US beauty retailer Morphe Cosmetics is to open a store at Liverpool ONE, marking its first branch in the region and its second in the UK outside London.
The 279 sq m (3,000 sq ft) store has been designed in-house, and will offer the brand’s full range of make-up, brushes and accessories.
“We build our stores with a vision, originally inspired by our founders Chris and Linda Tawil – clear brand codes already featured prominently within the successful Morphe.com online and tradeshow businesses,” says Morphe vice president of visual merchandising and store design Ralph Johnson.
“We wanted to amplify the recently updated Morphe branding and logo and bring those elements into the store to create a unique, compelling, visually exciting shopping environment for our new and existing fans – known as #morphebabes.”
The original Morphe logo, featuring an oversized red M, was created by the founders to stand out among other booths at trade shows. The M was designed to be iconic, and to be visible from every approach angle of trade show aisles. The stores feature a candy red, high gloss cash wrap inspired by the red M. Brand packaging, in the same bright red, is displayed through the store to provide pops of colour. The store seeks to inspire customers, then delight them with the affordability of its products.
“The entrance to the store lures you in with bright light boxes, featuring amplified model images and aspirational makeup – it’s clear from the first step in the door that our heritage is makeup artistry,” says Johnson. “Throughout the store, you’ll see uniquely shot Morphe style images of models and products. The wall bays depict gorgeous, abstract images of product smears and spills. The large LED on the backwall displays lively, behind-the-scenes videos and still shots from our latest launch campaign, often featuring a mega beauty influencer.”
Neon signs, and a selection of more than 300 brushes, are located in the centre of the store, highlighting the brand’s position as an authority on makeup brushes.
“When we first began our UK expansion plans, Liverpool was one of the top cities in which we wanted to establish a strong presence,” says Morphe general manager EMEA Mark Spillman. “Liverpool ONE’s impressive footfall, position at the heart of the city, and one of the best line-ups of international brands in the UK, made it the perfect choice for our new regional store.”
“Morphe has an impressive, ever-growing and loyal fan-following and is a perfect fit with how Liverpool ONE has evolved. The brand brings something new to our offer that will appeal to visitors from across the region. This is a great start to 2019,” says Alison Clegg, director of asset management at Liverpool ONE parent group Grosvenor Europe. Morphe was established in Los Angeles in 2008, and has 9.3m followers on Instagram.
