200 years and 9 generations, none of it above the fold.
- What I saw
- Open charleshart.co.uk on a phone and the first line a customer reads is the generic "Browse our website for a range of services, products and information we proudly offer for our customers." The 1820 founding date, the Samuel Hart silversmith origin in Aston, the move to Frome in 1895, the 1983 takeover of the medieval-era building at 4 Cheap Street, and the fact that Alex Hart is the 9th direct descendant running the family business, all of it sits four clicks deep behind the footer About link at /about-us/. A first-time visitor reading the home above the fold cannot tell this jewellers from any other indie shop.
- Cause
- The Elementor template treats "About" as a secondary page and the homepage as a product browse. The hero block was set up around supplier brand panels and a CTA grid, not around the family story. The about page itself is wonderful, but it is competing with eleven nav items and a footer link, not surfaced where a customer actually lands.
- After rebuild
- After rebuild: the hero kicker reads "Cheap Street, Frome since 1895, in the Hart family since 1820". The first paragraph names Alex Hart, the 9th generation, joined 2010 after Goldsmiths in Bath. A four-up badge grid carries Est. 1820, In Frome since 1895, 9th generation, In-house goldsmith. The 1895 Bath Street move, the 1983 Cheap Street relocation, the wartime ledger that shows the shop was closed on VE Day, all land in a dedicated heritage band before the customer scrolls past the second screen.