Man Cave Kingdom: e-commerce site for man cave products launches redesigned web site, new features

Man Cave Kingdom practically explains itself.

The e-commerce site, which officially launched in August 2011 to help guys get a new look for their “man caves,” recently debuted a newly redesigned look for itself.

The site offers a range of products from pennants to BBQ supplies, says Man Cave Kingdom founder Joe Chiaccio, numbering more than 20,000 products available for purchase.

With the redesign, the site now also offers custom product recommendations and custom Man Cave designs from Head Interior designer Amanda Burke for men who are struggling to make decisions.

Burke, who graduated from the Art Institute of Philadelphia, and Chiaccio are currently the only two employees of Man Cave Kingdom.

“We’re using technology to help men decorate their own spaces, because most of us have no idea how to do it,” said Chiaccio. “We’re finding that if a guy is able to get his own space for a ‘Man Cave,’ be it a garage, basement, bedroom or even a shed, he is incredibly passionate about what goes into it.”

Chiaccio, 33, says that even though the site launched less than a year ago, the redesign was necessary. He says it made sense to launch before he was totally settled on the look of the site.

“The feedback and data we collected early on was incredibly valuable,” Chiaccio said. “Not to mention a few months worth of revenue we would have lost if we’d waited.”

(To learn more about Man Cave Kingdom, you can catch Chiaccio at the Entrepeneur Expo during Philly Tech Week, where he will be an exhibitor.)

Much the way his customers turn to Man Cave Kingdom for design help, Chiaccio, who lives in Cherry Hill, N.J., turned to a crew of Philadelphia designers and developers to help him recreate the look of his site. He credits Steve Brandsdorfer from PepperLillie for the web design, Zac Palladino for the logo, and developer Todd McNeal from Snapline, a development company and Indy Hall member.

“Todd and I were paired up by [Philly Startup Leaders co-founder] Chris Cera a few months back,” Chiaccio said. “Together we designed and shaped, and Todd built this awesome personalized recommendation engine.”

Chiaccio says the idea for Man Cave Kingdom itself can be tied to Philadelphia. He says he was attempting to design his own man cave with a 1920’s Philadelphia-made billiard table that he’d inherited from his grandfather, when he realized how difficult it was to shop for the types of fixtures you might want in a man cave — you know, besides the television.

“I was just grossly underwhelmed by the whole shopping experience,” Chiaccio said. “It seemed like the Man Cave market was being treated as if it were a joke.”

Now, Chiaccio has turned that frustration into a business and he’s looking to hire. It’s no wonder, e-commerce is a growing sector in the Philadelphia area, as Technically Philly reported.

“We are a scrappy bunch,” Chiaccio said. “We just refuse to be denied.”