnographic and design research; holding focus groups; and performing life cycle assessments to benchmark products and identify innovation opportunities, we were able to make recommendations that ended up reducing the entire product lines’ environmental footprint by over 30 percent.
“We are incredibly excited about our redesign and our partnership that led us to where we are today.”
Stacey Ramstedt - Senior Director of Marketing
Understanding the Culture of Beauty.
One of our goals was to understand the EcoTools user and to enhance their experience by way of sustainability. Our main insights pointed to the consumer need for routine simplification—so updating of the product range with greater attention to tool performance, cleanability and value alignment was crucial to building stronger brand advocates.
Form Follows Function.
Our designs were created around the beauty routines of everyday users and professionals. The redesigned products were easier to use and keep clean—their shapes, packaging, and presentation morphed into a more elevated, approachable brand experience.
We designed:
· A new “form language,” product handles inspired by writing tools, which offered customers greater precision, comfort, and balance.
· Tapered product handles that limit bristle contact when brushes are placed on any surface.
· Bristle shapes optimized for softness and effective makeup application.
· Ergonomic bath brushes that follow the language of the cosmetic brush handles.
· New formats, sizes and ways of tagging sponges and loofahs to prioritize function, durability and consistency in the brand.
Responsible Materials Only.
All the materials used in the brush and bath products were evaluated on their lifecycle and carbon footprint. Our selection was driven by sustainability concerns, customer behaviors, supply chains and the need to align function, durability, and impact.
Some major changes that resulted from our work include the introduction of bio-based foams for beauty blenders, the re-shaping of the blenders to minimize waste and increase product yield as well as alternate wood species selections for handles based on responsible sourcing criteria.
Packaging As Product.
Working closely with the EcoTools marketing team, we produced life cycle assessments, developed concepts and outlined re-use strategies to reduce product impact without sacrificing customer value. A few tangible examples include limiting the number of components per product and when fully recyclable packaging wasn’t available, finding a truly reusable packaging solution.
A Clear Path To Follow.
Many of the insights and opportunities uncovered during our research re-set the groundwork for products still being developed at EcoTools. Not only did we uncover product service solutions for their offerings—but we also explored ways to establish a new, differentiated beauty experience for EcoTools customers.
Links & Press.