Improving Navigation Through System Alignment
Redesigning a fragmented navigation and admin system to improve browsing, reduce internal complexity, and create a scalable source of truth across teams.
TL;DR
I led a redesign of the global navigation system at Huckberry. By connecting the navigation to the product hierarchy, we reduced internal complexity and improved the customer browsing experience.
Understanding The Problem
As Huckberry’s assortment expanded, its navigation became increasingly difficult for customers to use. Inconsistencies, gaps in category coverage, and an unclear structure made browsing more challenging, while also limiting the team’s ability to effectively showcase the full depth and breadth of the catalog.
A key issue was that navigation and product category hierarchy were managed in separate systems. This led to frequent mismatches between what customers saw in the navigation and what appeared on product listing pages, while forcing the internal team to duplicate efforts and maintain updates across multiple tools.
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Designing the Experience
I designed a navigation system that synced directly with the product hierarchy, creating a single source of truth while still allowing flexibility for merchandising and campaigns.
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We introduced two ways to create navigation content: Syncing directly from the Product Hierarchy Nav and manually building navigation for curated and campaign-driven experiences
When creating a synced navigation item, editors can search existing hierarchies and dynamically pull content into standardized templates. This removed the need for duplicate work across systems and significantly reduced the effort required to keep navigation up to date.
Intuitive Admin Design
I designed the admin interface to mirror the frontend structure, allowing teams to understand outcomes without needing to publish changes.
Flexible Layout Options
I created a flexible navigation system, allowing the team to support core shopping, curated discovery, and editorial content while adapting to different merchandising needs.
Results & Reflection
Reflection
This project reinforced the importance of designing systems that support both user experience and internal workflows. By aligning navigation with underlying data structures, we were able to reduce complexity, improve consistency, and create a more scalable product foundation.