Welcome to another round of LabelHorde.com design upgrades!

V1.1 — When this site started, a year ago this month, it was simply a basic info page to compliment the print magazine. There were no features or columns. No news and very little in regards to imagery. The Forum and Calendar started here and have held strong throughout our design revamps, providing a launch pad for our open and communicative community.

V2.1 — As we evolved from print to strictly an online entity, the design was changed to reflect our new company direction. Moving away from print allowed us to focus on really building this industry, instead of putting every ounce of energy into ad sales in attempts to generate enough revenue just to continue printing. We took a step back and refocused. The E-Magazine was born. Full of color and large images, many feature stories and fun columns. The Forum and Calendar stayed in place, acting as the ultimate resource to interact with fellow colleagues and stay apprised of future events.

V3.1 — Little did we know, at that time, just how fast we’d grow. V2.1 was launched in July, and as of October, we’ve already outgrown our web hosting space! I knew this would happen eventually, but never would I have dreamed that it’d happen so fast.

Our hits have doubled each month, 356,000 in October alone, and as of yesterday when I checked our stats, we are being visited by 23 different countries! Our printed publication could never have reached these heights; we are now, dare I say, international?!

Our new design will take us to the next level. More text on the homepage makes us even easier to find when people search out fashion sites. Smaller images allow the homepage to load faster for friends visiting on a dial up network. We’re archiving all old stories so that the information is always there to refer back to. We’re creating slideshows that will be up shortly after our events. Streamlining these processes will allow us to give more to our viewers. We’re going to pack this sucker with information, and it’ll change daily.

We’re doing it, guys! We’re putting Phoenix on the map, and not just the United States map, we’re global. This is history we’re creating. Every time any one of us designers creates a new piece, or participates in another show, it joins the fact sheet, making us stronger, and making people take notice, we’re not joking around.

This is a unique and amazing time we’re living in. I came to Phoenix knowing what was possible. I saw this cocoon ready to hatch, something buzzing like crazy inside. I knew I had to be part of it. There is no major metropolitan city like this. If you dream it, you can do it. Come fly with me little butterflies! (…sorry, a little carried away…)

Best,
Rhonda Zayas

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