At a Glance
Allens Hire, the “SafeHire Event Hire Company of the Year” (2024 & 2025), needed a digital platform that reflected their premium status without ignoring their environmental footprint. We delivered a headless Umbraco solution that halved their digital carbon emissions while delivering a richer visual experience.
- 50% Reduction in Carbon: Dropped from ~0.46g (Legacy Site) to 0.24g (New Site) per view*.
- Performance Improvement: Google Lighthouse performance score increased from 73 (2022) to 89 (2026).
- Accessibility Improvement: Google Lighthouse accessibility score increased from 72 (2022) to 87 (2026), improving usability and compliance across devices.
- Seamless Integration: Full synchronization with InspHire for real-time stock management.
- Search Transformation: Meilisearch implemented for enterprise-grade indexing, relevance, typo tolerance, synonyms, and faceted filtering
- B2B Account Management: Custom account dashboard enabling Allens to manage B2B clients and allowing users to manage business units and team access
* Figures are based on estimated per-page emissions extrapolated across average annual traffic volumes.
The Challenge
“A Promise Delivered” Digitally
Allens Hire operates under the mantra “A Promise Delivered”, serving two distinct audiences: professional caterers who need speed, accuracy, and repeatability, and private clients who seek inspiration and reassurance. The previous platform struggled to deliver for either audience. It was visually dated, performed poorly on modern standards, and did not support the operational complexity of a hire business.
The legacy site was also generating a higher environmental footprint than the business wanted to accept, while the search experience did not scale with their large catalogue. B2B customers lacked self-serve functionality, and internal teams had limited control over client management and pricing. The business needed a platform that could handle complex inventory logic, multiple warehouses, and a wide range of product types while delivering a premium, people focused experience.
The Solution
Headless Architecture & Atomic Design
As Umbraco Gold Partners, we utilized a Headless architecture to decouple the frontend from the backend, giving us granular control over performance and sustainability by significantly reducing emissions through highly optimised code delivery.
Sustainable by Design: The “Code vs. Content” Balance
We rebuilt the platform using a headless Umbraco architecture, decoupling content management from the frontend to allow for faster performance and more efficient delivery of assets. This architecture also created a scalable foundation for future enhancements without requiring major structural changes.
To support the brand’s image led identity while reducing carbon impact, we adopted an atomic design methodology, building a reusable component library. This approach reduced duplication and allowed us to deliver high resolution imagery responsibly using progressive disclosure, ensuring premium visuals without bloating page load.
Complex Integration (InspHire)
A key requirement was seamless integration with InspHire, the real time rental management software used across Allens’ warehouses. We built a reliable, API led connection that synchronises stock availability and pricing in real time, ensuring the online store reflects operational reality and reduces manual reconciliation for internal teams.
Search Reimagined with Meilisearch
Search was a major pain point for Allens, who manage thousands of products across multiple categories. The legacy search solution struggled with relevance and scale. For the rebuild, we implemented Meilisearch, an enterprise grade search engine that improved indexing and relevance and introduced features such as synonyms, typo tolerance, search as you type, keyword highlighting, and faceted filtering. This significantly improved product discoverability and helped users find what they needed faster, particularly when browsing a large catalogue.
A Better B2B Experience
To support Allens’ trade customers, we introduced a custom B2B account dashboard. This enabled Allens to manage their business clients, assign business units, and control team access. For customers, the dashboard improved self service capabilities, allowing them to manage their own business units and ordering workflows more efficiently. This made the platform genuinely usable for professional customers, not just for retail shoppers.
A “People-focussed” UX
To address the demographic disconnect, we shifted the visual language to be “Stylish,” “Helpful,” and “Personable”. The interface does the thinking for the user, with intuitive “Drawer” functionality that sets delivery details (London, South-West, etc.) upfront. This “does the thinking for the user,” ensuring accurate pricing and availability immediately.
The Outcome
The redesigned platform reflects Allens’ vision of being “Expertly managed, dynamic, and growing”. The rebuild demonstrates how performance, sustainability, and premium design can coexist in a modern ecommerce platform. By investing in a headless architecture and building for sustainability, Allens now has a scalable foundation that supports both B2B and B2C growth.
Key Results
- Sustainable Performance: Annual digital carbon emissions reduced from 55.07kg to 28.3kg, a reduction of nearly 50%.
- Speed & Efficiency: The headless architecture delivered measurable improvements in Google Lighthouse performance score (73 → 89) and accessibility score (72 → 87), supporting faster, more inclusive user experiences.
- Commercial Impact: Online engagement has increased since launch, with 102% uplift in pageviews and 83 % increase in active users (launch to date vs PY), indicating improved discoverability and browsing depth.
- Scalable Foundation: The platform now supports future optimisation across performance, sustainability, and conversion without structural rebuilds.
What our Client says
“The new platform finally reflects who we are as a brand. It is easier for our customers to use, gives us confidence that what they see is accurate, and supports the way our business works. Improving performance while also reducing our environmental impact has been a significant win for Allens Hire.”
— Kevin McGuinness, Managing Director, Allens Hire
