// Work — W-04 // Own venture // 2026
Then & Theory
Our own history brand, from first commit to a live 50-product shop in three days
// 01 — What I did
Then & Theory is our own history brand at Alterra Editions, not client work. We designed and built its website and shop.
The first commit was on 28 September 2026 and the site was live on 30 September, with 50 products.
— Ryan Hofmann, Alterra Studio
// 02 — Strategy
3 moves
- M-01
Every claim marked Known, Argued or Legend
Each story is a gallery: a real object on one side, the case told beside it, and every claim stamped with how sure we are. Reconstructions are labelled as reconstructions.
The Ötzi gallery: an X-ray with the arrowhead marked, and claims stamped Known - M-02
A page of methods you can try
How we know explains five methods, from radiocarbon dating to ancient DNA, each with a hands-on demo, its limits and its sources. Notes cite museums and papers.
The How we know page: five methods, opening on radiocarbon dating with a decay demo - M-03
A rail you can take a garment from
The shop's rail hangs the real product photos as cloth in 3D. Drag the rail, take a garment down, turn it around. Each garment is an edition with a catalogue number.
The rail: garments on hangers you can drag, take down and turn
// 03 — Results
What it did
| Time to live | Three days, from the first commit on 28 September 2026 to a live site on 30 September |
|---|---|
| Shop | 50 products at launch across tees, long sleeves, hoodies, art prints, mugs and stickers, through Fourthwall |
| Method | Five methods explained and demonstrated, and every claim in the galleries stamped Known, Argued or Legend |
| Analytics | A loop reads every reel on the channel three times a day. Across 38 reels, most made before our work on the account, the lower the skip rate, the more views (ρ = −0.82) |