The Kitchen & Bath Industry Show (KBIS) , the largest trade show of North America, brought together 70,000 people this year. The show dedicated to all aspects of kitchen and bath design has established new trends and opportunities for the industry.
‘People are discovered and businesses are fueled.’ Let’s have a recap of the KBIS event.
1. NKBA/Renovation Angel Luxury Kitchen Recycling Awards
The third annual NKBA/Renovation Angel Luxury Kitchen Recycling Awards ceremony was hosted on Wednesday, February 9, 2022. These awards celebrate design and remodel professionals who recycle and repurpose their clients’ kitchens materials.
Know more about the winners and their projects published on the KBIS site.
2. New addition in Design and Construction Week (DCW) – The National Hardware Show
The recent DCW show, held this year in Orlando, was considered a huge success. Design and Construction Week (DCW) is adding The National Hardware Show to its lineup in Las Vegas in 2023. The National Hardware Show featured about 2,700 exhibitors that was an attraction for more than 25,000 industry professionals.
3. NKBA CEO Speech
Bill Darcy, NKBA’s CEO, presented his annual State of the Association address.
“KBIS and Design and Construction Week is not only among the largest trade shows in the world, but also looks to be the largest trade show coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Darcy. “We’ve built a strong, adaptable infrastructure over the last several years to support growth in membership and member benefits, even if the future holds challenges like those we experienced in the last two years.”
Few key takeaways are:
- NKBA’s financials remain strong despite revenue shortfalls in 2021, and sponsor programs ballooned in 2021 with a nearly 200% increase in revenue projected to see continued growth in 2022. NKBA maintained a 90% membership retention rate throughout the pandemic.
- Kohler generously funded the Chapter Grant Program in 2021 which enabled NKBA’s 71 North American chapters to continue operations and educational initiatives in a virtual format.
- The Global Connect program was expanded and introduced the new German pavilion at KBIS 2022. It also welcomed back the Global Delegates who have helped raise awareness of the program.
Know more about the CEO address featured on the KBIS site.
4. Kitchen & Bath Innovations at the 7th Annual Design Bites
The 7th annual Design Bites competition drew a huge crowd at the KBIS NeXt Stage. HGTV and Discovery personality Darren Keefe welcomed the attendees.
The brand with the biggest bite, according to the 15 judges, was the Signature Kitchen Suite fridge. Know more about the bites and bidets featured on the KBIS site.
5. Design Meet & Greet by Designer Discussions
Designers Discussions team showed up at the Kitchen & Bath Marketing Solutions (KABMS) booth to meet designers, architects and remodelers and share advices around the digitization of businesses. The team has compiled seven predictions around the KBIS in the latest episode number 30 of the Designer Discussions podcast releasing this Thursday 17 February 2022. Catch up at designerdiscussions.com.