Rebrand & UX Redesign to Drive Discovery and Conversion
A modern, data-backed upgrade across brand and web
Craft Cartel Liquor hadn’t updated their site since the early 2000s, yet they were still seeing strong conversions. Their mindset? “If we’re doing this well with a bad site, imagine what we could do with a good one.”
I designed a modern, research-led Shopify experience and refreshed their branding, updating colours and typography to better reflect the brand and its customers.
Role
Product Designer
Time
8 months
Client
Craft Cartel Liquor
Tools
Figma, Shopify
MY OBJECTIVE
My goal was to modernise the site and brand, improve usability, and drive subscriptions - making it easy for users to explore, convert, and come back.
Defining the Vision, Grounded in Analytics
The project began with a scoping session alongside the company’s CEOs to define business and website goals, timelines, deliverables, and constraints-ensuring clear alignment from the outset.
I then dived into Klaviyo and Google Analytics data to analyse user demographics, browsing behaviour, key pages, and visitor types. These insights established a solid foundation to inform a user-centred redesign.
Live Site Metrics
31K Users Engaged (3mos)
$88–$110 Average Purchase
66% Mobile Users
59% Cart Abandonment Rate
Understanding the Why Behind User Behaviour
I conducted moderated interviews and usability tests with seven participants, covering a few representatives for each of the created personas.
These sessions uncovered usability issues, pain points, and opportunities by observing users navigating the Craft Cartel Liquor site.
Turning Insights into Action
I compiled the key findings into an insights deck that synthesises opportunities, pain points, and user insights, serving as a valuable resource for internal teams.
Mapping the Market Landscape
To better position Craft Cartel Liquor, I analysed 8 key competitors (e.g. Beer Cartel, Dan Murphy’s, Booze Bud) across navigation, features, branding, checkout, and product offering.
What others do well
Gifting options (engraving, gift bags)
Rich product info (pairings, brewery stories)
Smart navigation (sticky filters, mega menus)
Broad product selection
Transparent shipping info
Add tailored gifting experiences
Create educational, story-driven content
Streamline and modernise navigation
Highlight Craft Cartel's niche
Simplify and surface delivery details early
Opportunities for Craft Cartel
Exploring Ideas with Lo-Fi Wires
Based on insights from user research and competitor analysis, I created low-fidelity wireframes to explore new layout and navigation ideas.
Key considerations included
Improving product discoverability
Promoting Craft Cartel’s subscription service
Elevating the homepage experience
Introducing new product categories in an intuitive way
A redesigned product page that encourages discovery and conversion with a subscription upsell, quick product details, brewer insights, smarter size selection, and related product suggestions.
Refreshing the Brand Identity
The old branding felt outdated and didn’t resonate with users. The refreshed identity uses a bold typeface, clean layout, and dark green palette, chosen to feel premium, trustworthy, and stand out in a crowded market.
Refining the Experience in High Fidelity
Through multiple iterations and feedback sessions with teams across Craft Cartel, including marketing and development, I designed the high-fidelity screens below and built a clickable prototype to test user flows and streamline stakeholder feedback.
Ben Malouf
Founder at Craft Cartel Liquor
