London-based design and brand studio ShopTalk has created a global brand refresh for Face the Future, the UK’s leading online skincare clinic.

The ambitious project reimagines the identity of this fast-growing international brand, laying the foundations for the next chapter of their success with a tailored brand that reimagines skincare as self-care, reflecting the changing nature of the business and its customers.

Paul Thompson, owner of Face the Future says: “Face the Future has experienced significant growth over the last two years; growth in terms of sales and customers, but also expansion and diversification in terms of the brands and beauty categories we now offer.

“We knew that with their advice, support, and guidance, ShopTalk could reimagine our brand to cement us into this distinctive position within the market, in turn helping us to attract new audiences by offering them advice for life as they join us on their self-care journey. We are delighted with the results and ShopTalk have delivered a brand that we can be proud of; one that we hope our customers will enjoy being a part of too.”

Facing forward but anchored in the past

Originally started in 2005, Face the Future has transformed from a family-run practitioner into a renowned skincare marketplace, with customers across the globe. It’s a story of explosive growth, but while the business itself has undergone a period of rapid transformation, its visual identity remained firmly rooted in the past.

A recent change in ownership hadn’t just changed the people behind the business, it had fundamentally changed its reason to exist. “Changing from a family business to a global brand is a huge shift,” says Coralie Carré, Design Director at ShopTalk. “It was our job to capture that change through brand expression.”

Working closely with Face the Future, ShopTalk created a holistic identity that represents the changing face of the company and the loyal customers who have helped to achieve global recognition.

ShopTalk’s strategy centred on building a scalable global brand that retained a personal feel. The challenge was to stay true to Face the Future’s original communication by showcasing the people behind the company, providing a continuation of the approachable, safe and trustworthy reputation they’d infused into Face the Future. At the same time ShopTalk had to lay the foundations for the next chapter of the company’s development. The end result is a brand that marries big ambitions with little personal touches.

“People are powerful, they are the heart of any business, but particularly those working in the self-care sector,” explains Carré. “It was important for the rebrand to translate both sides of Face the Future’s human approach, the brand expertise combined with the consumer’s unique needs and stories. We wanted the core brand elements to move away from being clinical and static to something human, welcoming and flexible.”

From skincare to self-care

Skincare brands have seen a fundamental shift in the landscape during recent years as the global pandemic and subsequent changes to our work/life habits have changed the way we look at beauty.

Face the Future does more than just selling skincare brands, it’s a trusted advisor that guides its customers on tailored self-care journeys that evolve alongside their own changing needs. The new identity is designed to reflect this journey. Face the Future is now positioned as an integral part of the wider wellness world, with an identity that reflects the notion that self-care goes beyond skincare.

This approach is intertwined into every aspect of the business and by extension, the brand. Everywhere you look in Face the Future’s new visual identity you’ll find depth. Every single item is crafted – even when it’s cut away or zoomed-in, there’s a lot of consideration of layers.

The combination of gradients and monograms working together creates something unexpected and beautiful, elements that reflect the strong personality of the brand and its customers. Meanwhile, pops of colour balanced with more muted tones reflect the positivity, warmth and togetherness of the Face the Future community.

“The end result has been built around the customer,” said Paul Ferry, Director & Co-Founder at ShopTalk. “The design has been shaped by the idea of ‘for every version of you’ with a visual identity crafted to represent the diverse customers that have turned Face the Future into a selfcare powerhouse.”

That sense of approachability, trustworthiness and togetherness can be found at every facet of Face the Future’s new brand. Cohesion and community has been achieved through a sense of a consistent brand that remains with customers across every touchpoint, ranging from packaging to an ambitious outdoor campaign that’s launching in London this June.

A strong foundation

From family business to brand at scale, Face the Future’s transformation has been nothing short of spectacular. So it should come as no surprise that its change of brand is equally dramatic.

ShopTalk started work with Face The Future in 2021, and since then, ShopTalk’s Ferry says that “the sheer scale of change in such a short space of time has been incredible. This was our studio’s first foray into the beauty sector, but Face the Future entrusted us to help lay the foundations for the next exciting chapter of their company’s story.”