Designing the Future of In-Store AR
The Challenge
Transform a prototype built by engineers into a polished tool for brand storytellers.
The team at Store No. 8 had developed ACE (Augmented Commerce Editor)—an internal tool for creating AR-powered experiences in retail environments. But as originally built, ACE was usable only by the engineering team. For it to scale, the tool needed to evolve into something approachable, intuitive, and flexible—especially for marketers, designers, and retail creatives used to working in tools like Figma or Adobe.
"This project was all about redefining how storytelling works in physical retail. The team at Archer had the vision—they just needed the tools to make it real. What came out of it wasn’t just a prototype, but a new kind of authoring system that let brands shape immersive, spatial experiences on their own terms. It felt like giving the store a creative layer it never had before."
Our Approach
We treated the tool like a creative suite—reframing workflows around inspiration, flow, and spatial storytelling.
We worked as embedded partners with the Archer team, bringing product, content, and interaction design together in close collaboration. Our process began with user interviews, empathy maps, and creative workshops to reframe ACE’s capabilities as a narrative platform. By shifting focus from branching logic to story arcs, and from error states to feedback loops, we laid the groundwork for a tool that thinks like a storyteller—not a debugger.
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A system that matched creative pace
We redesigned the authoring experience to support ideation and iteration—helping users sketch out ideas before locking into logic-heavy flows.
Adaptive zoom-based canvas
The map-based interface scaled intuitively with zoom level, showing users just the right amount of information at the right moment—whether overviewing neighborhoods or editing an individual event.
Visual context and consistency
We introduced a scalable visual language across scenes, events, and assets—making it easy to stay oriented and understand connections between elements. Breadcrumbs, modals, and tagging brought clarity to complex projects.
Authoring without a manual
Tooltips, intuitive behaviors, and keyboard shortcuts helped users move fast, make changes confidently, and stay in the flow. The result: a tool that feels more like Figma than a CMS.
The Results
Turning a powerful prototype into a creative platform for the future of retail
"This project was all about redefining how storytelling works in physical retail. The team at Archer had the vision—they just needed the tools to make it real. What came out of it wasn’t just a prototype, but a new kind of authoring system that let brands shape immersive, spatial experiences on their own terms. It felt like giving the store a creative layer it never had before."
Project Archer (Store No. 8)
The Results
Turning a powerful prototype into a creative platform for the future of retail
A glimpse into what’s possible when creativity meets commerce
While Store No. 8 eventually wound down, the vision behind Archer continues to point toward retail’s next frontier. Our work helped one of the world’s largest companies imagine a new model for creative storytelling in physical space—and demonstrated how the right tools can bring those stories to life.