Fancy has a special place in our hearts for our very first client, Iluminage Beauty, for whom we created the brand look, tone, feel, and campaign from the ground up. When they acquired beauty technology brand mē, we jumped at the chance to provide an elevated beauty brand identity for their new baby.

This innovative beauty company had an image that was anything but beautiful—uninspiring stock images, illustrated demos of skin cross-sections, and a cluttered online presence with little point of view. The attitude conveyed was all about the brand and not the customer—focusing on what they did as opposed to what the consumer gained. mē needed a hook, a way to emotionally connect with women.

So the question we asked ourselves was: How do we instill connection and inclusion in a category famous for its divisiveness?

You see, we’ve noticed that across the board within the beauty sector, products are segmented—this one’s for me, that one’s for you; people are segmented—you’re pretty, you’re not, you’re old, you’re young; results are segmented—works on dark skin, works on light skin.

To reach a broader audience, we needed to elevate the brand and create a point of view that would embody what we knew our millennial audience was craving: connection.

Advertising Beauty as a Unifying Force

When Andrea DiNunzio, Chief Marketing Officer, reached out to us to renovate her beauty brand’s story and visual identity, we were super excited to rekindle our relationship with Iluminage Beauty. Our first meeting began as so many great brainstorming sessions do, with lots of discussions about brands we like and brands we don’t. Ones who have a distinct POV that consumers can latch onto, and that don’t get lost in a sea of sameness.

She loved the work we had done for Clinique, but it didn’t involve people. So we worked together to create a brand narrative that put community at the forefront but still retained a clean, simple aesthetic.

Embrace the pursuit of beauty not as a divider of people, but as a unifier

mē is a beauty device company with a distinct advantage. Its hair removal products use the only technology that works on all skin tones and the widest range of hair colors. So we used that as a way to let beauty bring people together instead of driving them apart.

Focusing the Beauty Brand Identity: mē is for we

Born from the Brand DNA we developed, “mē is for we” became our rallying cry and informed every piece of communication we produced: visual, verbal, off-line, online. No matter what, we celebrated the fun and happiness that comes from togetherness.

With a full rebrand of both verbal and visual communication, mē suddenly became the image of joyful inclusivity—a welcome difference for the beauty industry.  

EXPANDING INCLUSIVITY THROUGH BRAND MESSAGING

"mē is for we" represented more than the coming together of brand and consumer. It brought consumers together. Our manifesto celebrated the non-competitive nature of the brand by announcing that we’re all in this beauty thing together. The inviting and inclusive spirit was carried through manifesto, packaging, website, and everywhere else.

CREATING CONNECTION IN BEAUTY THROUGH VISUAL BRANDING

Photographer Liz Von Hoene beautifully captured the spirit of the “mē is for we” visual brand identity in lively pictures that highlighted both the functional and emotional benefits of the brand and that were used throughout in-store, web design, packaging, and social efforts.

We knew immediately in our brainstorming sessions that the attitude was right: It was so different from the category, and the target finds competitive cliquey behavior a turn-off. But it was when we were at the shoot with Liz that we really felt the spirit come to life. The joy, spontaneity, and friendship she captured on set are felt in every shot.

BY THE NUMBERS: MAJOR PAYOFFS FOR A NEW BEAUTY BRAND IDENTITY

Since the launch of mē’s brand identity revamp, sales increased 20%, and four line extensions have been launched in the face, body, and textile categories. But perhaps the most telling outcome of this brand elevation is the increased distribution, including special invitations to carry the brand from Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus, who previously considered mē to be too mass-market for their upscale clientele.

Katie KeatingJanuary 30, 2018