The Boardroom

Ride Ready

The Boardroom, a Canadian retailer known for snow, skate, and surf, came to us ready for a change. Their existing Websell site no longer matched the strength of the brand. It felt dated, was difficult to update, and could not keep up with how they wanted to merchandise products.

We partnered with their team to migrate to Shopify 2.0 and rethink the experience from the ground up. The focus was on improving usability, giving the team more flexibility, and creating a cleaner, more engaging way to shop.

The result is a faster, more intuitive site that better reflects the brand and supports how customers browse, discover, and buy.

Main Stack

The Brand

The Boardroom has long been a staple in the action sports scene, with strong roots in snow, skate, and surf. They are known for carrying quality gear and backing it with real knowledge, serving both experienced riders and those just getting started. It is not just about the products, but the culture and expertise that come with them.

The Challenge

Moving away from an outdated setup for something faster and easier to manage.
The Boardroom’s previous site ran on Websell, which made updates difficult and created friction in the overall experience.

1. Limited Design Flexibility

   The previous Websell platform made it difficult to customize layouts beyond standard templates. Even small changes often required developer support, slowing the team down when updating content or launching campaigns.

2. Underpowered Discovery Features

   Basic filtering made it harder for customers to navigate the full product range and find what they were looking for.

3. Hard to Navigate, Harder to Convert on Mobile

   Outdated, unresponsive elements created friction on mobile, making it harder for customers to browse and complete purchases.
4. Limited Content Flexibility
   
   Without flexible content sections, the team had limited ability to update pages quickly or respond to new campaigns, impacting speed and agility.

A Digital Set Up For Every Session

Enhanced Product Filtering

Challenge

Without refined filtering, users were unable to efficiently sort through the catalog—slowing down discovery and compromising the overall shopping experience.

Solution

We built an intuitive, high-performance filtering system using Shopify’s enhanced metafields. It enabled shoppers to quickly surface the right products with fewer clicks.

Benefit

Shoppers could refine results with precision, improving engagement and driving higher conversion. For the team at The Boardroom, the new filter offered greater merchandising flexibility and a structured way to manage complex product data.

Results

The enhanced user experience drove a notable increase in customer satisfaction while significantly reducing bounce rates.

Search That Shreds

Challenge

The site’s basic search experience delivered irrelevant results and slowed down product discovery. This gap in functionality led to decreased efficiency and reduced shopper satisfaction across key touchpoints.

Solution

We implemented predictive search leveraging Shopify’s advanced capabilities. This enhancement streamlined product discovery, improved user engagement, and met the demands of today’s performance-driven ecommerce users.

Benefit

Improving the speed and ease of product discovery by introducing intuitive filtering and real-time search suggestions, allowed users to find what they need in fewer steps.

Results

By surfacing relevant suggestions in real time as users typed, it reduced friction, improved accuracy, and helped shoppers find what they were looking for with minimal effort.

Gear Check—In Real Time

Challenge

The Boardroom has multiple retail locations, but their previous website didn’t show what products were available in-store. This made it harder to connect the online shopping experience with what was actually available in their physical stores.

Solution

As part of the Shopify 2.0 rebuild, we added real-time store availability to product pages using Shopify’s multi-location inventory. Customers can now quickly check what’s in stock at each location through a simple “View Store Availability” feature.

Benefit

Real-time store availability helps customers see what’s in stock at nearby locations, making it easier to buy with confidence or pick up locally. It also cuts down on inventory questions and manual checks for store staff.

Results

It made it easier for customers to see which stores had what they wanted, helping them shop with more confidence and choose local pickup. It also cut down on inventory questions, saving time for store teams.

The Design

port80 handled the full design and build of The Boardroom’s new site, creating a cohesive experience from structure to visual identity. The look is clean and high-contrast, with a focus on clarity and performance. Products are front and center, navigation is straightforward, and everything is designed to make browsing and buying easy.

The result balances a strong retail experience with the brand’s personality. It works smoothly across all devices and reflects the premium, technical feel The Boardroom is known for.

Strategic UX Enhancements

We focused on making the experience smooth and easy to use across all devices. Clean grid layouts bring consistency, while clear calls to action and simple variant selection make it easier to buy. Subtle interactions help guide users without getting in the way.

The site is built with a mobile first approach for speed and familiarity, with accessibility considered throughout so it works well for everyone.

The Conclusion

The move to Shopify 2.0 gave The Boardroom a stronger, more modern online presence. By improving the overall experience and removing previous limitations, the site is now better set up to support ongoing growth in a competitive market.