Manhattan Saddlery

Manhattan Saddlery is an equestrian tack shop in New York City. The online experience needed a refresh to match the new branding by Knockout! that emphasized its history and legacy, while still feeling modern enough to compete in the e-commerce landscape.

Role

UX/UI Design, Front-End Development

Tools

Sketch, Shopify, MindNode, Google Sheets

Duration

3 Months (2018)

Background

The Problem

Like many stores on Shopify, Manhattan Saddlery lacked cohesive navigation to guide customers through the store during the buyer journey. With a large, complex inventory, customers were struggling to see what was available.

The Solution

The redesign heavily focused on improving the site's information architecture. We needed to tackle organizing the information into categories that made sense to improve the navigation and collection filters. This process included the following:

Conducting competitor audits to gauge industry standards within the equestrian space.
Creating an inital round of groupings after exporting existing products + tags.
Meeting with the client to revise and fill in any gaps of leftover products.

Process Breakdown

After narrowing down the main existing tags, I used a mind-mapping tool to create a flow chart for product organization. The map helped visualize which subcategories had a place and which items needed more assistance. It also allowed for us to visualize the main site navigation. Once a clear outline was ready, I met with the client to revise and fill in any gaps.

Mapping a Structure

Mindmap of the new navigation — Mindmap displaying the subcategories

A less overwhelming view of the mind-map for client approval

Updating the Navigation

Screenshot of before — Before - product listing subcategories

Design Solutions

Updated Visuals

The site was redesigned to reflect Knockout!'s new branding.

Homepage

Product Listing Page

Page Layout

Product Detail Pages

Sections were added for product overviews, sizing information, brand descriptions, policies, and more. This stops shoppers from needing to leave the page to find answers to their questions.