Farfetch
Farfetch’s Store of the Future was a flagship innovation initiative exploring how luxury retail could evolve. I helped design a connected in-store experience spanning customer app, shop floor tools and an interactive mirror. The project was unveiled at the Design Museum and received global press attention, forming the foundation for pilots with Browns and Chanel.
Connected experience
Designing the Store of the Future: A connected luxury retail experience
Reimagining in-store luxury for the connected customer
Farfetch set out to connect the worlds of online influence and in-store purchase. In luxury fashion, 70% of affluent customers research online, but 92% of purchases still happen in-store (Bain & Company). The goal was not to digitise boutiques for novelty, but to design a discreet layer of augmentation that made the retail experience more personal, useful and memorable.
I joined a dedicated, cross-functional innovation team to bring this vision to life.
Role and collaboration
One of two lead product designers shaping the entire ecosystem. We worked fluidly across all surfaces, leading or supporting depending on the challenge. We were supported by a mid-weight UI designer, whose attention to detail helped bring the experience to life. I worked closely with engineering and product leads, with regular build oversight onsite in Porto.
The Opportunity
Luxury customers make considered, high-investment purchases. They expect attentive, contextual service that extends across channels. Yet most in-store tech is clunky, disjointed or gimmicky. We saw an opportunity to design a joined-up experience that gave sales associates the tools to act on customer insight in real time.
We designed and delivered a connected product ecosystem for in-store use, including:
A customer check-in experience linking in-store visits to online identity
A shop floor app for sales associates to view preferences, wishlist and history
NFC and ultrasound enabled in store browsing wishlist
An interactive mirror in fitting rooms, which surfaced recommendations, enabled size requests and supported in-room purchase
A frictionless payment flow via stored customer preferences and device-to-device confirmation
A closing keynote presentation to communicate the data model powering the system
The experience was demonstrated at the FarfetchOS conference through a guided walkthrough. To prepare, we prototyped the entire flow in a full-scale mock store built in a rented warehouse.
Customer app including check-in experience linking in-store visits to online identity
A shop floor app for sales associates to view preferences, wishlist, history as well as search catalogue and take payment
NFC and ultrasound enabled in store browsing wishlist
An interactive mirror in fitting rooms, which surfaced recommendations, enabled size requests and supported in-room purchase
A frictionless payment flow via stored customer preferences and device-to-device confirmation
My contribution
Led UX for the interactive mirror from concept to final flow
Co-designed customer and associate app journeys
Directed and reviewed UI across all products
Storyboarded and directed the closing data keynote
Supported technical delivery across teams and locations
Impact
The system was revealed at the Design Museum and experienced live by investors, press and stakeholders. This was not a speculative concept. It was a fully working ecosystem, demonstrated in real time.
Contributed over £400 million to Farfetch’s valuation (internal report)
Helped secure Farfetch’s position as a leader in luxury retail innovation
Laid the foundation for connected retail pilots at Browns East and Chanel
Attracted global press coverage across major outlets including BBC, Vogue, Forbes, Business Insider, Bloomberg, The New York Times and more
What I learnt
Designing for luxury retail is not about screens or features—it’s about subtlety, flow and trust. The biggest challenge was not technology, but designing a system that felt human. This project deepened my ability to lead across surfaces, disciplines and constraints while always staying anchored in the customer experience.
