At Total Onion, we love projects that combine creativity, technology, and a meaningful story. Chivas Campus was exactly that – a chance to bring Scottish whisky education into the digital world for Pernod Ricard professionals across the globe. We worked closely with the Pernod Ricard team and our partners at the Resolis agency to bring this vision to life. A smooth, enjoyable collaboration as always.
Chivas Campus is an interactive online learning platform designed to give Pernod Ricard professionals a well-rounded understanding of Scotch whisky and Chivas Brothers’ place in its history. Developed in collaboration with the Edinburgh Whisky Academy (the only Scotch whisky education provider accredited by the Scottish Qualifications Authority), the platform delivers accredited training and recognition within the industry.
Participants progress step by step, unlocking content as they go, with a mix of slides, animations, and videos to keep the learning experience engaging. At the end, graduates receive a certificate and digital badge – a recognition they can proudly showcase in their professional profiles.
Our challenge was to take this vision and build a web application that was not only user-friendly but also flexible and scalable. Chivas Campus needed to do more than just host content – it had to handle user registration, track progress, award certifications, and even encourage a little friendly competition with a leaderboard.
Here’s how we approached it:
Built on our modular theme.
Instead of starting from scratch, we extended our own WordPress-based modular toolkit. This approach let us reuse proven components while adding the bespoke features the project demanded.
User login and course tracking.
For the first time, we integrated a system where user progress is saved in profiles, allowing learners to pause and continue seamlessly.
Personalised graduation packs.
On completion, users receive a custom download pack with their certificate and badge, reinforcing the sense of achievement.
Global modal popup controller.
We developed a flexible new feature to manage popups across the site – now a tool we use in other projects too.
Custom admin dashboard.
Beyond the learning experience, the backend was equally important. We created an admin dashboard to show the number of entrants and their scores – data that could also be used to power the leaderboard on the front end.
Chivas Campus is more than just another e-learning site. It’s a carefully crafted experience that reflects the prestige of the Chivas brand while showcasing the versatility of our development approach. By building on our modular theme and extending it with new features, we delivered a platform that was powerful, adaptable, and future-proof.
For us, this project was a reminder that great web development is not just about coding, it’s about creating experiences that inspire, educate, and connect. And when that experience involves Scotch whisky… well, that makes it even more enjoyable.
If you’ve got an idea for a digital platform or web experience and want to explore how it could come to life, we’d love to chat – get in touch with us to discuss your project and receive a tailored quote.