Articles About

Boris Hoekmeijer (iSpace Design) is a Netherlands-based WordPress designer who has been building websites since 2010, with a strong focus on healthcare organizations. When two of his clients needed a way to store and organize large collections of private documents on their websites, he turned to Document Library Pro.

Managing years of private documents with folder structures

One of Boris's healthcare clients had been storing years of administrative documents - invoices, bank records and internal files - on a personal computer. They needed all of that accessible to multiple team members online, but in a secure and organized way.

Document Library Pro allowed Boris to set up a structured folder system with access restrictions, so only authorized members could view and download files. The client is now working through uploading over 15 years of documents into a clear, browsable library on their website.

"She's very happy with it now," said Boris. "The overview is very clear and you can customize the order of folders. It works very well."

It's the best one I've come across, which is why I purchased it in the first place. It's the one I will always use unless I come across something better - but I haven't found that yet.

Boris Hoekmeijer, iSpace Design

A go-to plugin for agency client builds

Boris purchased a developer license so he can use Document Library Pro across multiple client sites. His second healthcare client uses the plugin to share medical protocols and patient information - with public brochures available to everyone and restricted documents reserved for members only.
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The Schumacher Institute is a UK-based charity and think tank with around 270 fellows worldwide - from senior academics to early-stage researchers. The organization needed a clean way to share its growing library of discussion papers, research and policy documents. Document Library Pro gave them exactly that.

Replacing a clunky system with a professional document library

Before switching to Document Library Pro, the Schumacher Institute relied on a basic plugin that felt limited. Ian Roderick, who manages most of the website, went looking for something better - and the plugin's interface stood out straight away.

"The interface of Document Library Pro looked good. It seems to do the job nicely," said Ian. Setup was straightforward too. "It was up and running straight away," he added, noting that the transition was also a good opportunity to audit existing files and clear out anything outdated.

It was up and running straight away. It's also quite a good time to have a bit of an audit and clear out stuff you don't need and start afresh.

Ian Roderick

A document hub for fellows and the public

Today, the institute uses Document Library Pro to organize discussion papers, research and policy documents across multiple pages. Fellows and visitors can browse and download content with ease, and filtering options help them find what they need. For a charity managing contributions from hundreds of fellows, having a professional document hub makes a real difference.

Ian would also recommend the plugin to other organizations in a similar position. "I would recommend it if people were looking for something like that," he said. "I've never had any problems or hiccups with it."

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Malleus Martialis crafts high-quality swords and equipment for Historical European Martial Arts (HEMA). Founded 11 years ago by master craftsman Rodolfo Tanara, the company launched their e-commerce site four years ago to keep pace with growing demand. But managing bespoke products online came with an unexpected challenge - one that nearly forced them to scale back their customization offerings.

The challenge: drowning in product variations

For Sergio Grillo, who manages the website backend, every new product meant hours of tedious work. With 17 grip colors, multiple blade lengths, and various customization options, a single sword could generate more than 50 variations in WooCommerce.

"I was spending hours on end every time a new product was coming out, just filling up the variations," Sergio explained. "We were actually thinking of reducing some of the customizations we wanted to offer just because we couldn't keep up on the website side."

Stock management compounded the problem. Each variation needed manual updates, turning what should have been a streamlined operation into a time-consuming nightmare.

The solution: WooCommerce Product Options

After researching alternatives, Sergio discovered WooCommerce Product Options. The plugin transformed how Malleus Martialis manages their custom products.

It's really easy to use. It was a lifesaver for me. I really recommend it.

Sergio Grillo

Instead of creating dozens of variations per product, the team now tracks stock on just a couple of base variations and handles all customization through product options. The conditional options feature proved especially valuable, allowing specific options to appear only for relevant product configurations.
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Mandalafy is a print-on-demand store where customers create personalized mandala designs and print them on products like t-shirts, mugs, and home decor. Dan, the creator of Mandalafy, needed customers to visualize their creations on real products. This case study shows how WooCommerce Live Preview transforms customizable product stores.

The challenge: making custom products feel tangible

Dan developed a mandala design tool that lets customers create personalized patterns. However, he needed a solution to bridge the gap between digital creation and physical product.

"I wanted clients to have that feeling like I'm making this product," Dan explained. "I wanted it to feel really streamlined. I didn't want it to be clunky."

Before discovering Barn2, Dan experimented with other preview plugins but found them limiting.

The solution: WooCommerce Live Preview delivers

Dan discovered WooCommerce Product Options and WooCommerce Live Preview, which provided exactly what he needed.

I realized I wasn't limited in terms of what products I could offer as long as I can create the image. That wasn't exactly something that I could have articulated until I found it.

Dan, creator of Mandalafy

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Myddfai Trading Company, a Welsh social enterprise producing premium toiletries and home fragrance products, faced a critical problem: their WordPress site was running over 60 plugins. This extreme plugin bloat created constant conflicts and expensive custom development. When redesigning with a bilingual English/Welsh interface, they needed a complete rethink.

The challenge: reducing 60+ plugins to a manageable setup

By 2020, Myddfai's site was running over 60 plugins - creating constant conflicts and a maintenance nightmare.

