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July 8, 2026

VanilleBistro, Case Study 

Hero mockup of the redesigned Vanile Bristol website

Introduction

VanilleBistro is a local custom cake store based in Melbourne, Australia, specialising in creating unique, custom-designed cakes and catering for special occasions. However, despite featuring cake and catering imagery, the website failed to deliver a positive user experience. To make matters worse, the site took far too long to load.

Project scope and approach

VanilleBistro had no clear vision for their new website, no idea how it should look or how things needed to be structured. Their only requests were that the site perform well and that users could easily find everything they needed: a variety of cake options, a catering gallery, and a clear path to placing orders online.

Our initial approach was to impress them with design variants before moving on to website performance. We started by analysing their previous website and developing four distinct design concepts, each with its own branding direction.

Before

Previous version of the Vanille website before the redesign

After

To achieve a modern and polished site, we knew the imagery needed attention. Working with the raw photos provided by the client, our team edited and refined them to align seamlessly with the chosen design direction. Their previous site featured a generic navigation menu with plain headings and no clear calls to action. We replaced this with a

cake-friendly menu, and built an image-rich landing page showcasing their own cake and catering photography.

Redesigned homepage for the Vanille website with a clean and elegant layout

Business Challenges

The previous website had several issues, ranging from UX to overall performance. For instance:

  • The website felt too generic and rushed, with all services crammed onto a single page and no clear structure.
  • Performance was poor across both mobile and desktop.
  • The colour palette was basic and did not reflect the warmth or character of a cake-focused brand.
  • The checkout experience was overwhelming, with everything piled in one place, leaving users confused and unsure of next steps.
  • There was a lack of clear call-to-action (CTA) buttons, no dedicated cake gallery, a weak SEO foundation, and no About Us section to communicate the team’s expertise and experience.
  • There were no customer reviews, leaving visitors with no social proof or trust signals to guide their decision.
Previous version of the Vanille website before the redesign

Before

Vanille Cakes and Catering – Cakes and Catering,

South East Melbourne

Old Website

 

Hero mockup of the redesigned Vanille website with a modern and responsive interface

After

Home – VanilleBistro

The Redesigned site

NAFCORP’s Approach

With a clear picture of the existing pain points, we took a structured approach to rebuilding VanilleBistro’s online presence from the ground up.

  • Design First: Design First: We designed four distinct branding concepts to give the client a visual direction that felt true to their identity, warm, elegant, and cake-focused.
  • Image Refinement: We worked with the client’s raw photography, editing and curating images to complement the new design and bring the brand to life visually.
  • UX Restructuring: We reorganised the site architecture to give every service its own space, making it easier for users to browse cakes, explore catering options, and complete the online ordering process without confusion.
  • Performance Optimisation: We prioritised fast load times across both mobile and desktop, ensuring the site felt as good as it looked.
  • Content & SEO Foundation: We introduced a dedicated cake gallery, a clear about section, strong CTA buttons throughout, and clearly mentioned their expertise.
  • Trust Building: We added a customer reviews section to provide social proof and give new visitors the confidence to place an order.

Footer

We also redesigned the footer from the ground up. The previous version was minimal, consisting of little more than a social media link against a plain background. We replaced it with a fully informative footer that includes all key quick links, an online booking option, and a newsletter sign-up, giving users everything they need at a glance without having to scroll back to the top.

Custom footer design for the Vanille website

Social Media Management

Each week, we create and schedule three posts, working with their raw images and upcoming content. We refine each caption and visual before scheduling everything to maximise reach and maintain consistency.

Social media marketing for a cake and catering business

    Project Type