Lookbook Design: How Michael Malul Created Luxurious Success
What makes an effective lookbook design? While the elements may be simple, it’s anything but simple to pull it off. Memorable and metric-boosting lookbooks should represent your brand well with seriously high-quality photography and just enough specs to make the sale. See how fragrance brand Michael Malul’s more-show, less-tell strategy created a scent of success (and then some).
Perfect Bound Book: 100# Coated Matte White Cover with flat matte UV coating on cover, 100# Coated Matte White Text Interior, 9 x 6″
Lookbooks: Expressing Emotion
Michael Malul specializes in fragrances that create a tangible experience. Evoking memory and emotion, the brand offers an eclectic mix of scent profiles that encourages luxurious self-expression.
“We seek to tell olfactory stories, capturing moods and moments, to conjure up the subliminal through evocative scents with extraordinary staying power,” said Creative Director Sal Bates. “All of our fragrance magic is done in-house – we design, manufacture and distribute straight from our headquarters to our customers. Collaborating with some of the world’s greatest perfumers, we use fragrance to express the intangible.”
Whether his customers are aroma aficionados or searching for their very first signature scent, Bates’ product goals are the same. “There’s a unique joy in witnessing the transformation from a concept to a tangible reality,” he said. “I’m passionate about translating scents into visually captivating experiences, especially when I know the audience shares that same passion for fragrance as we do.”
And the way to transform that concept into a tangible reality? A lookbook designed and printed with Smartpress’ perfect bound booklets.
“We opted for the perfect bound format due to its sleek appearance, which aligned with [our brand’s] elevated aesthetic.”
Eau de Parfum Perfect Bound
Perfect bound books are ideal for both a product lookbook like Michael Malul’s or an entire brand lookbook, if that’s the intent for yours. Clean and professional, they feature a perfect binding where the cover and pages are cut to line up exactly and create a seamless square spine. No matter your lookbook design, perfect bound is a format that makes a sophisticated statement.
It was that specific statement that won over Bates and graphic designer Elena Trubkina. “We opted for the perfect bound format due to its sleek appearance and design, which aligned with the elevated aesthetic that’s integral to our brand identity,” said Trubkina.
When you print online with Smartpress, you get custom printing options that suit your lookbook strategy. And just as Bates and Trubkina know fragrances, we know booklets. From premium paper stocks to protective matte or gloss UV coatings, our booklet printing ensures your products stay in the spotlight and your specs send a message.
And while Bates and Trubkina printed 200 of their luxe catalogs, when it comes to perfect bound booklets, we’re quantity masters. Print the amount that best suits your strategy, from as many as 5,000 to short runs with as few as 10 (we do minimums like no one else!).
Hint: Whether you use our lookbook template (it’s under Layout Guides on the product page) or design your own, it’s a good idea to include a print lookbook along with your campaign’s digital lookbook strategy. That way, you can target specific segments of your audience and meet your customers where they are.
Q&A
We talked to Bates and Trubkina about their lookbook design vision, the importance of creating an impressive experience for customers and how print impacts their brand’s visibility. Check out their advice before you design and print your own lookbook with our custom printing services.
What are your creative priorities when designing print for Michael Malul?
Trubkina: “My primary creative focus when designing print revolves around the idea of translating three-dimensional experiences into two-dimensional imagery, aiming to evoke memories and effectively communicate the essence of the fragrance to the end user.”
Was there a specific design vision for your lookbook project?
Bates: “Our vision for this project was to craft a comprehensive fragrance portfolio that would resonate with fragrance enthusiasts and retail owners alike, providing them with an immersive experience to delve deeper into the Michael Malul brand.”
What was your goal for creating the lookbook?
Trubkina: “Our goal was to showcase the full extent of our fragrance portfolio and celebrate the introduction of our new fragrances, ensuring that everyone was informed and engaged with our products.”
How are your custom lookbooks distributed?
Bates: “We distribute these lookbooks to our retail clients and their employees, send them to our influencer partners, bring them to trade shows and events and give them to our internal team as an educational tool to learn more about our brand and fragrances.”
How has this print initiative helped you achieve your strategic goals?
Bates: “[It’s] helped enhance our brand visibility, increase customer engagement and reinforce our brand image. Through showcasing our fragrances effectively, providing detailed information and maintaining brand consistency, we’ve strengthened our position in the market and built trust and loyalty among customers.”
What feedback have you received from clients?
Trubkina: “Clients have expressed being thoroughly impressed by the exceptional quality and design of the lookbook.”
“This [lookbook] helped enhance our brand visibility, increase customer engagement and reinforce our brand image.”
What impressed you most about the final product?
Trubkina: “The final product flawlessly brought our vision to life, resulting in a perfect translation from concept to reality.”
What impresses you most about an online printer like Smartpress?
Bates: “We’re impressed with Smartpress’ exceptional turnaround time, coupled with their outstanding customer service.”
How has print proven to be integral to your business? Why is print still a viable medium in today’s digital age?
Bates: “Despite the prevalence of digital mediums, we’ve found that many people still value the tactile experience that print offers. Especially within the fragrance community, enthusiasts appreciate the opportunity to delve deeper into the sensory experience provided by printed materials.
“Print offers a tactile experience, enhances brand credibility and provides reliability, especially in areas with limited internet access. Print also allows us to offer a more immersive and informative experience to our audience, catering to those who seek a deeper connection with our brand and products.”
Enterprising Elixir
Both a portfolio and product promotion, lookbooks are a key element in your broader marketing strategy. And as long as your lookbook design makes your product the most important element on each page, you’ll increase brand awareness and engage your customers, just like Michael Malul’s did. Before you use Smartpress’ online print shop to create yours, explore more lookbook examples to narrow down your design preferences. Then? Bask in the metric boost.
