From Scalable Performance to a Modern Online Store

How Hatimeria redesigned the GraduationSource Magento store on Hyvä, delivering faster navigation and easier content management.

About the client

After modernizing the technical foundation in Phase 1, GraduationSource had a faster and more stable platform. But the visual experience still reflected the past.

GraduationSource is one of the leading US online retailers for graduation products- from preschool ceremonies to PhD graduations. Founded in 1960, the company serves over 30,000 schools worldwide.

Their business depends on precision. Graduation season brings high traffic, large orders and tight deadlines. When performance drops, revenue quickly follows. With over 60 years of history and market leadership, the brand needed a storefront that matched its reputation.

This was not about a cosmetic update. It was about aligning technology, design, and daily operations.

Why did GraduationSource continue working with us?

Phase 1 proved that Hatimeria delivers results. The partnership naturally evolved.

GraduationSource wanted:

A modern, clean brand experience
Better navigation and product presentation
Easier management of over 100 unique content pages
A scalable design system built for the future

With the Hyvä foundation already in place, we could focus entirely on transforming the user experience.

Our actions

Hatimeria rebuilt the storefront with one clear goal: make it faster, more stable and future-ready.

As a Hyvä Gold Partner for the second year in a row, we brought proven experience in delivering high-performance Magento frontends.

Migration to Hyvä

Replaced the outdated frontend with a modern, lightweight solution
Improved loading speed across devices
Simplified the storefront structure
Reduced technical complexity
Made future development easier and safer

The platform became leaner and more reliable.

See the new store in action

Challenges

This was a full rebuild, not a small redesign.

29 new layouts to implement
Redesign of homepage, category and product pages
New header and custom mega menu
Over 100 CMS and landing pages to migrate
Need to maintain speed and stability during Magento upgrade

The main challenge was finding the right balance. The store needed a modern look while still staying fast and reliable.

Hatimeria completely redesigned the online store

New storefront built on Hyvä

Implemented a new layout and visual design
Rebuilt the most important pages: homepage, categories and product pages
Created a custom mega menu for easier navigation
Ensured a consistent look across the entire store

The result was a clean, modern storefront that can easily grow with the business.

CMS improvements

Created reusable content blocks
Built flexible page layouts
Made it easier for the internal team to update content
Reduced the need for developer support

This made everyday work faster and more efficient for the team.

AI-supported development

We used AI internally to speed up frontend development and keep the design consistent across the store. This helped us deliver many pages faster while maintaining high quality.

Controlled launch

The redesign was completed ahead of schedule. The production launch was stable and smooth.

Results

Phase 2 changed more than just the design.

Fully modernized online store
Stronger, more premium brand presence
Better navigation and usability
Easier daily content management
Maintained performance after redesign
Positive feedback from customers and internal teams
Higher conversion rate and double-digit business growth year-to-date, as enterprise customers increasingly use the site to validate GraduationSource’s quality and capabilities

Phase 1 improved speed and stability. Phase 2 improved the brand and internal processes.

Together, they created a future-ready ecommerce platform that reflects GraduationSource’s leadership.

See GraduationSource in action in the video below.

Highlights

Scope

29 frontend layouts delivered
100+ CMS and landing pages rebuilt
Custom mega menu + full rebuild of homepage, PLP, PDP, header & footer

Launch

Development completed ahead of schedule
Stable production launch with no post-release issues

Approach

Component-first architecture
Reusable CMS widgets for easier content management
~80% of frontend code AI-supported to accelerate delivery

Platform

Magento 2 Community Edition
Full rebuild on Hyvä (new theme & template structure)
Magento upgrade incl. Elasticsearch → OpenSearch migration

Customer Review

Hatimeria rebuilt GraduationSource on Hyvä for speed and scalability.

Kristoff Albanese

Director of e-commerce, GraduationSource

“I had a front-row seat to this transformation and what Hatimeria delivered went far beyond building a website. They turned our strategy into a fast, scalable platform that works beautifully for both customers and our internal team. This wasn’t just a redesign or a launch. It changed how we work every day and how we plan to grow. Hatimeria didn’t just build a new storefront. They helped us work better and scale with confidence.”