WebCitz started working with this client in 2015
- Client: The Leather Guy
- Platform: Magento
- Industry: Retail / E-Commerce
- Services: Digital Marketing, Ecommerce, Maintenance / Support, Web Development, Web Hosting
The Challenge
As a high-volume supplier, The Leather Guy faced several complex technical and marketing hurdles:
- Technical Debt & Customization: Their Magento 1.x store had numerous custom-coded features to handle unique product variations (hides vary in size, shape, and weight). Maintaining these customizations during security updates was a delicate task.
- Organic Search Competition: The brand needed to rank for thousands of highly competitive terms – from broad keywords like “leather hides” to long-tail terms like “veg-tan leather scraps.”
- Site Speed vs. Heavy Imagery: Selling leather is a visual business. The site relied on high-resolution photos to show grain and texture, which often threatened to slow down the user experience.
The WebCitz Solution
We provided an “All-in-One” growth model that combined deep backend engineering with aggressive search marketing:
- Custom Magento Engineering: For four years, we managed their complex Magento installation. We ensured that all custom features remained compatible with essential security patches (SUPEE) and optimized the database to handle their extensive product catalog without performance lag.
- Aggressive SEO & Category Optimization: We focused heavily on Category Content SEO. By building out detailed, keyword-rich descriptions and technical guides on category pages, we helped search engines better understand and rank their inventory, driving massive amounts of top-of-funnel traffic.
- Authoritative Backlink Building: To boost their Domain Authority, we executed a strategic backlink campaign. We networked the brand with authoritative industry sources and crafting publications, securing high-quality links that helped them leapfrog competitors in search rankings.
- Performance & Speed Engineering: We performed multiple rounds of speed optimization. This included image compression strategies and server-side tweaks to ensure that their detailed product photography didn’t compromise page load speeds or mobile usability.
- Specialized Managed Hosting: We hosted the site on our high-performance infrastructure, specifically tuned for the resource-heavy requirements of a customized Magento store.
The Result
By 2019, The Leather Guy had solidified its position as a digital leader in the leather supply industry. Our work helped them transition from a successful retail shop into a national e-commerce powerhouse. The combination of technical stability and a high-authority SEO profile resulted in a significant increase in organic revenue and customer acquisition. By the end of our four-year partnership, the site was a well-oiled machine, capable of handling high-traffic volume with a superior search presence.
