Withcott Seedlings is Australia's leading supplier of vegetable and tree seedlings, delivering to customers and growers across the country. With a website that was reaching the end of life and a content management system that was no longer fertile ground, the team at Zeroseven were happy to help plant the seeds for a fresh, thriving digital presence.

The decision to redesign and rebuild Withcott Seedlings' website was driven by several key factors:

• The existing infrastructure was outdated and unable to support the latest web technologies, hindering performance and scalability
• An enterprise content management system could enable Withcott Seedlings marketing efforts.
• A design refresh was essential to create a modern digital face of the brand and to make navigation more intuitive
• A modern user interface was needed to enhance visual appeal and usability
• Responsive focused design to maintain a consistent and optimal experience across devices

The project commenced with an extensive research and discovery process - identifying the site's key user groups and mapping out user journeys. With this, Zeroseven created optimised Information Architecture, ensuring that users would find navigating the website easy, intuitive, and lightning fast.

Open-source Umbraco: An enterprise CMS that punches above its weight

By implementing Withcott Seedling's website on the powerful, open-source Umbraco CMS, Zeroseven were able to get a head start on providing the flexibility, functionality and overall experience that was needed. With Umbraco CMS, Withcott Seedlings are able to make changes to their existing product ranges and update other content to keep it dynamic and relevant.

A big consideration for any organisation is finding ways to have better dialogue with its users. With Umbraco Forms, Withcott can now create forms catered to specific users, allowing for more meaningful contact, and ensuring that each form submission is getting to the right part of their organisation. Umbraco Forms does not only create efficiency for Withcott Seedlings, but creates a more authentic dialogue between them and their users.

Nurturing growth with innovative user experiences

Zeroseven made sure to use best in class design and user experience principles when building the new website, ensuring that users found the experience of navigating the site as intuitive and easy as possible. Implementing modern features that were a given - like a social media feed and optimised navigation - as well as more custom solutions, such as animated hover icons, or an API integrated widget showcasing the current weather conditions at the Withcott Seedlings farm!

Rooted in tradition - growing for the future

Withcott Seedlings has been a trusted brand for growers for over 40 years, and leveraging the existing brand recognition was an important aspect of the approach to the visual design of the website.

By taking the existing brand elements - like the logos and branding that can be seen on the side of their trucks -  and deconstructing the brand elements such as logo, colour, typography, Zeroseven transformed this into a modern and fresh UI and brand guide. Taking the opportunity to refresh where possible, though always paying respect to the strong brand history, the result is a digital brand presence that is instantly recognisable as Withcott Seedlings.

Zeroseven has created a vibrant and sustainable digital presence for Withcott Seedlings. By leveraging the powerful Umbraco CMS and incorporating best practices in accessibility, and UX design, the website has been transformed into a dynamic platform that supports Withcott Seedlings' growth and engagement with their customers. The new website reflects the brand's commitment to quality and innovation, providing a seamless and intuitive experience for users. As Withcott Seedlings continues to flourish, their refreshed digital platform stands as a testament to the power of thoughtful design and strategic development.