All work

Honolua Ukuleles

I started Honolua Ukuleles in 2018. I’d spent years behind a music store counter watching people buy the cheap ukulele, fight it for a few weeks, and decide they weren’t musical.

They hadn’t made a bad decision. They’d been given a bad choice. So I started designing my own.

Visit honoluaukuleles.com (opens in a new tab)
The whole Honolua Ukuleles homepage, from the hero down to the footer

What I built

Recent updates, 2026

  1. The store

    Shopify, rebuilt in 2026

    I rebuilt the site from the homepage down so it sells what the instrument does for you, not a list of specs. It’s more visual, more interactive and answers the questions people actually ask.

    I also built the upsells: accessory bundles right in the buy box and an offer after checkout, so the right gear goes out with the ukulele.

  2. Help choosing

    Quiz and buyer’s guide

    Most people get stuck on which size to buy. A short quiz picks the size and model for them, then drops them into an email funnel that converts really well. A buyer’s guide is there for anyone who’d rather understand the choice.

  3. The look

    Colour, type and motion

    A new palette, new fonts and new animations. Each series got its own colour and its own animal, so the lineup reads at a glance.

  4. Product cards

    Every model

    Each model has a set of cards that tell its story as you swipe through, with numbered callouts showing what each part does for the sound.

  5. Email

    Klaviyo

    One template the whole programme is built on, a signup that sends people into the quiz, and automated emails for new subscribers, carts and after a purchase.

  6. Ads

    Google and Meta

    Built from what the brand already had: product photos on their series colour, my own playing and real customer reviews.

The 2026 lineup on the homepage: four ukuleles, each on its series colour with its animal drawn behind it
Four series, four colours, four animals. You know which is which before you read a word.
A Honolua product card for the Kohola Deluxe tenor, with four numbered parts and what each one does
A product card that explains the build in what you’ll hear.
A comparison chart: arched back, solid wood, bone nut and saddle and quality tuners, ticked across the four series
The spec sheet turned into reasons: each feature says what it does for the sound.
The homepage block for the free starter course, with a ukulele and a tablet showing Dave teaching
The free course in the box gets its own block, so buyers see the path, not only the instrument.

Selling
the feeling

“Get more out of every strum.”

The promise at the top of the homepage.

Most people buying a Honolua already play, and they’ve started to wonder if the thin sound is them. So every page starts with the sound and the moment, and saves the specs for last.

What the
work does

  • Shoppers hear it before they read about itDemo videos and benefit-first copy on every product page.
  • Picking a size stops being the sticking pointThe quiz lands people on the right model.
  • The lineup makes sense at a glanceOne colour and one animal per series.
  • One look everywhereThe site, the emails and the ads share the same colours, type and photos.

Building something
you care about?

If you could use a hand with the online side, I’d like to hear about it.

Tell me about your business