CaratLane.com is one of India’s leading e-commerce portals for high value diamonds.

CaratLane.com is one of India’s leading e-commerce portals for purchasing jewellery. The objective of creating continuity in the transaction from the cyber-to-real world experience in a flagship retail space thus materialises in an experience centre, located in Mumbai.

The retail space is form-less, combining futuristic product design with softness and luxury. The challenge while calibrating the retail experience has been in linking the essence of online purchasing to the physical space of the store. The retail space now fosters the freedom to spend hours browsing without any pressure. . The preliminary research conducted by the experience lab consists of delineating the touch points for the store: Invite – Educate – Inform – Explore – Engage – Enrich. These touch points are then located in the retail space to create a journey in the navigation. They form the base to decide the elements, materials, look and feel of the store. Interactive touch screens, a primary part of the retail design, generate a link between the real world and virtual world. The retail space is form-less, combining futuristic product design with softness and luxury. Hence, the material is limited to glass, fabric and white duco paint on flexi-ply. Surfaces are kept to the bare-minimum, the products successfully capturing the customer’s attention. The props used for display are made from PVC pipes and silk (contributing to the softness of the design). Signature aromas are used as recall and trigger to add to the experience.

This space conceived and augmented in nascent online shopping era, was ahead of its time. It was one of the pioneers in its category. Complimenting the path-breaking business model of the brand, this opened a lot of doors and yet gave a physical reassurance to its users.