From Shop Visit To A New Shopify Theme

Shopify is one of the UK’s most popular eCommerce platforms. Yet many small to medium sized businesses don’t structure their Shopify sites to perform as well as they could.

In December 2024, Dock’s Delivery Director, Tony, called into Clever Hands while Christmas shopping with his daughter. After the owner, Catherine Carmyllie, mentioned they were using Shopify, Tony arranged a meeting to see if we could help.

This small project with an art studio and shop in South Liverpool shows how focused improvements can help a site deliver stronger performance. 

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Improving The Site Without Rebuilding It

During the meeting, we offered a short ten-slide website review outlining opportunities for improvement. Catherine told us it was the first time an agency had provided that kind of strategic overview.

From there, they agreed to let us develop a new design scheme.

Our job was to work within the existing Shopify site, making targeted changes that would help customers find products faster and understand what Clever Hands offers, from art materials to creative workshops. 

Previously, the homepage was primarily taken up by the brand logo and a single image, which doesn’t work well for an online shop.

First, we finessed the branding to align their online visuals with the shop’s offline presence. A branding exercise wasn’t in the budget, so we customised what they had to create a core palette and a brand narrative for the site design.

Next, we refined the information architecture, restructured navigation and product categories, and selected an appropriate design. We also provided templates for Clever Hands to use.

Finally, we configured checkout upsells and shared ideas for how they could develop them.

Clever Hands only required a small amount of paid work, but Dock provided additional recommendations to help the business grow. While it wasn’t a full rebuild, the improvements helped give the site a stronger foundation and have supported revenue growth since launch.

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Results

We continue to offer them guidance and plan to work together on a Phase 2 project.

Owner, Catherine Carmyllie, said:

"As a micro business looking to grow, it was incredibly helpful to benefit from their expertise, not only in future web development but across the eCommerce industry more broadly. The team even took the time to test one of our products so they could ensure that every subtle human element of our brand was reflected digitally through the website, something important to me personally."

"We look forward to continuing to develop our website with such an important partner. Since launching, our conversion rate has almost doubled, ensuring every penny we invest is delivering maximum value. The new easy-to-update format has also given me more time back to focus on developing the business, I would highly recommend Dock."

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Since launching, our conversion rate has almost doubled, ensuring every penny we invest is delivering maximum value.

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Quick Wins for Small Shopify Stores

The Clever Hands project proves you don’t need an enormous development budget to make gains on your existing Shopify store. Here are some quick wins to improve your online performance.

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Structure your product catalogue

Clearly organise your products and categories so visitors can navigate quickly.

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Prioritise top sellers

Best-selling categories should appear prominently in navigation.

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Design for the majority of users

Your homepage should guide visitors toward what they want, rather than focusing on your personal design preferences.

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Avoid clutter

Too many design elements can distract customers from completing a purchase.

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Use social channels to drive traffic

Promoting your website on social media is key for smaller businesses without large SEO budgets.

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Helping Local Businesses Make the Most of Shopify

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Our work with Clever Hands is part of Dock’s commitment to help local businesses make the most of Shopify.

We’ve also worked with Clever Hands’ neighbours, Hollianna, and others, offering honest advice and developing cost-effective, practical solutions.

Large rebuilds aren’t always necessary. Smaller projects like this show how a few practical improvements can help local independent businesses get more from Shopify.

As an independent business ourselves, we understand that a better structure often beats a bigger budget. 

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