--- title: "Kala Curry case study · Anirudh Goel" description: "Kala Curry is a multi-vendor marketplace for handcrafted Indian art, built on Shopify's Reformation theme." canonical: https://anirudhgoel.xyz/projects/kala-curry updated: 2026-10-31 site: "Anirudh Goel" language: en --- # Kala Curry 800+ products, 56 artisans, 55 collections. A marketplace where the maker is never anonymous. [See it live ↗](https://kalacurry.in/) - Industry Multi-Vendor Art Marketplace - Year 2025 - Role Design and build - Built with Shopify LiquidCustom SectionsJudge.me Integration ![Kala Curry's homepage on a laptop: Your moodboard comes alive here, over a collage of handmade pieces.](https://anirudhgoel.xyz/_astro/home-desktop.DvpnuMj7_1fiIzc.webp) ![Kala Curry's homepage on a phone: the same collage hero under the pink announcement bar.](https://anirudhgoel.xyz/_astro/home-phone.D-Kimaq3_2frNmu.webp) Kala Curry is a multi-vendor marketplace for handcrafted Indian art, built on Shopify's Reformation theme. At launch: **817** products across **55** collections, **56** verified artisans, **15+** craft forms, and **1,500+** orders fulfilled. The differentiator is attribution: every product traces back to a named maker, not a generic vendor tag. ## Kala Curry, in numbers. ### The marketplace at launch 1. Products at launch**817** 2. Collections**55** 3. Verified artisans, each named on the store**56** 4. Craft forms**15+** One mark for each collection, artisan and craft form. **82,000**Google Search Console impressions in the three months after launch **1,500+**orders fulfilled by launch **3**tiers of stock urgency, read from live Shopify inventory **A to Z**every artisan in one directory, each linked to their collection **No plugin**every page type carries structured data from the theme's own markup ## The brief - Discovery no way to browse by identity or mood, only by craft medium - PDP urgency zero conversion signals on product pages, no social proof, no scarcity cues - SEO infrastructure no structured data, no collection descriptions, no schema markup of any kind - Artisan attribution vendor names buried in the backend, invisible to customers on the storefront - Homepage default theme layout with no brand voice, no personality, no reason to stay ## Three pages, on a phone. ### Shop by personality Desi Baddie, Taste-Haver, Whimsical Girlie, Dopamine Detoxer and Gardener: five ways into the catalogue by mood, beside Shop By Medium. ### A product page that sells How many people viewed it today and how few are left sit above the price; the add to cart bar stays in reach; About the Artist opens under the buttons. ### Every maker, named Shop by Creator: a card for each artisan with their story in a line and a link to everything they make. ## Screens ### How it was built The build ran across 6 phases from November 2025 through February 2026. 1. **Phase one established the Reformation theme base and SEO infrastructure:**collection-schema.liquid, faq-schema.liquid, breadcrumb-schema.liquid, and meta templates for every page type. 2. **Phase two rebuilt the About Us experience with custom CS Brand Story and CS Our Team sections.** 3. **The full theme overhaul followed in January 2026, replacing the default homepage with kc-personality-categories.liquid, kc-origin-story.liquid, kc-collection-scroll.liquid, and a countdown banner.** 4. **The PDP received a complete CRO layer:**a live view counter with realistic Indian traffic simulation, three-tier stock urgency tied to live Shopify inventory, sticky add-to-cart, Judge.me review integration at teal #108474, and expandable side panels for shipping, returns, and care. 5. **The vendor directory came next, a kc-vendor-list.liquid page rendering all 56 artisans A-Z with links to their collections.