form wins out over function

Let's get this straight from the beginning : I am no fan of 'Flash' - or flashy - websites that seem to be more about the designers showing off their skills than actually achieving some marketing objective or other. Yes I admit there are a few good ones out there, I just don't see them very often. So when an article in the ClickZ Today newsletter included an article called 'using video to evaluate luxury marketing online' I went to see what it was about. Now the article was about online video, and to that end the article was good. Sadly, the site in question - luxury brand Tods - was not.

In fact, it is a perfect example of what I don't like about this kind of site. The navigation is appalling - if you can work out how it is supposed to work [try finding a store], going 'home' kicks the whole Flash thing off from scratch again, one part wouldn't let me in [I didn't have the latest software], the background video on every page slowed things down [OK on my T1 line at work, but it hung up on my standard broadband at home], poor product descriptions [just the words 'supple suede gloves created by expert glove makers for a perfect fit' on a $445 pair of gloves], no persuasive copy [a 'register' link and form, but no text to describe what I might gain from doing so] - and finally, a typo on the front page [see below], let's hope the glove-makers are better at quality control.