Gagosian
The Brief:
To create a bulletproof online event and distribution logistics for the release of a limited-run t-shirt from iconic artists Takashi Murakami and Virgil Abloh.
The Outcome:
The full-run of shirts sold over the course of three distinct online events with no downtime and a rewritten checkout process to enable VIP sales, prevent fraud and accelerate sales.
The Project Story:
In 2018, Gagosian’s Beverly Hills Gallery ran a limited offering of a shirt collaboratively designed by Takashi Murakami and Virgil Abloh, two living legends of art and design. Gagosian enlisted Caravan to prepare a microsite for the event that could support a number of specialized features.
Requirements included VIP-only access, fraud detection, real- time inventory management, and the capacity to handle punctuated periods of extremely heavy site traffic and orders.
The Plan:
Considering the high stakes of the event (originally scheduled for an exclusive 12-hour window in October 2018), we dedicated significant resources and manpower to monitor site activity both in the run-up to the launch and during the event itself.
While automation is usually our preferred method, in this instance Caravan’s decade of experience indicated the need for the creation of systems that combined automated processes with hands-on monitoring and reporting. This ensured that we would be responsive, responsible and quick to optimize the experience as needed.
The Process:
Working closely with Gagosian, we designed and scripted a robust solution on a staging server and undertook rigorous testing. As the event approached and parameters evolved, we prioritized and restructured to meet Gagosian's discerning expectations while launching the work on a tight deadline. Additionally, we isolated fragments of the new microsite’s functionality that could work globally across Gagosian’s site and deployed them to deliver general improvements.
Measuring Success:
The event (initially a VIP sale that was followed by a public sale due to the success of the original run) ran smoothly in terms of site performance, logistics, fraud detection, and fulfillment. Grossing over $100K in sales in just 12 hours on this single product alone, Gagosian found this to be a successful model for future online sales events.
About Gagosian:
Gagosian is a contemporary art gallery owned and directed by Larry Gagosian. The gallery exhibits some of the most influential artists of the 20th and 21st centuries. There are 16 gallery spaces: five in New York; three in London; two in Paris; one each in Basel, Beverly Hills, San Francisco, Rome, Athens, Geneva and Hong Kong.
About Caravan:
Caravan is a leading firm in the field of art and technology.
Caravan has worked with some of the largest art institutions in the world to sell millions of dollars of art and art merchandise online.
Contact us today at https://crvn.net