Logo development

Peter Braun is the owner and managing director of the bike shop Bikers Point and also acquired Reisemobil Schmitz in 2013. Both shops are now located under one roof in Leichlingen.

Since the websites of both companies were no longer up to date, Peter commissioned me to redesign them.

Although the two companies have different focuses in the leisure sector, a common graphic language was still needed to make it clear that both companies come from a single source. Therefore, the logos and corporate design were initially revised, which would be used across all visual media in the future.

The image shows a black and white representation of two circular symbols. On the left is a smiley in the shape of a camper van. On the right is a smiley in the shape of a bicycle. Both symbols are simple and minimalist.

Corporate Design (CD)

The two logos were eventually expanded to include the respective company name and a color. The later page layout is also reflected in the business card, which was printed on both sides—one side for each business:

The image shows a business card from Bikers Point. The card has a green background with white text and a bicycle logo in the upper left corner. Below the logo is the text "E-Bikes - Bicycles - Accessories." The text on the card reads "Hochstraße 2a 42799 Leichlingen" and provides the company's contact information. Below are two lines of text with the words "Tel.: +49 (0) 2175 - 88 38 63, Mobile: +49 (0) 174 - 26 23 503" and "info@bikerspoint.de." The text is written in a modern sans-serif font and is centered. The image shows a business card for Reisemobil Schmitz. The card has a blue background with white text and a motorhome logo in the upper left corner. Below the logo is the inscription "Rental - Sales - Service." The card reads "Hochstraße 2a, 42799 Leichlingen." Below that are two lines of text: "Tel.: +49 (0) 2175 - 88 38 63" and "Mobile: +48 (0) 174 - 26 23 503." Below that is "info@reismobil-schmitz.de," the company's website. At the bottom of the card, the company's contact details are listed in white lettering.

Websites

The content of the old websites was completely revised, restructured, and provided with new text. An important aspect was the emotional appeal, which was achieved with large teaser images.

bikerspoint.de

The image shows two mountain bikers on a rocky mountain trail. Both are wearing helmets and backpacks, suggesting a mountain bike ride. The sky is blue, and the mountains in the background are snow-capped. The image was taken from an elevated vantage point overlooking the trail and the bikers. The text on the image reads "Bikers Point," and there's a search bar in the upper right corner.

reisemobil-schmitz.de

The image shows a screenshot of the Reisemobil Schmitz website. The website has a blue header with the company logo and contact information. Below this is a navigation bar with links to various sections of the website. The main content of the page is a photo of a winding road amidst a mountain landscape. The road is lined with trees and bushes on both sides. Two cars are driving on the right side of the road. The cars are white and appear to be moving. The sky is blue, and the overall mood of the image is peaceful and serene.

In contrast to the old site, all offered items were now to be visible directly on the website. This goal was achieved in several ways:

Bikers Point

Bikers Point currently sells approximately 2,000 bicycles from eight different brands. Every year, most items are discontinued and replaced with newer versions. Maintaining such a large number of items would have been time-consuming for the small team.

One solution was to ask the parent company, through which the bicycles are sourced, for the relevant master data. This can, in fact, be provided at any time. Therefore, a corresponding import script was programmed that can update the data in seconds.

The image shows a screenshot of the homepage of the "Bikers Point" website. The website is designed in green and white and features the company logo at the top. Below, you'll find a list of different types of bikes, including Conway, Noxon, and Victoria. The bikes are arranged in a grid-like manner, with each bike having a unique design and color scheme. The bikes are displayed in different colors—black, white, and yellow. Some bikes have a black frame, others a white frame. On the left side, you'll find options such as "Filter," "Bike," and "Brand." On the right side, you can select the desired bike type, size, and weight. There's also a search bar at the bottom of the page to help you quickly find your bike.

Motorhome Schmitz

Reisemobil Schmitz currently rents four different motorhome brands and offers 14 different types. Unfortunately, a central data source like Bikers Point's was not available, so a maintenance tool had to be created for this purpose. Maintenance of the motorhomes is designed to be as convenient as possible to ensure efficient and fast work. For example, there is the option to create templates for motorhome types, eliminating the need for repeated maintenance.

The image shows a screenshot of a website's administration page. The page is divided into two sections. The top section is titled "Administration" and contains a list of available vehicle types. The first section is titled "Pössl 2win Plus" and below it, a description of the available vehicles. The second section shows a car image with the text "Livingstone Duo Sport Limited." The third section shows images of a motorhome with the same text. The fourth section contains three images of the same vehicles – RIMOR, KATAMARANO 3. The page also contains several icons, including a car, a motorhome, and a van. The icons are arranged in a grid, each representing a different vehicle type. The background of the page is white, and the text is black.

Since it is difficult for website visitors to imagine the interior of a motorhome based on photos and floor plans, Peter wanted to create interactive panoramic images.

Creating these shots is relatively easy and gives a really good impression of the interior of the motorhomes. There are many examples on the website—look for this logo:

Expansions at Reisemobil Schmitz

During my work for Peter, I noticed that some workflows at Reisemobil Schmitz could be significantly simplified. Motorhome occupancy was currently done using large plans on the wall. Rental contracts were created using Word templates, and there was no digital customer database.

Below I suggested some optimizations that could be implemented via the website's backend:

• The occupancy plan should be implemented digitally on the website...
• ...this would allow visitors to see the availability of each car for each day.
• Customer care could also be done via the backend of the website.
• In addition to simplified access to all customer data, there would be another huge advantage:
• It would be easy to create the contracts automatically via the website, as all the necessary data would be available there centrally.

Peter was enthusiastic about the suggestions, so I implemented them. Using the availability plan, you can quickly select and book an available vehicle together with the customer.

The image shows a screenshot of a calendar in a software interface. The calendar is titled "Administration" and contains a table with columns for the days of the week (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday). The table is divided into twelve columns, each representing a day of the month. The first column on the left of the image shows the calendar date and time, the second column the start and end dates of the day. The third column indicates that the calendar is filled (start date Monday, end date Tuesday). The fourth column shows how the calendar is filled. The table also contains several bars in different colors: orange, yellow, green, blue, pink, purple, and orange. The bars are arranged in a grid and each represents a day or month. The colors of the bars vary: some are yellow, orange, and pink, others are blue, green, and purple. The background of the table is white, and at the top is a toolbar with various options such as File, Edit, View, Tools, and Help.

After selecting the vehicle and rental period, a form will open with most of the information automatically entered. To complete the rental, simply calculate the price and confirm the completion date:

The image shows a screenshot of a website's administration page. The page is divided into two sections. The top section is titled "Administration" and contains information about the website's security features. Below that is the section "Rental #21 Edit Wengenroth Seal 695." The bottom section of the page contains a table with three columns: "System," "Basic Data," and "Options." The "System" column contains a drop-down menu with options such as "System," "Options," and "Options." There is also a button labeled "Price Calculation" in the top right corner, which provides information to the user when clicked. The image background is white.

Once all the rental data has been saved, the contract can be printed.

The image shows a document titled "Reisemobil Schmitz Rental - Sales - Service." The document is divided into two sections. The top section contains the company logo and contact details, while the bottom section contains a list of details about the service offered. The first section contains a brief description of the service, stating that it is "Motorhome Rental Agreement & Invoice No. 1416 161." The description also mentions that it is a service that provides information about the company and its services. The second section contains details about the services, such as the date, time, and location, as well as the company name and contact details. The third section contains information about the services, including the phone number, email address, and contact information. The fourth section contains links to other relevant information, such as contact details, phone number, and email address.

The new web-based workflow saves a lot of time and effort, reduces errors because they are immediately caught in the system, and appears professional to the customer.