Every Le Labo bottle is mixed by hand while you wait fifteen minutes at the till. This is the story of how I moved that wait somewhere people actually enjoy it...
scroll to begin
about the project...
Slow perfumery, without the wait
Le Labo's ritual is compounding: oils, alcohol and water mixed fresh for each customer. Customers love it. They don't love standing at a crowded till for fifteen minutes while it happens. I redesigned the store and its service around that wait.
Role
Solo project. Research, service design, spatial concept, interface design and prototyping.
Context
Expanding Experience module, BA UI/UX Design, Ravensbourne University London. Year 2, 2026.
Methods
Survey of 50+ people, 3 interviews, store-manager observation, personas, journey mapping, service blueprints.
Output
Re-zoned store, 3 digital touchpoints, 2 Figma prototypes, old and new service blueprints.
Chapter 01
One counter, four jobs
follow one customer through a visit today. keep an eye on the clock...
00:00 · Discover
They walk in curious
They've heard about Santal 33 from a friend. The store is dark, the floor is marble, and the staff are busy behind the counter.
curious, excited...03:00 · Test
Three paper strips in
A staff member sprays one strip after another, using words like "accord" and "dry-down". By the third strip their nose has given up and they pick the one that sounded nicest.
choice paralysis...05:00 · Wait
Then they stand at the till
The bottle is compounded fresh, which takes 10 to 15 minutes. There's nowhere to sit and nowhere else to go. Behind them, the queue for the same till grows.
bored, trapped...14:00 · Label
Dictate a label, now
Every bottle gets a personal 23-character label. They're asked to compose it on the spot, out loud, with strangers watching.
anxious, frozen...17:00 · Leave
They pay and leave drained
The perfume is beautiful. The memory of the till is not, and it makes them put off coming back for a refill.
pleased, but dreading the next time...
00:00
time in store...
curious, excited...
The till
4jobs share one counter: learning, waiting, labelling and paying.
Mixing the perfume fresh takes 10 to 15 minutes per person. This wait time is the biggest problem. People get bored and the small store gets too crowded.Store manager, backstage observation
Chapter 02
What people say, feel and see
a survey to measure, interviews to explain, observation to see behind the counter...
50+
Survey
Preferences, emotional responses at each step, and willingness to use digital tools in a luxury store.
3
Interviews
Current and lapsed Le Labo customers on motivation, frustration and their ideal visit.
1
Observation
A store manager's view of the back of house, tracing the till bottleneck.
82.4%
Want to explore alone
Only 11.8% want a staff member straight away.
By the third paper strip, my nose was completely burned out. I felt evaluated and stupid.Toby, 25
62.6%
Feel distress at the till
31% freeze up and 31% skip the label entirely.
The biggest point of friction is the till. The customer flow is terrible.Luis, 30s
64.7%
Asked for the fix
would rather design their label on their own time.
Let me design my label on my own time, while I wait.The most-picked survey answer
23.5%
Would walk away
would leave rather than wait 15 minutes.
I just want to walk in, find it, pay, and leave. The 15 minutes ruins my whole day.John, 50s
hover or tap a number to hear the person behind it...
Chapter 03
Three ways into the store
the research became three people. each one ended up shaping one zone...
zone 01...
MATTHEWage 25
I felt like I was being evaluated. I stepped onto the marble floor and immediately wanted to leave.Matthew
Matthew
the intimidated newcomer...25 · Junior corporate worker
Needs
A clean, not-too-strong work scent, explained in normal words, and confidence before he spends.
Frustrations
Dark store, strong air, and staff jargon that makes him feel judged.
zone 02...
MAYAage 32
I find the counter, spray it on my wrist, and walk out. I don't have time for a five-minute scripted monologue.Maya
Maya
the impatient enthusiast...32 · Multi-site manager
Needs
A scent that lasts a ten-hour shift, found fast, and a visit that doesn't eat her day.
Frustrations
Brand speeches before a sample, cardboard-smelling strips, and the checkout line.
zone 03...
DAVIDage 45
I just want to walk in, see the bottle I know I like, tap my card, walk out. Three minutes maximum.David
David
the creature of habit...45 · Director
Needs
His usual refill in under three minutes with zero extra steps.
Frustrations
Confusing layouts, staff spraying new things on him, loyalty-club sign-ups.
hover a bottle to hear what they told me...
Chapter 04
People didn't hate the wait. They hated where it happened. So what if the wait never happened at the till?
keep the hand-mixing exactly as it is. move everything else away from the counter...
What the customer needs to do
Before
After
Learn what scents smell like
at the till
01Scent Quiz kiosk, in plain words
Try and choose a scent
at the till
01Open tester counter, no one hovering
Wait 10 to 15 minutes
at the till
02Seated, watching the bottle being made through glass
Write the 23-character label
at the till
02Virtual Label Studio on an iPad, at their own pace
Pay and collect
at the till
03Express Till, tap and go
Refill a usual scent
at the till
03Fast-Track Refill, bottle ready on arrival
Chapter 05
Walk through the new store
keep scrolling and the camera moves through each zone. drag the model to look around...
building the store...
drag to look around...
