To learn more about makeup returns, I called local beauty retainer locations (nationwide chains: Sephora, Ulta Beauty, and Nordstrom). I learned that foundations were consistently the most returned cosmetics product - it's often hard to find the correct shade and formula/coverage type. Stores have to dispose of returned cosmetics--in the case of Sephora, employees ("cast members") are instructed to "damage them out", so that the products can be sent to corporate HQ/recycling (the cases can be reused). The manager I spoke with stated that Sephora's yearly returns as a percentage of sales averaged to be ~6%. Using this estimation and extrapolating it to the US cosmetics market of $62.46 Bil, $3.75 Billion dollars of sales is lost each year in returns (Statistica). In the case of Nordstrom, when a product is returned in the store, it's sent to be processed by the logistics team. The item is ultimately sent back to the vendor who will dispose of it/recycle the packaging, and reimburse Nordstrom. 

I was interested to find that retailers have lenient return policies because they emphasize customer service and don't pay for damaged/returned items. So makeup waste is not the retailer's problem; cost is rather absorbed by the brand/manufacturer.

Although online retail has steadily increased in popularity, a major problem for retailers (and a frustration for customers) is the high rate of returns. Sometimes products aren’t as advertised or don’t fit an individual. Other times, a customer might buy variations of the same product to see which fits best before returning the rest. Businesses lose money in reverse logistics (shipping, handling, restocking) as these products are returned. Beyond monetary loss, a business’s reputation and relationship with the customer may also be harmed. This problem is especially relevant to the cosmetic industry because it creates excessive waste. While a returned garment can be resold, returned health and beauty products are discarded for fear of contamination. By preventing product dissatisfaction and returns in the first place, cosmetic companies will increase their revenue and strengthen their customer relationships. 

Current marketing trends suggest customer relationships are created at an individual level. Brands are narrowcasting in the hopes of personalizing the buying experience. With this ecommerce climate in mind, a SaaS solution is proposed to address the problem of excessive waste. Software has the ability to quickly adapt to industry changes while still delivering a valuable service to its constituencies. By creating a dynamic database of personalized shopping profiles, a mobile app platform with supporting web services can succeed in a two-sided market. Customers can engage in a social app platform that crowdsources cosmetic reviews while retaining each individual user’s product preferences. Businesses can personalize their ads and omni channel touch points while saving time, money, and their brand reputations. Overall this solution aims to maximize efficiency, minimize waste, and satisfy those involved in supporting the cosmetics industry. 

A brief literature review and competitive analysis is summarized below:

After doing some market research, I brainstormed different solutions. Below are a few notes, and the initial Lean Business Model Canvas I filled out for my startup idea:

I thought about the different factors contributing to the choice of a certain makeup product and began thinking about the relation between different items - I believe some products go hand-in-hand and are often purchased by the same person, and that analytics could be useful to map out the purchasing behavior. Drafting a few user personas also helped me get into the consumer mindset.

I then concentrated on the app content. To offer a personalized experience, I brainstormed different questions to ask users. Overall these were split into personal makeup preference, style, and purchase behavior questions.

I began to sketch out user flows and tasks. I did a closed card sorting exercises where I had participants sort items into the categories that made most sense to them before designing the app. 

The final navigation menu/task list (edited with feedback from the card sorting exercise) can be found below on the right:

After getting down the navigation and user flow, I started sketching what each screen on the app would look like. I played around with a few concepts before bringing them onto my computer and creating wireframes.

I added some color into the mix and started to brand the app.

However, I wasn't happy with how the mockups were turning out so I went back and revisited the wireframe, this time transitioning into Adobe XD for some design automation. 

A video of the final prototype walkthrough can be seen below: