Hospitality Design - October 2022 - 74

perspectives interview
The Tribeca location of Glowbar in New York
creates a serene experience with a mostly
white palette enlivened by pops of color
The brand's signature red-orange hue
appears in the reception desk at the
Union Square outpost in New York
What did you want to create for the
Glowbar brand?
Rachel Liverman: I had spent a decade in beauty
before starting Glowbar. [When I had the idea]
for a brick-and-mortar retail space, I had a
very small budget and knew I needed to fi nd
[a designer] who could give it an upscale vibe.
Brad and I knew one another through mutual
friends but had never worked together. I
wanted to democratize skincare facials to make
them accessible for everyone, but I also wanted
to establish trust with the consumer. To do that,
you have to provide them an amazing customer
experience. That's not just the treatment itself,
it's also the environment they walk into.
Brad Sherman: This process was unique
because we were involved in the early branding
discussions. We were sitt ing around the table,
ideating together about what the brand could
look like, coming up with concepts, slogans,
names, logos, look, and feel. It established an
aesthetic baseline that we knew we could build
out in an impactful and aff ordable way. We
knew it was going to be simple branding and
messaging, with splashes of the brand color in
very intentional ways-so that when you were
in the space, you knew exactly where you were
and what brand inhabited it.
074
How did you land on the accent color?
RL: We wanted Glowbar to feel powerful and
bold in the skincare space. We took the facial
out of the dermatologist, whereas everyone
else took the facial out of the spa. Many
skincare brands use pastels and light green.
We wanted to lead with boldness, but in a
quiet way. We landed on this reddish-orange
color. Orange signifi es energy and optimism.
And so [the fi rst location in the Manhatt an
neighborhood of] Tribeca started with
Glowbar red hints. As we've evolved, we have
it at the reception desk and the treatment
rooms have a litt le line work, but everything
else is toned down.
Tell us about the other materials and
palette.
BS: Everything's an off white with a litt le bit
of gray in it. The materials on the wash bar
are concrete and have texture. The wallpaper,
which is ripped paper, represents the layers
of skin. There's general backlighting to
highlight shadows and give the space a litt le
more dimension rather than trying to add on
decoration. You see it next to the messaging,
behind the mirrors, in the entrance, as it
shapes out the entry wall. Without having
spa-like colors it's still a very serene
October 2022 hospitalitydesign.com
experience, but you are jolted a litt le bit by these
pops of color.
What have you both learned through this
process?
BS: We're redefi ning what a wellness space can
feel and look like. It is very simple, but you still
feel good in it. Being scrappy has always been in
our DNA, so gett ing a high-end look for less is
something we are good at. What's most valuable is
watching people use this space. It makes me think
about what improvements I would make [to the
next Glowbar] based on observing people move
from check-in to the wash station. There are a lot
of takeaways about human behavior that I would
consider in the next design.
RL: Because I want to replicate these, we took a
lot of risks. We didn't spend a lot of money-this
was during Glossier's peak in 2019. They were
building out locations that were a million dollars.
Right now, you can see retail locations, including
salons and spas, that have million-dollar buildouts.
Everywhere you look, there's a beautiful element.
We learned we can focus on providing an amazing
service and a beautiful space, but it doesn't need to
be a branded moment everywhere you look. hd
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Hospitality Design - October 2022

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