Whitehall Garden Centres partnered with blubolt to migrate their WooCommerce store to a scalable, high-performing Shopify Plus platform.

The problem

Moving from a restrictive setup to a scalable platform.

Whitehall’s WooCommerce site had reached its limits. The team needed a platform capable of supporting fast growth, especially across peak seasonal trading. They wanted to take control of site content with flexible, standardised templates they could update in-house, without compromising on design or performance. Alongside this, Whitehall required:

• A bespoke, modern theme to reflect the quality of its ranges
• Better site speed, particularly across product-heavy pages
• A robust tech stack with key third-party integrations
• A platform that could support a more personalised, customer-centred ecommerce experience

This wasn’t simply a platform swap. It was a strategic shift to enable journey-led growth, ensuring customers could move through discovery, purchase and repeat engagement with far less friction.

The solution

A smooth migration to Shopify Plus.

The blubolt team delivered a seamless migration from WooCommerce to Shopify Plus, rebuilding the site using Shopify’s Online Store 2.0 framework. This created a stable, scalable foundation with the flexibility Whitehall needed to manage and optimise journeys in-house. By grounding the project in user insights and behavioural patterns, we aligned design, functionality and content around how Whitehall’s customers actually shop, not how the platform dictated they should.

A fresh, modern theme that reflects the brand’s quality.

Whitehall’s product range is a genuine strength, yet the previous site design didn’t communicate that. We introduced a clean and modern theme that prioritised:

• Large, immersive imagery
• Clear product information and pricing
• Space for seasonal campaigns, especially Christmas
• A premium look and feel consistent with the in-store experience

This design uplift supported clearer customer journeys and more confident purchasing decisions.

Features built for growth & flexibility.

Working collaboratively with the Whitehall team, we delivered a flexible homepage structure with modular blocks, sliders, and content elements that can be quickly updated without developer support. We also introduced:

• Integrated reviews, social proof and Instagram content via Covet.pics
• Enhanced search and merchandising with Boost Commerce
• Klaviyo for customer-driven email journeys
• Smart Wishlist for higher engagement and repeat purchase
• Patchworks and NetSuite integrations to support operational efficiency

Product listing pages (PLPs) and product detail pages (PDPs) were completely reworked to improve clarity, conversion potential and visual impact. As Marketing Brand & Graphic Design Manager, Charlotte Self explains: “Before, our product pages were clunky, with small text and small images. Now everything is clear, beautifully presented and far more informative. Features like ‘complete the set’ and ‘style it with’ help us upsell naturally, and Shopify Payments makes checkout friction-free.”

The result

A stronger, faster and more customer-focused ecommerce experience

Since migrating to Shopify Plus, Whitehall has seen significant improvements across key metrics:

• Add to cart rate up by 83.2%
• Average order value up by 65.9%

Alongside these results, the site now offers:

• A modern, flexible design aligned to customer needs
• Faster, more stable performance, especially during seasonal peaks
• A richer, personalised product experience supported by in-house photography
• Streamlined workflows that free up the team to focus on growth
• A scalable foundation for continuous optimisation across acquisition, conversion and retention

The new site launched ahead of the Christmas season and has already strengthened customer engagement and brand perception. Whitehall now has the agility, insight, and platform stability needed to keep improving every stage of the customer journey.