** 6. **The build closed with the full kc- section library and a custom footer redesign.** ![Kala Curry, architecture](https://anirudhgoel.xyz/_astro/kc-architecture.UWbQuMwD_Z18nzTa.webp) ### The product page Every product names its maker, shows its live stock and keeps shipping, returns and care one tap away. Reviews come in through Judge.me, set in the store's teal. ![A product page on a laptop: the Bloom Handwoven Bookmark, 5 people viewed this today, Only 1 left in stock, add to cart and buy it now.](https://anirudhgoel.xyz/_astro/pdp-desktop.Yezbvug2_Z14Lis5.webp) ![The same product's buy box on a phone: the view count, the stock line, the price and the buttons.](https://anirudhgoel.xyz/_astro/pdp-phone.DEhCR6wG_2ozHsn.webp) ### Search, in the markup Three months post-launch: 82,000 Google Search Console impressions. Every page type carries structured data. Every collection has a keyword-targeted description. The SEO work is in the markup, not a plugin. ![The Bookmarks collection on a laptop: its filter bar and a grid of handmade bookmarks.](https://anirudhgoel.xyz/_astro/collection-desktop.BnzaOVZ9_erbd9.webp) ![The Bookmarks collection on a phone.](https://anirudhgoel.xyz/_astro/collection-phone.DT07LeDz_1oT33l.webp) ### The makers and the story The About page tells the brand's founding story in its own sections, and the artisan directory turns the vendor list into a page a shopper browses. ![Shop by Creator on a laptop: a grid of maker cards, each with a photo, a name and a line about them.](https://anirudhgoel.xyz/_astro/vendors-desktop.CTcaWJZz_2b2IA7.webp) ![The About page on a phone: We are here to celebrate India's best artists and their crafts.](https://anirudhgoel.xyz/_astro/about-phone.8-Jd5Rrm_xs7iD.webp) ![Kala Curry, video poster](https://anirudhgoel.xyz/_astro/kc-walkthrough-video-2.oBvdGGGC_tFp0e.webp) ### Homepage at launch ![Kala Curry, origin story](https://anirudhgoel.xyz/_astro/kc-origin-story.qFQLGDqL_Z1HqVhb.webp) ### Origin story at launch ![Kala Curry, product page trust](https://anirudhgoel.xyz/_astro/kc-pdp-trust.CbfcteXC_Z14hNDM.webp) ### Product page at launch ![Kala Curry, store overview](https://anirudhgoel.xyz/_astro/kc-store-overview.SobwREzq_Z2nAClL.webp) ### Shop by category at launch ## Testimonial > “He showed up to our first call with a working version of our website already built. Over 14 months, he rebuilt the entire platform: personality-based navigation, live view counters, stock urgency, SEO infrastructure, and a vendor directory for all 56 of our artisans. **He treats the store like it’s his own.**” > > Ruchika Agarwal, Kala Curry What I would do differently One thing I’d do differently: SEO infrastructure should have been phase one, not phase two. The schema and meta templates were built in December after the theme setup, which meant the first weeks of crawling had no structured data. It cost nothing to fix, but it was the wrong order. ## More work. [Every case study →](https://anirudhgoel.xyz/projects) [**Nara Livin**Client · Home & Living2025 ](https://anirudhgoel.xyz/projects/nara-livin)[**Bibal**Client · Multi-Vendor2024 ](https://anirudhgoel.xyz/projects/bibal)[**Keer**Client · Fine Jewellery2026](https://anirudhgoel.xyz/projects/keer) ## Have a build in mind? Say hi. [Book a 30-minute call ↗](https://cal.com/anirudh.goel/consultation?utm_source=portfolio\&utm_medium=site\&utm_campaign=study-kala-curry\&utm_content=closing) [WhatsApp me ↗](https://wa.me/917814769892?text=Hi%20Anirudh%2C%20I%27m%20on%20your%20Kala%20Curry%20case%20study%20and%20want%20to%20talk%20about%20a%20project.) [More work →](https://anirudhgoel.xyz/projects) I reply the same working day. --- Site index for AI assistants: https://anirudhgoel.xyz/llms.txt Every page as one file: https://anirudhgoel.xyz/llms-full.txt