DLL Group Digital Catalog

The Challenge

DLL Group's healthcare business unit needed a modern way to showcase their specialized vehicle inventory at industry exhibitions. A minimal digital catalog designed to be viewed on an iPad mounted in an exhibition stand, replacing outdated printed materials and providing an interactive browsing experience.

The solution needed to work flawlessly on iPads at exhibition stands, handle frequent content updates, and provide an elegant browsing experience with high-quality photography that matched the premium nature of their vehicles.

My Role

As the sole designer and developer on this project, I was responsible for:

• User experience strategy and information architecture
• Visual design and photography direction
• Front-end development and responsive implementation
• Content management system integration
• On-site exhibition testing and optimization

Design Approach

Minimalism as Strategy

The design philosophy centered on letting the vehicles speak for themselves. I stripped away unnecessary UI chrome, focusing on large, high-quality imagery with clean typography that provided essential information without visual clutter.

Touch-First Interface

Recognizing that users would interact via iPad touchscreens, I designed generous touch targets, intuitive swipe gestures, and clear visual feedback for all interactions. The interface needed to feel responsive and fluid, even for users unfamiliar with digital catalogs.

Technical Implementation

Built using HTML5, CSS3, and vanilla JavaScript for optimal performance on iPad devices. The catalog featured:

• Responsive image loading optimized for retina displays
• Offline-first architecture for unreliable exhibition WiFi
• Simple CMS integration for easy content updates
• Touch gesture library for natural interaction
• Analytics tracking for visitor engagement insights

Photography Direction

I art-directed a custom photography shoot to capture each vehicle in consistent lighting and angles. The photography style emphasized clean, professional imagery with strategic angles that highlighted key features while maintaining visual consistency across the entire catalog.

Results & Impact

The digital catalog transformed DLL's exhibition presence. Exhibition visitors spent 3x longer engaging with vehicles compared to the previous printed catalog system. The sales team reported a 45% improvement in lead quality, as prospects were better informed about vehicle specifications before conversations.

Beyond exhibitions, the catalog became a valuable sales tool for field representatives, enabling them to showcase the full inventory during client meetings without carrying physical materials.

Key Learnings

This project reinforced the importance of designing for the specific context of use. Exhibition environments present unique constraints—limited attention spans, variable lighting, no guaranteed internet—that require thoughtful solutions rather than generic approaches.

The minimalist design approach proved particularly effective. By stripping away visual noise and focusing on high-quality imagery with essential information, we created an experience that felt premium and allowed the products to take center stage.