Maharishi - Military-inspired style with sustainable, utilitarian design and conscience.

Founded by Hardy Blechman in 1994, Maharishi was established with a vision to create environmentally conscious, durable, and utilitarian clothing.

They explore the dualistic nature of the universe, often expressed through blending Eastern and Western artworks and silhouettes, combining hi-vis or reflective with camouflage patterns and taking a pacifist approach to military-grade design. Maharishi’s use of camouflage aims to detach disruptive patterns from their military associations, reclaiming the symbolic value away from war and promoting their true roots in nature, and development by artists.

Translating the brand's identity and essence into a bespoke online experience.

When Maharishi first approached Function, it was clear that the existing Shopify store functioned well, but the user experience had fallen behind against competitors. It lacked features and flexibility needed to truly communicate the stories the brand wanted to tell.

We were tasked with a full redesign and rebuild that would combine industry best practices, increased site functionality and an improved user experience.

Tackling the discovery phase and early creative processes.

From the outset, it was clear that Maharishi had a strong visual identity, but this essence - whilst beautifully on show in store - wasn't being conveyed effectively online.

Our collaborative approach led to quick success in the early discovery sessions with the internal design teams, allowing us to pinpoint a visual direction to build upon.

A high-performing and refined eCommerce experience

With a devoted digital customer base, our priority was to enhance every aspect of Maharishi's e-commerce UX while creating a unified brand experience drawing on aspects of the in-store experience.

Our design improves product discovery and streamlines the browsing and checkout processes. Recognizing the increase in mobile shopping, we fine-tuned navigation patterns, shortcuts, and product lines for both desktop and mobile. Additionally, we introduced an improved product filtering system to cater to a variety of user habits.

Efficient development, custom integrations and bespoke solutions.

Leveraging our technical expertise and industry best practices, we transformed the finalised designs into an efficient and feature-rich web experience.

In addition to efficient front-end development, the new site build introduced several quality-of-life improvements and additional functionality for the Maharishi eCommerce team.

Project Features - adding bespoke details to make the difference

Brand Content Panels

Dynamic content panels allow product, collection or fabric information to be accessed from any area of the website.
Quick Add

Users can quickly choose a size and add to their bag
Expansive range of Shopify Sections

With a requirement to display a wide variety of content types, we have produced 15+ highly customisable Shopify Sections.
Shop the look

With such inspirational imagery, allowing users to find and purchase quickly was key.
Enhanced size guides

Research shows that providing more detailed sizing information increases conversion and reduces returns.

Immediate customer experience and quality-of-life improvements.

Soon after launch, the website showed remarkable, yet expected, improvements across several metrics, including increases in sales, conversion rates, AOV, and page speed scores. These enhancements were achieved despite the significant increase in site complexity and functionality. Together with the Maharishi team, we are extremely proud of the end result.

Who we work with - We specialise in development, performance optimisation, and long-term support for fashion and luxury retail brands.

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