It was time for a fresh start. The brewery had grown fast since opening seven years earlier, adding two taprooms, a packed public events calendar and a promising private events business, and it was quickly expanding distribution. The legacy CMS the site was built on also made it hard to update. But the main reason I pushed to lead a redesign was that we were missing a huge opportunity to showcase the story behind the brand.
So I started with a blank slate, defining the website's use cases, the features I wanted in the new CMS, and how we could turn the site into a true asset for the brand. Then, with an outside web designer, we mapped out the architecture, going through multiple iterations to nail down the functionality and user experience.
