Open D Group, a Paris-based International design agency, has helped many beauty brands (NARS, Lancôme and Maybelline New York, to name a few) to better communicate their positioning with consumers in stores for years.

Founded in 2002, Open D specializes in branding and strategy, POS and category management, as well as retail operations process and architecture. It operates offices worldwide in New York (Open D Group USA), Paris, Dubai, Beirut, Singapore, Hong Kong and Geneva (which it opened to handle P&G’s prestige business exclusively), and aims to “think globally and act locally,” according to Philippe Magentie, Vice President of Sales.

Most recently, Open D Group USA embarked upon an 18-month case study of prestige skin care brand, philosophy, to update its appearance and maximize performance in stores across the county. Results included upgraded case lines and shop-in-shops, as well as counters in stores including Macy’s (Macy’s Herald Square unveiled its new philosophy display in September), Sephora and Nordstrom. The project touched upon many different store concepts, including 12 case lines and five shop-in-shops for Macy’s Impulse Beauty departments, as well as The Bay in Canada, addressing philosophy’s look and feel in these sections of the department store. Overall, Open D worked to allow each of philosophy’s categories in-store to be easy to find and relatable to the consumer with an “open book” theme.

In Europe, Open D has handled philosophy’s in-store fixtures, making its U.S. counterpart a natural fit for the brand’s evolution here.

Retail Access, a division of Open D Group, has brand, consumer and communication understanding, and focuses on bringing new merchandising and retail strategies to stores. Recent designs created by Open D Group showcasing this include projects with Ralph Lauren and La Prairie. The firm has also designed and produced makeup bars for Lancôme, as well as NARS.A shop-in-shop for NARS, located in terminal seven at JFK, was under Open D’s design expertise.

And of course, the ultimate goal is to build a brand’s sales.

“We understand the product, category management, and the consumer in order to maximize a brand’s performance, and that is what this is all about at the end of the day, maximizing a brand’s performance in store while enhancing the shopper’s experience. We are delighted to work with Coty, LVMH, L’Oréal, as well as others to provide our expertise through strategic design,” stated Open D’s Philippe. “We have several years of long term relationships with these companies and their brands.”

To learn more about Open D Group USA, visit www.opend-group.com or Elise Flangos at 646.454.9964 or at [email protected].