21 Overlays

01 | Client

21 Overlays is an Australian leader in precision-cut vinyl overlays and detailing kits. With a vast catalogue spanning countless makes and models, they needed a Shopify Plus experience that helped customers quickly find the right product and purchase with confidence.

| My Roles

The discovery phase included an in-person workshop that revealed key pain points, including product wayfinding, overwhelming colour options, lack of brand cohesion, showcasing product quality, conveying brand personality, and the need for brand-specific collections to keep users focused.
Following the discovery workshop and response document, we focused on setting the foundations for a stronger site experience. Key areas included improving wayfinding, simplifying filtering, enhancing product selection flows, and highlighting pricing incentives to better guide users through their decision-making process. The wireframes were shaped around addressing user demands and frustrations, ensuring the structure would better support exploration, confidence, and conversion before progressing to detailed design.
Oversaw the full site design process and supported quality assurance through the development of detailed acceptance criteria, ensuring alignment from strategy and wireframing through to final design execution.

| Results

Store conversion rate ⬆ 72%
Average order value ⬆ 6%

Store bounce rate ⬇ 19%

02 | Objective

With such a large product range, robust filtering was essential. The objective was to help customers quickly narrow the catalogue to products relevant to their vehicle’s make and model, reducing cognitive load and making it easier to find the right fit with confidence.

04 | Solution

We restructured the information architecture to prioritise product discovery from the moment users landed on the homepage. Customers were prompted to search by vehicle, immediately filtering the catalogue to products relevant to their car and reducing cognitive load.

Discovery research showed strong brand loyalty among car owners, with users uninterested in browsing other vehicle makes. Insights from client-provided car forums highlighted clear divides between brand communities, making brand-specific wayfinding critical to the user journey.
We reinforced the 21 Overlays brand through more considered UI elements, creating a stronger sense of identity across the storefront.
To improve post-purchase confidence, we replaced outdated instruction manuals with long-form, optimised content and tutorial-led videos that made product application easier to understand.
Finally, we enhanced wishlist functionality by introducing “projects,” allowing users to curate and share personalised collections, supporting gifting and reflecting how customers personalise their vehicles.

03 | Challenges

Avoiding cognitive overload

Introducing a new wayfinding system needed to feel intuitive, not disruptive, ensuring users could quickly orient themselves without being overwhelmed.

Clear product onboarding for all users

Installation and usage information had to be concise and easy to understand, whether the customer was a first-time buyer or an experienced car enthusiast.

Brand-specific discovery

Users needed to be guided to products relevant to their vehicle brand while removing unrelated options, keeping them focused and confident in their selection.

Scalable booking requests

The site needed to support customer requests for product application bookings in a way that didn’t overwhelm or bottleneck the client’s operations.

Features

• Features •

Search Prompt

Introducing a clear, immediate wayfinding prompt to drive product discovery and reduce the number of steps needed for users to reach the right product collection page for their vehicle.
Shop By Image

Allowing users to view products in context. Images would be tagged with multiple products that users can explore, giving them a clear sense of how their car could look.
Brand Centric Collections

A key pain point identified during discovery was that users only wanted to browse products specific to their car brand. Creating brand-specific collection and landing pages keeps users focused on their vehicle and reduces friction in the browsing experience.
Educational Content

Streamlined educational content through tutorial videos divided into key chapters, guiding users on how to apply products at home. This approach addresses a pain point identified in discovery, boosting customer confidence during application.
Caldendar Booking

Introducing calendar bookings to provide users with clear visibility of available slots for product installations or custom work inquiries.
Wishlist Curation

Empowering users to save products to a wishlist while allowing them to customise each list with a project name, similar to Pinterest. This gives users a sense of ownership, organisation, and personal relevance, making the browsing experience more engaging and meaningful.
Colour Grouping

Another pain point identified during discovery was the overwhelming number of colour options. To reduce cognitive load, I introduced colour grouping, organising options by types like “gloss” and “matte.”