Highgrove: Heritage-Led Ecommerce & Seamless Event Ticketing
Built a refined shop for Highgrove—showcasing heritage craftsmanship, reliable event ticketing, smoother checkout and clear team training.
The brief
Highgrove wanted a site that would:
- Showcase the estate’s craftsmanship, provenance and seasonal collections in a way that feels true to the brand.
- Sell limited-ticket events and seasonal pieces reliably at scale.
- Keep the online shop in step with the client’s back-office systems so the retail operation was predictable and dependable.
- Be easy for the team to manage, with clear training and ongoing support so they could focus on curation and events.
The challenges
- Reflecting heritage online. Highgrove’s customers expect the same care and quality online that they find on the estate. The site had to feel premium.
- Time-sensitive events and stock. Tickets and limited runs needed to sell with confidence during peaks, while avoiding oversells and manual firefighting.
- Real customer confidence. Checkout and product pages had to be obvious and reassuring to a broad audience — from loyal visitors to first-time gift buyers.
- Operational simplicity. The team required a day-to-day admin experience that was straightforward, reliable and supported by a clear handover.
What we did
A brand-led storefront
We designed product pages, imagery and copy that celebrate provenance and workmanship so every item reads like something you’d find in Highgrove’s rooms — not just another product listing. Visuals and tone were chosen to reflect the estate’s heritage and the premium nature of the range.
Events and limited editions, done properly
We created customer journeys and admin workflows tailored for events and ticketed sales, ensuring tickets and limited editions are handled reliably during launches and seasonal peaks. This made it practical for Highgrove to sell experiences and special collections online with the same care they show on the estate.
Real testing, real improvements
We didn’t guess — we tested. Moderated sessions with real Highgrove customers guided improvements to the checkout and catalogue so changes were evidence-led and reduced friction.
Practical handover and ongoing support
We supplied training materials and ran handover sessions for product, event and order management. A simple support rhythm and ticketed backlog let the Highgrove team operate the site confidently and focus on merchandising and events rather than maintenance.
Delivery approach
- Iterative delivery: we prioritised core reliability first (catalogue, stock and orders), then focused on events and checkout improvements.
- Close user testing: moderated sessions with actual customers shaped the checkout and product structure.
- Practical handover: documentation, training and an agreed support model ensured the site could be run day-to-day by the Highgrove team.
The result
We delivered more than a working shop — we created an online experience that felt unmistakably Highgrove: elegant, carefully crafted and steeped in heritage. The site doesn’t just sell products, it showcases provenance and workmanship, and it presents Highgrove’s seasonal and event pieces with the same care you’d expect in the estate’s own rooms. What that meant in practice:
- A site that reflects the brand. Visuals, tone and product pages were designed to celebrate craftsmanship and heritage so customers instantly recognised the quality and provenance behind every item.
- Confident sales at peak times. Events, ticketing and limited-edition drops could be sold online with confidence — customers enjoyed a smooth buying experience and the client avoided the awkward oversells that can ruin special events.
- Fewer barriers to purchase. Checkout refinements driven by real customer testing made buying quicker and clearer, lifting customer confidence and reducing friction.
- Day-to-day calm for the team. Practical handover, clear admin workflows and ongoing support meant the Highgrove team could run the site without firefighting — freeing them to focus on merchandising and events.
- Luxury experience, dependable operation. The combination of considered design and reliable commerce infrastructure gave Highgrove a site that felt premium to visitors and predictable for operators.
“This is the second site C3 have delivered for us since becoming customers in 2015; with it they have delivered a seamless experience tailored specifically to our customers’ needs. Since delivery we have seen an incredible growth in eCommerce sales, visits, and incredible customer feedback. C3 are more than an agency for us, they are our partners, they guide and influence our decisions and are always there to go above and beyond when we call upon them.”
“C3 worked closely with multiple departments here to understand the requirements and processes fully to build a website that would not only support our customers for years to come but was also a much-needed time saver for our sales team. C3 take great pride in their work, made sensible recommendations along the way, and worked tirelessly to ensure we received the end result we wanted. We have continued to work with them on additional development post launch to further enhance the platform.”
"Thank you for all of your support over the last few months. Your dedication, hard work, speed of response and willingness to get the job done are very much appreciated.”
“We approached C3 to provide our company with a new ecommerce platform and online strategic direction. They designed, built, and still support the website today. Highly recommended.”
“Thanks to C3's support we have had a very smooth and seamless year of eCommerce trading. Their complete support package exceeded our expectations, allowing us to focus on our business. Once we signed up C3 took the reins, taking care of our site's security, updates, and daily liveness monitoring. They have backed this up with a dedicated accounts team, who are always on hand to support us. The fixed cost of ownership, comprehensive security, and automated update schedule has meant we are free to move our conversations from maintaining, to improving our site, and driving our sales forward. Thanks C3.”
