Threadless Unveils Site Redesign at IRWD 2012

• Tweet

Community-based custom design retailer Threadless has presented details of a proposed site revamp at the Internet Retailer Web Design Conference.

Speaking at the Internet Retailer Web Design Conference in Orlando, Florida, Threadless CEO Tom Ryan unveiled his new look web store, which will officially launch in a few months time.

Threadless brings together artists and products online, where customers can select from hundreds of thousands of designs and have them printed on t-shirts, wallets, bags and more. The site today has 1.8 million members.

The new site aims to differentiate between first time visitors and returning visitors. Newcomers will have more helpful and explanatory content served up, like videos explaining Threadless and information on the Threadless community, along with quick shopping options. Returning customers will see a learned, personalised version of the site based on past purchasing and browsing patterns. Dynamically generated, the personalised version will feature designs familiar to the customer and more likely to elicit actions.

The proposed, simplified site will feature four main top navigation tabs: Make (where artists will submit designs), Pick (where community members will vote and offer feedback), Play (where community members will participate in the site’s active discussion forums) and Shop (where visitors will be able to buy).

Product pages will allow customers to place their favoured designs onto a variety of products at once for review, and allow more advanced filtering options than the current site to speed up the discovery process.

“Given the evolution of the company, we had to redefine our purpose and redesign our web site to match the redefined purpose. But we also must invest beyond our web site in areas like mobile and social,” Ryan said. “We have to communicate our brand and purpose in a way to engage our community, wherever they choose to engage with us, and as a way to attract new community members over time.”

Article by Grant Arnott

Grant Arnott is the editor and publisher of Power Retail. Other hats include Content Manager for the Online Retailer Conference, Program Director for the Online Retail Industry Awards, Global Head of The Media Pad Pty Ltd, and adoptive father of a fast-growing Golden Retriever. Grant has a specialist business publishing background spanning more than a decade, and contributes regularly to a multitude of print and digital business media.