M.S. Rau Antiques
Overview
M.S. Rau Antiques have been in the business of art for over 100 years. They came to us for a site redesign that will properly showcase their beautiful pieces and successfully support their offline gallery. I was the lead UX designer on this Magento redesign and was responsible for a site audit, site map, template inventory, feature value matrix, and wireframes. The site is currently in development.
Discovery
During the Discovery phase I identified many usability issues as well as missed opportunities for the brand to entice potential buyers. I simplified the navigation and removed redundancies, as well as looked inside and outside of the industry for creative approaches to selling art online. When the average piece in a catalog sells for hundreds of thousands, or several million dollars, certain standard ecommerce conventions no longer apply.
Design
During the design phase I aimed at bringing the offline gallery experience into our site. I wanted product images to be impressive, and for the product story to be introduced at the right time and place. I wanted to make the process of learning about art, and contacting Rau for offline assistance to be seamless. I achieved my goals by rethinking existing design patterns, finding efficiencies, and giving the art more real-estate.