5.0
Oaki: Shopify Rebuild for Better UX and Site Management
WEB BASED
Challenges
Oaki, a kids' outdoor gear brand, was working with a Shopify site that caused friction for both users and the internal team. The biggest pain points included:
- Inability to group products effectively by type, size, or variation resulting in a cluttered catalog where different colors of the same item appeared as separate products
- Broken or missing functionality like “shop by size” filters, which led to frustrated customers and support requests
- Slow site performance and a theme that was difficult to edit or maintain
- Poor navigation that made browsing unintuitive, especially for busy parents shopping for multiple children
These issues hurt both the shopping experience and overall sales performance.
Solution
Rather than replatforming, we rebuilt the site using Shopify’s Dawn 2.0 theme as a flexible base and customized it to meet Oaki’s needs. Key updates included:
- We fixed the way product variations were displayed. Instead of listing every color as a separate product, we grouped all variations under a single product page. This made the catalog much easier to browse and far less overwhelming for customers.
- We redesigned the navigation and added a mega menu to help users find what they need faster. Categories are now organized by gear type, size, and activity, making it simpler for parents to shop by age or specific needs.
- We reintroduced functional filters like “shop by size,” which had been broken on the old site. This gave users more control and helped reduce friction in the buying process.
- The design was cleaned up and optimized for mobile, with a focus on speed and clarity. Product pages now load faster, and the layout guides users naturally toward making a purchase.
- We set up the backend so Oaki’s team can easily manage updates, giving them more flexibility and fewer bottlenecks.
Results
The improvements made an immediate difference, for both the customers shopping the site and the team managing it:
- Browsing became much easier. Grouping color and size variations into a single product made the catalog feel cleaner and more intuitive which helps reduce cart abandonment.
- With better navigation structure and working filters, shoppers can find the right gear faster, without getting frustrated or needing support.
- Load times improved, and the simple, clean design looks great on all devices giving customers a better first impression.
- Managing the site stopped being a headache. The Oaki team can now handle product updates and seasonal changes on their own, without waiting on a developer.
Featured Work
