Revamping Macy's Digital Presence: A Fashion-Inspired Redesign

Willy Lai and Dave Torres Lead a Team to Reimagine Macy's Website

The inspiration for the new design came from premier fashion media and leading consumer technology products. The team aimed to infuse the website with the elegance and sophistication associated with high-end fashion, while ensuring it remained user-friendly and intuitive, akin to the best consumer tech products.

In 2019, the website underwent a dramatic transformation. The redesign was a direct response to customer feedback, and the result was a clean, simple, and fashion-inspired design that significantly improved user engagement. The new design was not just aesthetically pleasing, but also functional, streamlining user purchases and making the shopping experience more enjoyable.

The redesign was realized using modern responsive web technologies, ensuring the website functioned seamlessly across different devices. This technical aspect was crucial, as it allowed users to access the website via a laptop, tablet, or smartphone, providing a consistent experience regardless of the device used.

The project, which spanned from October 2018 to October 2019, was a collaborative effort. The team, based in San Francisco and New York, included Agata Krol, Ricky J Li, Hafez Janssens, Philis Liu, Elena Rubtsova, and Stephanie Houle. Their collective efforts ensured the successful realization of the redesign.

Extensive user experience research was conducted throughout the project. This included user surveys, interviews, A/B testing, formal usability lab testing, remote usability testing, and guerrilla-style usability tests conducted at Macy's stores. The insights gained from this research were instrumental in shaping the final design.

The redesign was not without its challenges. The team had to create a user-friendly, fashion-inspired design at scale while supporting a variety of business goals for a large and complex traditional organization. Culture transformation was crucial to realize and operationalize the new design. Despite these challenges, the team's efforts were rewarded with the Silver A' Interface, Interaction and User Experience Design Award in 2020, a testament to their outstanding expertise and innovation.

In conclusion, the redesign of Macy's website is a shining example of how a well-executed design can enhance user experience and engagement. The project showcases the power of combining aesthetics with functionality, and serves as an inspiration for other businesses looking to revamp their digital presence.