Nioxin Consultation

The Back story 

Our appearance has a significant impact on how we feel about ourselves, our confidence, and our actions. At the same time, thinning hair is a broad issue, affecting 50% of men and women, leaving them with low self-esteem. Nioxin, a Coty Inc. sub-brand, effectively solves the problem of thinning hair by applying its 25 years of heritage and dedicated research. 

It all started when Romolo Ganzerli, Global Digital Marketing Director at Coty Inc., sent us an e-mail. 

“Hi The APP Solutions, 

I’m looking for a team that will develop a consultation web and mobile app for hairstylists and everyone with thinning hair concerns so that people can receive more personalized treatment with Nioxin products. 

Currently, I’m in Geneva, Switzerland, but I can come over to Kyiv to discuss our project in more detail.“

Romolo Ganzerli, Global Digital Marketing Director at Coty Inc.

Once Romolo arrived at our office, we started to dwell on the project’s goals and objectives and shaped the project vision.

How Nioxin Consultation Works 

Nioxin, one of Coty Inc.’s brands, is a market leader for professional salon products in over 40 countries around the world. The Nioxin Consultation mobile app aims to help professional stylists suggest to clients proper hair care, making the client’s hair thicker and fuller-looking without side effects so they can thrive with newfound confidence. 

To find out about the client’s hair care needs, the app analyses the client’s scalp and identifies the three signs of hair thinning (Derma, Density, and Diameter), each with innovative skincare-inspired technologies to address scalp and hair needs and deliver thicker fuller hair. 

Then, the Nioxin application delivers a complete program with personalized hair care products for a tailored treatment that works. 

The app also includes quick links to NIOXIN’s market-specific websites and salon finder.

Client’s requirements 

The client already had a design for his app and wanted us to do the following: 

• Create a web plugin and mobile app for both iOS and Android for professional stylists and their clients with thinning hair 
• Integrate a scalp and hair analytic tool and suggest personalized treatment programs depending on the client’s hair condition.
• Set up the logic throughout the mobile apps and web plugin backend to provide a quality consultancy test.

Project Goals and Objectives 

Our main goal for the Nioxin Consultation app was to suggest relevant products to clients and improve their hair condition. We needed to develop an intuitive mobile application and web plugin for salon professionals, empowered with a product recommendation algorithm that could be used not only in salons but also at home. 

Our challenges

Comprehensive architecture. The main problem was to set up the logic that would connect two mobile applications on different platforms with the server. In addition, we also needed to build a web plugin backend that would deliver relevant product recommendations. 

Tight deadlines. At the very beginning of the project, our main priority was to build the product’s architecture from the ground. In this way, we streamlined the project’s production in order to meet the deadlines. 

How we did it 

The client came to us with a ready-made UI/UX design for all app screens and very detailed technical documentation, so he required us to do the coding part.

For this project, we applied Scrum methodology since the project had particular tasks to be done, as well as estimated time and budget. 

• We started the project development by estimating the time developers would require for one or another feature. Then, we broke down all elements and evaluated time in iterations, two weeks, during which we would implement the project functionality. 
• At the end of each iteration, we ran a demonstration session to show the client our progress and receive timely feedback. Our team also had to send weekly reports to the client with a list of tasks done. 
• Having assessed the requirements of the project, our team worked on building the proper project architecture first, followed by mobile apps and web plugin development, alongside the project’s backend.
• After we implemented all functions for the first app release, we did a final demo with the client, received feedback, and implemented the required changes. 
• Thanks to detailed documentation, clear client requirements, and skillful mobile developers, we managed to deliver the project on time. 
• The development began around the middle of May, and the first project was released on August 1, so it took us less than three months from start to finish.

Interesting Features We Implemented

Client profile

The app enables saving client details in personal profiles, identifying hair characteristics, and adding DERMA and DENSITY photos. In this way, hairdressers can produce a seamless salon experience and have instant access to all client profiles registered to their salon.

Salon Management

Salon chain owners track the performance of their staff and clients’ hair improvement over time via built-in statistics. Whether it’s one location or multiple, salon owners have access to statistics of how their employees performed in regards to recommending a Nioxin hair care product.

Consultation Tool

Nioxin’s mobile apps, as well as a web plugin, include test-based recommendations of Nioxin hair care products that would be most fitting for the given client’s hair type. To identify the client’s hair condition, the app offers a short questionnaire and saves answers to keep track of the client’s progress.

Our tech stack 

• HTML for web-based application
• Swift SDK for iPads and iOS mobile devices 
• Android SDK for Android-powered devices 
• Rest API 
• Google Analytics 
• Cocoa Pods
• Dagger 2
• RxJava 
• Retrofit 
• Realm 
• Butter Knife 
• Crashlytics 

Team composition

• 2 iOS developers
• 2 Android mobile developers
• 2 Quality Assurance engineers
• 1 Backend developer
• 1 HTML developer
• 1 Designer
• 1 Project Manager 

Results

Nioxin Consultation Tool was an exciting and challenging project to create. It required a lot of proactive thinking and methods that, in the end, helped to fit into the deadlines without compromising quality. Currently, we are implementing more features and adding a multi-language feature to make the app available for new markets. 

Check out our app at Google Play and App Store. 

Client’s testimonial 

“It’s a real pleasure to work with The APP Solutions because it never feels like a client/supplier relationship. In essence, it’s a true collaboration aimed at delivering the best possible experience to our users, on time and within budget.”

Romolo Ganzerli, Global Digital Marketing Director | Coty Inc.