Website Retheme
Ready Ref
Ready Ref wanted the site to look exactly as it did while running on modern parts underneath. We moved a 2012 build onto a new theme and matched the desktop pixel for pixel. It works on phones now, which it never did before.
- 2012 to 2019 same client, second engagement on the same site
- Client
- Ready Ref
- Where
- Nationwide
- Services
- Responsive Wordpress Site
- Model
- 2005
- Service
- Website Design
- Sector
- Commerce & Retail
About Ready Ref
Ready Ref is a trusted nationwide provider of equipment for sports referees. They have set the officials’ standard for on-field timing since 1979 and remain the main supplier of referee and game timers across the US. Ready Ref is owned by Grimm Scientific, Inc., which supplies hydrotherapy equipment to collegiate and state sports teams nationwide.
The business challenge
In 2012, Paradynamix redesigned and branded the Ready Ref site and set up the e-commerce portal and site map the client asked for. Since then the Grimm Scientific team has mostly run the site, with Paradynamix still hosting it on our servers. By 2019 their team wanted the site brought up to date. They wanted content changes to be easier to make, and they wanted the site to look exactly the same.
What we did
Our plan was to move the site content onto a new theme with a modern, friendly content management experience. The new theme made changes easier, and it had mobile responsiveness built in, which the old theme lacked. We would use custom CSS and compare old and new side by side at every step to recreate the same look and feel on the modern theme.
What happened
The old theme was cutting edge in its day. It had since stopped getting updates and relied on a lot of shortcode and HTML for custom formatting. As we moved content into the new theme, we cleaned up the code so it would not clash with the new framework. On desktop, we tailored the new theme to match the original setup exactly. We also set the site up to adapt to tablets and phones, stripping out background elements that hurt legibility on small screens. Mobile visitors now get a clean, accessible experience, and desktop visitors see the same site they already knew.