UX/ui, Content ArchitectureMade By Bittersweet
Made By Bittersweet is the digital home for the creative collective behind stories, products, and services that inspire hope, build connection, and enable flourishing.
They needed a unified platform to bring together three distinct branches — creative studio, digital publication, and retail shop — under one coherent experience. When the project began, visitors weren’t always sure exactly what the brand did or where to go.
The aim was to build an e-commerce–enabled digital hub that felt editorial and elevated — a space that could seamlessly house stories, products, and services without feeling disjointed. The website needed to clarify the brand’s multiple arms while preserving their individuality, support shopping for purpose-driven products in a way that felt meaningful rather than purely transactional, and create a flexible structure that could easily expand to include new product lines, editorial features, or service offerings without requiring a complete redesign.
Understanding the UserThe primary audiences included:
Readers and story-seekers exploring long-form content about purpose and creativity.
Shoppers drawn to the brand’s curated, meaningful goods and the stories behind them.
Partners/clients looking at the creative studio side of the business.
A competitive analysis showed that many multi-branch brands either buried one arm in favour of another, or offered a confusing entry point for first-time visitors. From this, one key insight emerged: clarity is the key to engagement.
Research and understanding the userGoing Deep
I conducted a content audit across the brand’s existing platforms and assets and found:
Multiple microsites and independent platforms caused fragmented user journeys.
Weak visual and navigational cues meant users often didn’t understand which “branch” they were in (shop vs. studio vs. stories).
Product checkout flows felt standard, not differentiated by the brand’s purpose-driven identity.
From these insights emerged three design principles:
Unified brand architecture — one hub, distinct paths.
Story-first shopping — highlight purpose as product.
Scalable modular design — components built to flex across editorial, commerce, and service.
Design Approach & StrategyWorking in collaboration with the client and stakeholders, the design process focused on establishing a narrative-driven homepage that clearly introduced the brand ecosystem in a glance. According to the project summary
The homepage works as a guidepost, introducing the story and branching into the three core divisions.
Each section (Shop, Creative Studio, Stories) is visually and functionally distinct, yet tied together via shared typography, grid system, and tone.
The Shop portion features streamlined product displays: minimalist layouts, clear hierarchy, high-impact imagery, purposeful copy.
Navigation was simplified to accommodate varied user goals, reducing confusion and increasing conversion potential.
wireframes
Results & Impact
Over the last three months, Made By Bittersweet has shown significant growth in both traffic and e-commerce performance — confirming that the redesign not only strengthened brand identity but also drove tangible results.
2.3K total visits and 1.9K unique visitors, marking consistent monthly growth and stronger audience retention.
3.8K total pageviews, showing deeper content exploration across the Shop, Studio, and Stories sections.
127 units sold and 102 total orders.
A checkout conversion rate of 4.21%, well above the e-commerce industry average for small brands.
Average order value of $32, reflecting balanced pricing and consistent purchasing behavior.
Purchase funnel: 43% of visitors viewed a product, 14% added to cart, and 74% of those completed a purchase — a clear indicator of trust and clarity in the buying experience.
Together, these metrics demonstrate that the site isn’t just performing well visually — it’s performing well strategically. The blend of editorial storytelling and e-commerce functionality has created a space where purpose and purchase work together, deepening engagement and driving sustained growth.
What They Said“Really appreciate your interpretation and expression of the BitterSweet vision and ethos! This was an inspiring process for me personally. You handled it all beautifully.”
Key ChallengesBalancing identity and function was the project’s biggest hurdle. The brand’s creative, story-rich identity needed to coexist with practical e-commerce flows and professional service offerings. Without careful design, the site risked feeling either too commercial or too editorial.
Another constraint was scalability: the client wanted a system that allowed new product launches and editorial features without requiring major redesign work each time.
What I LearnedMade By Bittersweet reinforced the importance of designing for identity and system simultaneously. When you build a platform where narrative and commerce live in harmony, you enable a brand to grow intentionally.
This project also reminded me that minimal design is not about removing voice — it’s about giving voice space to be heard. Every visual and interaction must support the brand story, not just the sale.