Dark Editorial Shopify Experience for HIYA by Guoshuai ZhangDark Editorial Shopify Experience for HIYA by Guoshuai Zhang

Dark Editorial Shopify Experience for HIYA

Guoshuai Zhang

Guoshuai Zhang


HIYA — Dark Editorial Shopify Experience for a Gen Z Fashion Brand

Project Overview

HIYA is a fashion e-commerce concept created for Gen Z women aged 18–23 who want clothing that feels confident, bold, feminine, and slightly dangerous.
The goal was to design a Shopify-ready brand experience that did not feel like a standard online clothing store. Instead of using a basic product-first layout, I created a dark editorial shopping experience with campaign-style visuals, diagonal hero compositions, cropped fashion photography, deep black atmosphere, red accents, and a premium conversion-focused structure.
The final direction combines fashion campaign storytelling with practical Shopify UX, giving the brand a strong identity while still making the store easy to browse and shop.

The Challenge

The main challenge was to create a Shopify fashion store that felt visually powerful and memorable, without losing usability.
Many fashion e-commerce sites look clean but generic. For HIYA, the website needed to feel more emotional, more stylish, and more aligned with the brand attitude: hot, cool, confident, and rebellious.
The design needed to attract young fashion consumers, communicate the brand mood quickly, and still support key e-commerce actions like browsing collections, viewing product details, selecting sizes, and adding items to cart.

Brand Direction

HIYA was designed around the idea of dark romance, sharp energy, and quiet confidence.
The visual language uses:
Black atmosphere Deep red accents White editorial typography Chrome-inspired details Leather, buckles, straps, and metal hardware Wet-hair beauty crops Close-up fashion photography Diagonal and asymmetrical layouts Nightlife-inspired campaign styling
The brand does not feel soft only. It feels feminine, bold, mysterious, and confident.

Design Concept

The homepage hero was designed as a dramatic diagonal three-part composition.
Instead of showing one simple full-body model image, I used cropped editorial visuals to create stronger tension and attitude:
Upper body crop with blazer, shirt, and loose tie Waist and mini skirt crop with leather, belts, buckles, and chains Close-up beauty crop with lips, wet hair, jewelry, and red lighting
This approach makes the hero feel more like a fashion campaign than a normal Shopify template.
The design creates a strong first impression while still including clear CTAs such as Shop New In and Explore the Edit.

Key Pages Designed

Homepage

The homepage introduces the HIYA world through a dark cinematic hero section, featured looks, category navigation, collection storytelling, and strong campaign modules.
Key sections include:
Diagonal three-part hero section Night Intentions campaign intro Featured looks carousel Dark Romance collection block Shop by category section Editorial brand story panel Shipping, returns, and secure payment trust strip

Collection Page

The collection page was designed to keep the dark editorial mood while still supporting clear product browsing.
It includes:
Large campaign banner New arrivals product grid Left-side filtering system Sort controls Wishlist icons Product cards with pricing Dark product photography Color and size filter logic

Product Page

The product page focuses on strong product presentation and a simple purchase flow.
It includes:
Large product image gallery Vertical thumbnails Product title and price Star rating Color swatches Size selector Add-to-cart button Product details accordion Shipping and returns notes Complete-the-look section Styling notes

Campaign / Editorial Page

The campaign page was designed to show the fashion attitude behind the brand.
It uses a more experimental editorial layout with dark imagery, deep red backgrounds, cropped body details, and campaign copy such as:
Not just an outfit. It’s an attitude.
This page helps the brand feel more memorable and gives the store a stronger lifestyle identity.

UX Strategy

The design balances two needs:
First, the site needed to feel bold, editorial, and emotionally strong.
Second, the shopping experience still needed to be clear and easy to use.
To achieve this, I used experimental composition in the homepage and campaign sections, while keeping product browsing, filters, product details, and checkout-related actions simple and familiar.
This creates a store that feels visually unique without confusing the customer.

Shopify Structure

The design was planned as a Shopify-ready e-commerce experience with flexible sections that could be reused across campaigns and product drops.
The store structure supports:
Reusable hero sections Editable campaign blocks Product collection grids Featured product modules Category cards Editorial image sections Product detail templates Complete-the-look modules Mobile-first shopping flow
This gives the brand flexibility to launch new drops, update campaigns, and build new landing pages without redesigning the full store each time.

Deliverables

Brand and visual direction Shopify homepage design Collection page design Product detail page design Campaign landing page design Dark editorial UI system Mobile-friendly e-commerce structure Product card system Filter and shopping UX Complete-the-look shopping module Campaign storytelling sections

Tools Used

Figma Shopify UX Planning Liquid-ready Section Planning HTML / CSS Direction Adobe Photoshop AI Visual Direction

Final Result

The final HIYA concept presents a bold Shopify fashion experience that feels dark, premium, and emotionally memorable.
The project moves beyond a basic fashion store layout and creates a full brand world: part e-commerce, part editorial campaign, part Gen Z fashion statement.
HIYA feels confident, sharp, and unforgettable — built for girls who want fashion with attitude.
Like this project

Posted Jun 26, 2026

HIYA wanted edge without sacrificing usability. I designed a dark, editorial Shopify storefront that feels like a lookbook you can shop.