`design/north-star.md`

83 lines
# LA Salon Directory — Design North Star

Source: search-specialist competitor scan, 2026-05-04.

## Positioning

> Not a logistics platform (Booksy) nor a portfolio gallery (StyleSeat).
> A **neighborhood-native editorial platform that happens to have booking.**
> Kinfolk × Soho House × your neighborhood barber crew.

Visual + neighborhood context is the moat. Booking is friction removal.

## Brand

| Token | Value |
|---|---|
| Primary | `#1A1A1A` warm black |
| Off-white | `#F5F5F5` |
| Headline serif | Cormorant Garamond (proxy for Lyon / Publico / Saol) |
| Body sans | Inter |
| Accent mono | ui-monospace (service codes, hours, neighborhood signage) |
| **AVOID** | pastels, glassmorphism, gradients |

### Per-neighborhood accent

One high-saturation color per neighborhood:

| Neighborhood | Accent |
|---|---|
| Silver Lake | `#1f6f70` teal |
| Echo Park | `#c95a2c` burnt orange |
| K-Town / Koreatown | `#c9a23a` gold |
| Highland Park | `#7a3b3b` oxblood |
| DTLA | `#3a3a3a` graphite |
| West Hollywood | `#b6395f` rose |
| Venice | `#2c5d8a` pacific blue |
| Beverly Hills | `#8a7448` champagne |
| Hollywood | `#7a2530` velvet |
| Sherman Oaks | `#5a6e3a` olive |

## Hero

Full-bleed neighborhood photography. Neighborhood selector is **primary navigation, not a filter**. Subtitle: "Barber & Salon Directory. By Neighborhood."

## Browse-by-neighborhood

Card grid with area photography + shop count: "Silver Lake — 12 shops". Click → map view + linear top-picks editorial list. Cultural/historical narrative beats generic category sort:

- "Silver Lake's Legacy Cuts"
- "K-Town Fades"
- "East Side Classics"

## Salon-detail page

- Hero: barber at work or interior shot — **not** a service-photo carousel
- Byline-style intro: 1–2 sentences on who owns this, why they matter (editorial voice)
- Services as visual chips, not dropdowns (fades, beard work, hot-towel shaves, balayage, manicure, pedicure, brow shaping, lash extension)
- 4–6 photos organized by mood (workspace / result / community)
- Booking CTA prominent but secondary to editorial

## Booking flow

3 steps max: Select Service → Select Time → Confirm. OAuth (Google/Apple), no form fields until payment. Inline availability, not modal.

## Anchor tenants — homepage shortlist

| # | Shop | Neighborhood | Vibe |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sweeney Todd's (1947) | Hollywood | 1950s time capsule, oldest continuously operating shop in LA |
| 2 | Fellow Barber Silver Lake | Silver Lake | Brutalist mid-century in a converted 1920s auto-body shop |
| 3 | Blind Barber Highland Park | Highland Park | Mod '70s retro, starlit dome ceiling |
| 4 | No Filter Barbershop | Echo Park | East-side cool, 10+ yrs, community vibe |
| 5 | Bolt Barbers | DTLA | Voted best DTLA, urban revitalization anchor |
| 6 | House of AANUKO | Culver City | Design-forward, K-Town-adjacent |
| 7 | The Fade Inn | West Hollywood | Upscale WeHo polish |
| 8 | Service & Supply | Venice | Surf-adjacent cool, community-first |

## Inspirational non-salon brands

- **Kinfolk** — minimalist editorial discipline, whitespace as power
- **Soho House app** — membership-era design authority, neighborhood clubhouse
- **Monocle** — global-local curation, sophisticated serif+sans pairing