Designing a beauty corner inside a large department store means working simultaneously on its identity, layout, and relationship with the surrounding space. For Veralab, at the entrance to the Beauty Bar area of Rinascente Milano Annex, we created a distinctive yet open display system that stands out among the many brands present without feeling like a closed-off space.
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An open, bright, and inviting corner, designed to draw in visitors to the Beauty Bar at Rinascente Milano Annex and transform skincare and makeup into an experience that’s simple to understand, easy to explore, and definitely hard to ignore.
The project starts with navigation. With a product range as extensive as Veralab’s, customers need to be able to quickly figure out not only where a product is located, but—more importantly—which product can meet their needs. That’s why the skincare displays are organized into simple, easy-to-understand categories: cleansing, exfoliating, moisturizing, regenerating, draining, and firming. First the need, then the product. No master’s degree in cosmetology required.
The signs are placed at the top of the displays and serve as a true department guide. Visible even from a distance, they guide customers along an orderly sequence of illuminated shelves. Products are displayed head-on, in sufficient quantities to convey the richness and completeness of the product line, but without creating confusion. The repetition of the packages creates a steady visual rhythm, while the integrated lighting makes each shelf stand out clearly and be easily identifiable within the overall environment.
The display structure is reduced to just a few elements: fuchsia uprights, white shelves, illuminated backdrops, and storage units. Color serves not only a decorative function but also acts as a navigational tool. Veralab pink defines the edges, highlights categories, and ties together different display units into a unified system. The enclosed storage compartments at the bottom increase storage capacity, helping to keep the display organized even during peak traffic times.
At the heart of the corner, the Overskin world introduces a different approach to sales. While skincare is organized by needs and functions, makeup requires testing, comparison, and personal interaction. The central tables thus become true workstations, equipped with mirrors, testers, dedicated displays, and professional seating for consultations.
The arrangement of products on the counters follows a horizontal and intuitive layout. Lipsticks, lip liners, face products, and eye products are placed on modular trays, separated by graphic elements and three-dimensional surfaces that make the display dynamic without compromising its clarity. Large circular images highlight the face and the act of applying makeup, breaking up the small scale of the packaging and creating visual cues that are immediately visible from every angle.
The central unit is not just a display case, but a small beauty station. The upper section holds the product and the tester, while the lower section features drawers and a workspace; the oversized graphics transform the unit into a communication tool. The tagline “Make-up meets your skin” encapsulates the intersection of the brand’s two worlds: color is not conceived as something to be added to the skin, but as a natural extension of it.
At the entrance, the Overskin display and the graphic cladding on the pillar serve as focal points. The former functions as a small three-dimensional sign, visible along the path; the latter utilizes an existing architectural feature, transforming it into a surface for communication. The pillar is not hidden: it becomes an oversized vertical catalog, recognizable even from a distance.
Above the corner, the “Beauty Bar” neon sign marks the entrance to the area dedicated to the most contemporary beauty brands. The blue light contrasts with the pink of the structures and further highlights the project’s strategic location: not an isolated island, but the first element of a broader journey dedicated to discovery, experimentation, and consultation. Rinascente describes Annex as a space dedicated to emerging trends and its Beauty Bar as a destination increasingly attuned to the language of the younger generations.
The Veralab corner at Rinascente Milano Annex thus emerges from a balance between presence and lightness. It’s visible, but it doesn’t feel overwhelming. It showcases a lot, but it doesn’t feel cluttered. It communicates with confidence, but it lets the product, the trial, and the conversation with the beauty experts complete the experience.
A retail design project in which every element has a specific purpose: the structure defines the space, the lighting organizes it, the color guides the way, and the layout invites customers to enter. Because, especially in the beauty industry, finding the right product should already be part of the experience.
