The House That Rexel Built

Rexel and Denmans wanted to create more than a product catalogue. For their trade show, they envisioned an app-like digital experience that would allow visitors to explore a virtual smart home, discover products in context and access detailed information, all without relying on an internet connection.‍

I was brought in to design the complete interactive experience, building an interactive PDF into something that looked and behaved like an app. Displayed on iPads at the stand, it gave visitors an intuitive way to explore the virtual home room by room while complementing the physical experience around them.

Client:

Rexel and Denmans

Industry:

Building and construction

Services:

Interactive PDF design, information design, UX/UI

Timeline:

6 weeks

My role:

Art Director & Digital Designer

The brief

Agency 53 brought me in to design the app-experience for Rexel and Denmans' "The House That Rexel Built" to host at a trade show. At the exhibition they built a pop up smart home showcasing products from across the Rexel and Denmans range. Visitors could walk through the physical space or also scan through an iPad to explore rooms in greater detail, discover featured products and access supporting information.

Although the iPad experience looked and behaved like an app, it was built entirely as an interactive PDF. The challenge wasn't simply designing attractive screens - it was creating an intuitive digital journey within the technical limitations of the format, making every interaction feel seamless and natural.

The challenge

Platform limitation 
Interactive PDF, not a native app.

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Desired experience 
An intuitive app-like journey through a smart home.

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Creative objective 
Create seamless interactions within the constraints of PDF technology.

The approach

To ensure the platform looked and functioned like an app, and remained intuitive from page to page, I developed a flexible interface style built around reusable layouts and consistent design elements, creating a cohesive experience that could scale across more than 200 pages. This included designing digital room mockups and separate product pages showcasing Rexel and Denmans’ products and conducted multiple rounds of testing to refine the final design.

User testing quickly highlighted opportunities to improve the experience. Navigation controls were enlarged to make interaction easier on iPad, while an unexpected limitation of interactive PDFs meant tapping outside a pop-up would minimise the document. Rather than asking users to adapt to the technology, I redesigned the interaction so the interface behaved more naturally, creating the illusion of dismissing pop-ups while keeping users immersed in the experience.

Some products appeared in multiple rooms throughout the home, creating the challenge of maintaining context as users explored. Rather than returning people to a generic product page, I designed unique pathways that always brought them back to the exact room they had come from. This kept navigation intuitive and preserved the feeling of naturally moving through the home.

Working closely with the team throughout the project, we refined layouts, interactions and content hierarchy to ensure technical information remained easy to digest. Careful consideration was given to spacing, typography, visual hierarchy and navigation, helping users quickly understand products without feeling overwhelmed by information.The result wasn't simply a collection of pages - it was a cohesive digital experience. Every design decision was made to improve usability, maintain consistency across the microsite and support users as they explored the different spaces within the home.

The outcome

The finished microsite provided Rexel and Denmans with an engaging and intuitive platform that successfully showcased their extensive product range. By combining a flexible design system with clear information hierarchy, the experience remained consistent across every page while making it easier for users to discover products and explore the campaign.

The modular approach also created a scalable foundation that could continue evolving as new content and products were added, ensuring the experience remained both practical and easy to maintain over time.