01 — Project details: turn FREDERICK & SOPHIE into a digital multi-brand destination.

I was tasked with the re-design and re-branding of the Frederick & Sophie E-Commerce site, transforming it from direct-to-consumer to the first digital department STORY: a multi-brand lifestyle destination with a shop for a carefully selected edit of brands, built around the lifestyle and stories of fictional characters.

02 — Creative process

1. Taking the Frederick & Sophie T-shirts and sweatpants as key elements, I conceptualized a store concept built around the timeless city-style, romance, softness, and comfort of the Frederick & Sophie designs.

2. I added the store categories style (for the Frederick & Sophie line and fashion items in the same style), books, beauty & grooming (including perfume and after shaves), gourmet (candy, specialty foods), and kids lifestyle (high quality wooden toys, plush, and children's wear).

3. For our different product categories I selected brands who targeted the same upper middle class audience or who identified with our romantic city lifestyle concept. Using my editorial background, I treated the site as a magazine with a clear tone of voice to which all products should fit. The story came first, products were integrated INTO it.

4. To communicate the products and store concept, I developed 8 different characters, each representing a different part of the Frederick & Sophie target audience: the 30-35 year old upper-middle class men and women who combined career and parenthood in the city.

5. I turned Frederick and Sophie into the store's two main characters. They lived together with their son, Parker, and Waldorf, their Newfoundland Dog, in the penthouse of The Residence, a fictional building on Central Park South in New York City. In the same building, but on different floors, lived their friends: stylish media couple Grace and George and their daughter Poppy, career focused Kat, and in-house concierge and caretaker, Mr. Finch. I gave each character a distinctive backstory, style, and mindset.

6. Merchandise selections were integrated into the FREDERICK & SOPHIE fictional narrative and build around the personality, style, lifestyle and ongoing stories of the Frederick & Sophie characters.

7. Each floor of The Residence was defined by the style of the characters living there. Merchandise edits were built around the different floors and could be shopped. Our site design contained heavy story-shop integrations of which SHOP the Residence was one.

8. Illustrations allowed me to bring all aspects of the characters' world to life. I worked together with a team of freelance illustrators in France, USA, and UK through extensive illustration work. I styled each illustration, giving precise instructions and editorial feedback.

9. I created 5 character blogs: Frederick & Sophie, George's Town, Kat's Place, Note of Grace, and Poppy & Parker. Each character blog was written by me in a distinctive character voice, e.g., a kids voice for Poppy & Parker and a straightforward and slightly sarcastic voice for career woman Kat. Through these blogs and social media posts I told the ongoing Frederick & Sophie story.

10. I designed the E-Commerce site as a reflection of The Residence, highlighting the building's different floors and shared rooms like The Library to shop books, The Closet to shop wardrobe, Poppy and Parker's Toy Room to shop toys, and The Drawing Room as the name of our blog.

11. I added the SEEN IN link-buttons on each product page, displaying the story a product was "seen in". The site contained extensive integrations between the shop's product pages, character blogs, and social media.

12. I wrote all site copy including but not limited to the About page, the Residence page, Character page, and all product texts (character notes, product information, and brand information).

13. I created and designed the F&S social media concept, integrating illustrated character and lifestyle posts, product posts, and character quotes and moments.

14. I styled and edited all illustrations on our site and social media pages. I created ALL product images on our site and social media pages. I conceptualized and wrote all story-driven copy, all character blogs, all character driven social media captions, all ads, and any other sales and marketing material.

15. Through research, I kept myself up to date on trends in parenting, fashion, home, kids lifestyle, beauty, food, and world affairs to incorporate into our character stories and stay relevant.

SEEN IN:

I added SEEN IN links on product pages of products that we mentioned or displayed in a blog story.

This product was seen in "The Kat's Pajamas". Its SEEN IN link was placed underneath the product header.

Menu Changes

After having worked with the concept for a year, I improved the site and shop navigation by simplifying the top menu and its drop-down menus. I divided the site into three segments: F&S Stories for all character blogs, the Residence and character introductions; The Shop as our E-Commerce store built around our characters' product selections, and About to explain the story-driven store concept.

Again, all product images and texts were created by me, integrating story-copy, brand-copy, graphics, illustration, and photo.

@State_of_Sophie

I conceptualized and created JULIET magazine as the magazine of character Grace, Sophie's best friend and an editor-in-chief.

Grace's stories and product edits were focused on fashion and style and presented our wardrobe products.

I created the JULIET editorial calendar and directed, wrote, styled, and edited all content (illustrations, text, product edits). I worked together with illustrators in France and USA to create the illustrated covers and Juliet's blog and social media content.

Each month a new illustrated JULIET cover was presented on our front page's JULIET section, our blog, and social media pages. I built Grace's blog topics, social media content, and product edits around that month's JULIET theme (e.g., 'New Beginnings' in March, 'Motherhood' in May, 'Change' in October, 'Family' in December).

I managed to achieve an almost 90% improvement in page views and more than a 100% in sessions, after the new site and all social media pages were released. The average session duration only increased upwards from site re-launch onward.