Please rotate phone

Golden Krust

Creative Director of Website & UX/UI Design, Lead Designer

Golden Krust, the largest Caribbean franchise in the United States, operates Jamaican-style restaurants across the U.S. and Canada and supplies frozen patties to supermarkets. With over three decades of history as a family-founded business, Golden Krust wanted to refresh its corporate ecommerce website to better reflect its authentic Jamaican culture, showcase its menu offerings, highlight franchise opportunities, and strengthen its brand identity. The goal was to create a visually engaging, fully responsive site that would capture the essence of their physical restaurants while providing a seamless online experience.

Client:

Golden Krust

Year:

2018-2024

My Role:

Creative Director

Lead Designer

Creative Director of Website & UX/UI Design

Agency:

Ruckus

My Role
I was the Lead Designer on the project and handled all web design while working closely with the UX/UI Team, Project Manager, Development Team, and Golden Krust Stakeholders to create a website that acknowledges their roots by weaving Caribbean vibes into every aspect of the digital experience. Jamaican colors, patterns, and textures appear throughout, maintaining a subtle sense of culture, while custom-drawn illustrations push the creative envelope. Users experience the flavors of Jamaica while navigating the restaurant and retail product pages.

Packaging and Design: Overseeing the Design Team, I helped lead the creation of a variety of culturally authentic illustrations and collateral that reflected the brand’s values and aesthetics.
Photography: Led and oversaw all product and dish photography, ensuring visual consistency and high-quality imagery.
Menus: Responsible for putting together new digital and print menus, ensuring they were visually aligned with the updated branding and provided an engaging experience for customers.

The Challenge
Golden Krust needed a website that was unique, engaging, and culturally rich, avoiding the typical cookie-cutter template approach. The challenge was to build a highly functional, modern website while maintaining the authenticity of Golden Krust’s Jamaican roots. The new site needed to be visually dynamic, easy to navigate, and optimized for online ordering and franchise inquiries while creating a memorable digital experience that mirrored the ambiance of their physical restaurants.

The Solution
To bring Golden Krust’s vision to life, I focused on a visually immersive design approach, integrating:

Authentic Jamaican Elements: Typography, patterns, textures, and colors that represent the vibrancy of Jamaican culture.
Custom Illustrations & Graphics: Bespoke drawings and design elements that elevate the creative direction.
Enhanced UX/UI Design: A seamless user experience that allows for easy navigation, online ordering, and franchise application.

Strategic Photography: High-quality imagery that highlights the menu offerings, reinforcing Golden Krust’s rich culinary heritage.

The Results & Accomplishments

The redesigned website successfully elevated Golden Krust’s digital presence, enhanced user experience, and strengthened the brand’s market positioning. Key achievements included:

Improved User Experience: Enhanced navigation, mobile responsiveness, and a visually appealing interface for effortless exploration.
Strengthened Brand Identity: A fresh and modern aesthetic that better reflects Golden Krust’s leadership in Caribbean cuisine.
Optimized Online Ordering: Streamlined food ordering and delivery integration for customer convenience.
Increased Franchise Engagement: Clear, structured information for potential franchisees, driving more inquiries and business growth.
Higher Customer Retention: Improved SEO, content strategy, and interactive elements, leading to increased web traffic and engagement.

Overall, the website redesign played a pivotal role in modernizing Golden Krust’s online presence, strengthening customer connections, and supporting the company’s continued growth and expansion.

Golden Krust’s website received industry recognition for its effectiveness and design, winning multiple awards: