🌐 Elle Indonesia – Website Redesign Digital News Platform
Client: Elle Indonesia
Duration: ~3 months (2021)
Role: Web Developer
Team: Developer + PM
Website: elle.co.id
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🔍 Overview
As part of Elle Indonesia’s digital transformation, this project focused on modernizing the brand’s core website — turning it into an elegant, responsive platform to deliver editorial content, inspire modern women, and reflect the magazine’s legacy of sophistication. I worked closely with the product owner to implement the frontend and backend experience based on design goals, brand alignment, and technical stability.
🎯 Project Goals
- Refresh the visual design and interaction patterns
- Ensure responsiveness across all modern browsers and devices
- Build a CMS-style backend structure to manage blog and article content
- Create an elegant reading and browsing experience that captures Elle’s identity
👨💻 My Role & Responsibilities
- Developed the entire frontend interface based on design specifications
- Handled responsive implementation and cross-browser compatibility testing
- Integrated the backend article/post structure using Laravel
- Advised on technical limitations and gave product recommendations
- Collaborated with the product owner on weekly progress and feature testing
🛠 Tech Stack
- Frontend: jQuery, Tailwind CSS, SCSS
- Backend: Laravel
- Tools Used:
- Chrome DevTools & Firefox Developer Edition for QA
- Git for version control
- Manual cross-device testing to ensure pixel-perfect results
🚀 Key Features
✨ Visual Identity & Design
- Implemented a UI that echoes Elle’s aesthetic values
- Light, spacious layout optimized for reading
- Typography and spacing choices aligned with the brand’s editorial tone
📱 Responsive Content Experience
- Designed mobile-first and optimized for tablets and desktops
- Ensured fast load times and visual fidelity across breakpoints
- Maintained layout consistency across browsers (Safari, Chrome, Firefox)
📰 Editorial Content System
- CMS-style article/post structure
- Category filtering and content hierarchy
- Clean URLs, SEO-friendly markup, and meta integration
💡 Challenges & Solutions
| Challenge | Solution |
|---|---|
| Maintain pixel perfection across devices and browsers | Manual testing and layout fine-tuning across breakpoints |
| Integrating style-heavy design with legacy backend needs | Combined Tailwind utility classes with SCSS overrides |
| Ensuring long-term maintainability | Developed a flexible layout system to support future content changes |
📈 Outcome & Impact
- Successfully launched in 2021 and still in use today
- Elevated Elle Indonesia’s digital presence as a modern, accessible content platform
- Reduced bounce rate and improved mobile usability
- Strengthened reader engagement through elegant UX
🧠 Reflection
This project emphasized the importance of combining design sensitivity with technical execution. While the development stack was straightforward, the core challenge was visual — ensuring Elle’s brand identity translated perfectly to the web. I deepened my skills in cross-browser testing, responsive styling, and collaborated effectively with a product owner in a fast-paced redesign cycle. The result is a clean, responsive platform that continues to reflect Elle’s legacy in digital form.
