Web Design And Development Spotlight: Le Travel Store

In our first Before And After: Web Design And Development Spotlight, we are taking an in-depth look at the recent redesign of Le Travel Store by our very own Miva Merchant Design Team.  As one of the first stores of its type, and according to founders Bill and Joan Keller, the first business in the United States to call itself a “travel store,” Le Travel Store is a valuable resource for travelers around the world.

Le Travel Store: Family Owned And Operated Since 1976

Since 1976, Joan and Bill have specialized in providing travel gear, books, maps, and services for people like them: independent international travelers.  A San Diego-based business, their store has changed locations several times over the years, from their original location on Garnet Ave in Pacific Beach to Horton Plaza, to their current brick-and-mortar location in the Gaslamp Quarter in downtown San Diego.

In 2006, the Kellers moved their website to the Miva Merchant ecommerce platform, and this month, with the help and hard work of the Miva Merchant Design Team, officially unveiled their newly-redesigned, customized site.

New Site Features And Functionality

When redesigning Le Travel Store, our design pros built the new site CSSUI-PR8 and worked closely with Bill and Joan throughout the entire process.  Some of the new features and functionality added include:

• Completely new look and feel optimized for 1024 screen resolution.
• Optimized navigation for top navigation and left navigation for usability
• Multiple Images, Product Zoom and Swatches powered by Miva Merchant’s PR8 Image Machine
• Product Page Tabs

• New functionality for wishlist creation and email a friend
• Integrated social media for Facebook and Twitter
• Optimized checkout process
• Search filters through power search
•   Revamped search friendly link structure, optimized for SEO. (This includes proper 301 redirects so all search engine rankings are preserved)

The Kellers say that they are very happy with the overall experience, as well as the new look and functionality of their ecommerce site.

“The (web redesign) experience was both professional and friendly,” says Bill Keller.  “Since we compete with several large well-known merchants, we needed our site to reflect the look and feel of our business – a store for international travelers.The Miva Merchant team nailed it!”