Donnelly Group

An undeniable force in Vancouver, Donnelly Group has evolved from a collection of scrappy pubs to a title contender in the city's bar and restaurant scene.

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Donnelly Group has been a staple of the Vancouver nightlife scene for years. In response to shifting consumer taste they recently overhauled their entire portfolio of brands. From the menu to the decor on the walls, all touch points of the experience demanded a renewed look. As creative lead on the project I was responsible for the redesign of the website. A primary source for menus, location details and programming information, the website is an especially important tool for communicating with their customers.

One look, dozens of properties

The new design had to serve a wide range of properties. Bars, restaurants and nightclubs all had to exist comfortably within the new site. I worked closely with Donnelly Group marketing directors to devise a strategy that satisfies the many stakeholders involved.

Everything and the kitchen sink

The Donnelly marketing team has to contend with some of the most varied content I've ever come across. One day they may be promoting a marquee football game while the next is a one-off cask event. The unpredictable nature of time sensitive content created a unique challenge in the organization and design of the new site. How do you build a framework that is easy to manage on the backend, logical in presentation for users and able to accommodate any type of content you can throw at it? After much debate and experimentation we settled on a tile system for the presentation of information on key pages of the website. This solution provides maximum flexibility; tiles can be moved anywhere on the page while containing any type of content.

Mobile is especially important for bars and restaurants. The nature of their business has many customers doing research spontaneously while on the go. We built a standalone mobile site to serve the volumes of guests on phones. Unnecessary graphics and images have been removed to ensure the best performance possible and easy access to crucial information.