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SPEX

Before the full-scale war in Ukraine, we developed a complete UX/UI concept for Spex, a Ukrainian retailer of luxury eyewear and premium frames.

The challenge was to rethink the conventional e-commerce model for luxury eyewear. Instead of treating frames as products in a standard online catalog, we created a more editorial and immersive experience, where the design, character and craftsmanship of each frame became part of the shopping journey.

We developed the entire UX/UI system, from information architecture and product discovery to the presentation of individual frames and brands. The interface was designed to feel closer to a luxury fashion experience than a conventional optical store, while still preserving the clarity and functionality required for e-commerce.

The project was fully designed in Figma, but the concept never reached development. The work remains a complete digital experience designed around a simple idea: luxury eyewear should feel like luxury before a customer ever puts the frames on.

We wrote more about this principle in Why Luxury E-commerce Breaks Every Rule of Conversion Optimization.

Status: a concept

SPEX remained a concept. The whole UX/UI system was designed in Figma in 2020 and never developed; the screens on this page are that design.

From a catalogue to a fashion journey

A conventional optical store is organised around categories, filters and specifications, and that structure is useful. But a frame is also part of someone's appearance and personal style. So instead of "find a frame, compare specifications, buy", the journey we designed reads: discover a frame, understand its character, imagine yourself wearing it, explore the brand, decide whether it belongs to you.

What the home page does

The first screen opens with a brand campaign instead of a product grid: in the concept, the Tom Ford spring/summer 2020 collection in large editorial photography, in a slider. Below it, New Collection is a horizontal row of frames on calm beige cards that the visitor drags sideways, each card with the brand, the price and the model name. Then come the brands themselves: Tom Ford, Prada, Dior, A-K Karlson, Fendi, Jimmy Choo, Miu Miu and Ray-Ban, each name set in type with a small campaign photograph beside it, and a link to all brands.

From the screen to the boutique

Luxury eyewear is often chosen in person, so the concept keeps the boutiques in the journey: a block that helps the visitor find an optics gallery in their city, with a photograph of a SPEX store and the list of boutiques. The footer follows the same logic: frames, sunglasses and lenses in the catalogue; gift certificates, an online consultation and the boutique finder for customers; returns, payment and delivery.

The visual language

Two tones carry the interface: deep graphite for the campaign and boutique blocks, warm beige and ivory for the products and brands. The type is thin and light, the main menu is four words (frames, sunglasses, lenses, brands), and the interface stays quiet so the frames and the photography can lead. We used SPEX as one of the examples in 10 Best Online Store Designs in 2026 and What Makes Them Work. More about the service: UI/UX design.