"The level of custom development needed to keep everything working together had become too difficult and expensive to maintain," explains Paul Long, Retail & E-commerce Manager.

For their redesign, Myddfai sought a single provider whose tools would work seamlessly together and be fully compatible with WPML. Barn2's All Access Pass provided the solution, with five core plugins handling their retail and wholesale needs.

Results: streamlined operations and better customer experience

Barn2's integrated plugins transformed Myddfai's operations. Retail customers now see only retail products and pricing, while trade customers automatically access wholesale-specific pricing through WooCommerce Wholesale Pro.

WooCommerce Product Table revolutionised phone orders, enabling staff to process orders quickly with automatic order history recall. WooCommerce Product Tabs eliminated duplication by allowing standardised tabs (like "Candle Safety") to apply across multiple products.

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Andrew Ellis Art sells high-end wildlife prints created by world-renowned artist Andrew Ellis, whose bird of prey paintings are particularly popular in the UAE and Qatar. When customer demand for framed prints grew, the company needed a way to showcase framing options visually on their website.

The challenge: displaying frame choices effectively

For years, Andrew Ellis Art shipped unframed, rolled prints worldwide. However, customers increasingly requested framing services. Richard Netherclift, who manages the website through his design agency, faced a specific challenge: standard WooCommerce couldn't display framing choices in the visual, user-friendly way needed for luxury art products.

"We knew that WooCommerce wouldn't allow the flexibility to show the frames and for people to choose the frames very easily," Richard explained. After partnering with Andrew's Scottish framer to handle framing and dispatch, they needed a solution to showcase different frame styles visually.

The solution: WooCommerce Product Options

Having used Barn2 plugins successfully before, Richard chose WooCommerce Product Options. The plugin enabled them to display framing choices as variations with sub-variations - all shown visually on product pages.

You could drill down if someone picked a certain frame, then we could actually offer another set of variations on top of that and show it visually, which was very important to us.

Richard Netherclift, Web Designer

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Withers Sports is a long-standing tennis equipment retailer in the UK, operating both in-store and online. As the business expanded, they needed a way to offer exclusive products to select customer groups while improving how shoppers browsed high-detail product information. Using two key Barn2 plugins – WooCommerce Protected Categories and WooCommerce Product Table – they achieved both goals.

Setting up private discounts with WooCommerce Protected Categories

One of the most exciting new opportunities for Withers came through a partnership with a major UK-wide tennis coaching company. The team wanted to offer exclusive, discounted products to over 100 affiliated coaches, but needed a secure and private solution that felt tailored to that group.

The solution was WooCommerce Protected Categories, which allowed Withers to set up a password-protected section of their online store just for the coaching company. This private store area was branded with the client’s identity and allowed coaches to browse and purchase with confidence.

Providing a range of discounted products to the 100+ coaches within the client company, in a secure environment branded specifically to their needs, was a significant step forward in the business to business relationship. A great step forward for a sports equipment retailer.

James Spence, Director of Withers Sports Ltd.

Encouraged by the results, Withers is now planning a second B2B project using the same plugin to create another private area for a different customer group.

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Rootlab, an online store specializing in organic seeds and fungus starters, needed a better way to present detailed product information on their WooCommerce site. By using custom product tabs for WooCommerce, they found a simple, structured way to display key details without clutter—improving both the look and usability of their product pages.

“Our product descriptions were getting too long and cluttered,” says Jae from Rootlab. “We wanted a more structured way to present key information. The Barn2 Product Tabs plugin made this easy—no conflicts, no issues, and it integrates perfectly. It just works seamlessly.”

Since implementing the plugin, Rootlab has added tabs for product certifications, global shipping details, and even embedded videos to guide customers through using their products.

“The plugin is incredibly easy to configure and has made our product pages so much more organized,”

The plugin is incredibly easy to configure and has made our product pages so much more organized.

Jae Patni

Jae adds. “Customers often compliment how clean and professional everything looks. It’s easier for them to find what they need, which improves the overall shopping experience.”

Rootlab also appreciates the broader experience of working with Barn2.

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When charter schools in New York needed an efficient way to manage public and private documents, Rodriguez Valle Creative turned to Barn2’s WordPress plugins - Posts Table Pro and Password Protected Categories - to get the job done.

“Our client needed a portal for their school’s board of directors to access board documents,” explained Ignacio Rodriguez, founder of Rodriguez Valle Creative. “By law, New York City charter schools must publish public documents like meeting agendas and minutes, but they also needed a secure area for private board materials. We found Barn2’s plugins offered the perfect combination of simplicity and functionality.” (See an example of this document management on the LION Charter School website).

Posts Table Pro made it easy to create a clean, searchable table layout to display over 100 public documents, while Password Protected Categories restricted access to sensitive files for board members. Each committee could access only the documents relevant to them.

We didn’t even look at alternatives. Barn2’s plugins work seamlessly and don’t get in the way of what we need to accomplish.

Ignacio Rodriguez

Rodriguez Valle Creative has since used these plugins on multiple school projects. “It’s always a solution for us when we have that amount of content to showcase,” Ignacio added. “If you need to manage public and private documents, these plugins make life a lot easier.”

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