—
Flow
05.0 · The whole store
Three zones, one flow
The same shop, re-zoned. Browsing at the front, waiting in the middle behind glass, paying on the right. Each zone has its own pace and its own staff role.
scroll to step inside...
05.1 · Zone 01
Discovery Station
An open tester counter and the Scent Quiz kiosk at the front. People explore at their own pace and only talk to staff when they want to.
designed for Matthew...
05.2 · Zone 02
Waiting Lounge
Seats face the compounding bench through a glass partition. The fifteen minutes become a chance to watch the craft, and the label gets designed on an iPad, sitting down.
designed for Maya...
05.3 · Zone 03
Express Till
Payments only. Finished bottles and pre-made refills are handed over in seconds, and the refill kiosk lets regulars skip the wait completely.
designed for David...
05.4 · A first visit
Browse, wait, pay
Follow the dots. A new customer tries scents at the front, sits in the lounge while their bottle is made, then collects and pays at the till. Nobody queues at the counter.
the dotted path is one visit...
05.5 · A refill
Straight to the till
A regular orders their usual on the phone or at the refill kiosk. The bottle is ready when they arrive, so they walk in, collect and leave.
about thirty seconds...
05.6 · From above
The plan
Seen from above, the store reads left to right: browse, wait, pay. People move through it by what they came to do, instead of by where the till happens to be.
next: the screens inside each zone...
Chapter 06
Three screens, one per zone
each one removes a moment people dreaded. all three work, so try them...
07.1 · discovery station kiosk...
The Olfactory Translator
Two short questions turn a customer's taste and preferred intensity into a shortlist, described in everyday words. No perfume vocabulary, no staff needed.
Solves for
The 82.4% who want to explore alone. Matthew can learn on his own before he talks to anyone.
LE LABO
The Olfactory Translator
find your scent in two questions...
Which raw materials draw you in?
How loud should your scent be?
Your tailored hit list
Based on your profile, we recommend
Step 1 / 4 · Welcome
07.2 · waiting lounge ipads...
Virtual Label Studio
While the perfume is compounded behind the glass, the customer designs their label sitting down. It goes straight to the printer in the back, so the label is ready when the bottle is. Try typing your own 23-character message.
Solves for
The 62.6% distressed at the till and the 64.7% who asked for this. Maya gets a seat instead of standing dead time.
You've picked your formula
AMBRETTE 9. While the lab compounds your bottle, let's design your label.
AMBRETTE 9eau de parfum50 ml
19 / 23 characters
Please review carefully
AMBRETTE 9eau de parfum50 ml
the label prints exactly as shown...
Sent to printer
Your label is printing now. Your bottle will be ready at the Express Till in about 8 minutes.
Step 2 / 4 · Typing
07.3 · phone and refill kiosk...
Fast-Track Refill
A profile stores a returning customer's exact formula, label and payment method. They order on their phone or at the refill kiosk, and the bottle is prepared before they arrive. The 15-minute wait is skipped entirely.
Solves for
David and every loyal repeat customer. It removes the biggest reason people put off refills.
LE LABO
Welcome back, David. Ready for a refill?
AMB 9
AMBRETTE 9
baby-soft apple and musk... 50 ml, your usual formula.
£157
LE LABO
Confirm & pay
AMBRETTE 950 ml · saved label£157
TOTAL£157
demo only, no payment is taken...
LE LABO
Your bottle is being prepared
Show this code at the Express Till. No queue, no wait.
A9·417
in store: about 30 seconds...
Step 1 / 3 · Welcome back
Chapter 07
Old way, new way
the service blueprint: every customer action, staff role and system behind it...
Diagnosis
Chapter 08
Fifteen minutes to thirty seconds
this is a concept, not a pilot. these are the outcomes it's designed to produce...
a refill visit, today...
15:00
Today a loyal customer waits the full compounding time, even for a scent they've bought ten times.
01
Operational efficiency
The till only handles payments, so throughput goes up. The design aims to keep the 23.5% who currently leave rather than wait, and frees staff for real conversations.
02
User empowerment
Each low point in the journey gets a direct answer. Matthew gets autonomy, Maya gets comfort, David gets speed.
03
Brand integrity
Slow Perfumery stays. The compounding becomes something to watch through glass instead of stand through under pressure.
what I'd test next...
Next steps
Pilot the lounge
two weeks, one store...
Run the lounge and label iPads in one store. Measure time at the till, walk-outs during the wait, and how many people finish a label.
Test the quiz words
plain words, tested...
Card-sort and naming tests with first-time buyers like Matthew, before building more.
Design with staff
a busy saturday...
Who resets the kiosk, how the iPads are cleaned, and when a person should step in instead of a screen.