KIL Promotions

Agency project — House of NYC

The Brief

KIL Promotions, a jewelry and antique trade show producer running multiple regional events, needed their existing site rebuilt. I led this project as part of House of NYC, a digital agency focusing on web design for luxury retailers. The old site listed shows in a flat, cluttered grid with cards overlapping a busy background photo, inconsistent formatting, and no clear separation between KIL's own shows and partner brands. I was asked to rebuild it from the ground up, working directly in Shopify with minimal upfront research time.

The original site — overlapping cards on a busy background, inconsistent formatting, no clear hierarchy

Process

I designed a high-fidelity Figma file before building, establishing the core system: unified show cards, a trust-signal section, a dedicated "Why Exhibit with KIL Promotions" section laying out the exhibitor journey, and space for dedicated content per show and per audience.

From Design to Build

Between the Figma handoff and launch, one of the four listed shows, The Jeweled Collective, was rebranded to Newport JAOS, and a second, The Hillsborough Show, was dropped from the site. I adjusted the build in real time, which is a normal part of agency work: client and business decisions don't pause for the design process.

Key Decisions

  • A dedicated page per audience, not just a CTA split. Collectors get the homepage and show pages; exhibitors get their own page with a four-step process (Apply, Reserve Your Space, Showcase Your Collection, Connect & Grow) and trust section. Two audiences, two paths.

  • Unified card system for shows. Every show gets the same treatment, photo, name, date, venue, CTA, replacing the old site's inconsistent, overlapping cards.

  • Real photo and video reused strategically, AI imagery where budget didn't allow otherwise. The "Experience a KIL Event" video gallery reinforces credibility across the About and Why Exhibit pages. Show-card city imagery is AI-generated due to budget; real photography and video were reserved for the highest-trust moments.

  • Transparent handling of the mid-project rename. Rather than a silent swap, the About page explains it directly: "The Jeweled Collective returns in 2027 as Newport JAOS," giving returning visitors clarity instead of an unexplained new listing.

The final build, reflecting a mid-project rename and removal.

A dedicated exhibitor journey, separate from the collector-facing homepage

A direct, transparent explanation of the rename, rather than a silent swap.

What I'd Do Differently

Given more runway, I'd start with wireframes and a mapped-out user flow and information architecture before moving into high-fidelity Figma, rather than designing at high fidelity from the start. I'd also want to validate the exhibitor journey and collector homepage separately with real users from each audience, push for real location photography if budget allowed, and build more flexibility into the show listings so a rename or removal doesn't require a manual page edit.