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Top 20 Trends From K/BIS
May 20, 2005
Sixty thousand attendees and more than 900 exhibitors made this year's Kitchen & Bath Industry Show in Las Vegas the largest ever. The West Coast proved to be an attractive home, turning up 9,000 more attendees than the 2004 event in Chicago. Exciting new product intros gave insight into this year's design movement. Here are K+BB's top 20 trends.
1. Induction cooking is back on the scene. The technology, which transfers direct heat to cookware from an induction coil beneath the ceramic surface through a magnetic field, faded after a short stint in the 80s, but is now turning up in the product lines of Thermador, Gaggenau, Bosch and Viking.
2. “Fresh” refrigeration, cultivating a longer food lifespan, is apparent in Samsung's Four Door Convertible refrigerator, allowing the user to control humidity in all four interchangeable freezer/refrigerator compartments. Storage control options are also available in new introductions from Sub-Zero and Liebherr.
3. Drawer appliances continue to abound, with Sharp's microwave drawers, Aga's new refrigerator drawers and Thermador's oven/microwave/warming drawer combo.
4. As an alternative to stainless, a selection of colors is popping up on appliances. Dacor's new slate grey maintains a sleek look but with a softer appearance. Aga, Jenn-Air, Whirlpool and Gaggenau also offer various color options.
5. Technology in the kitchen surges. Tmio's latest technology allows the homeowner to call in to their oven to tell it to start cooking, while Samsung's PopCon refrigerator audibly alerts the user when food is expired. Faber's latest range hood includes a 14-in. LCD screen.
6. Compact options for a secondary kitchen or a butler's pantry are plentiful this year. Elkay's Miniature Mystic, a small version of the company's elongated sinuous island sink, is perfect for use at a bar. DeLonghi's 12-in. cooktop and Haeir's microwave-size, 12-bottle wine refrigerator offer the convenience of small appliances.
7. Steam cooking options are being included in product lines for healthier food preparation. KitchenAid's dual-fuel oven with a steam option boasts the ability to keep moisture in food. Sharp also offers a steam option, while Gaggenau improved on its existing one with the addition of its Master Chef technology.
8. Vent hoods took center stage this year, with more attention to detail then ever. Taking on a custom look, standard units from Zephyr, Kristen Victor Design, Broan, Sirius and Pando raise the bar on design and efficiency.
9. People are going gaga for built-in coffee makers, causing them to become almost a must for appliance companies to carry in their lines. New this year are versions from Brew Express, boasting an affordable price and easy installation, Dacor and Aran World.
10. European and contemporary cabinet styles graced the floor, as was evidenced in KraiftMaid's new Venicia collection of sleek cabinets with clean lines and unconventional shapes. Also exhibiting designs in this category were DeWils, Bertch Cabinets and Maax.
11. Attention to interior style, whether in cabinets or storage spaces, was given a closer look. Rev-a-Shelf's new Vineyard series in its Artisan collection offers an alternative to bland shelf fencing. Hafele incorporates wood, glass and metal for sleek new product offerings.
12. Quartz surfaces are getting sophisticated with authentic new finishes. Gaining attention was Silestone's new leather finish, Ceaserstone's limestone look, and Cambria's faux marble collection, which will be introduced next year.
13. Glass, glass everywhere, right down to Oceana's glass kitchen sink. For the bath, glass sinks are available across the board from Porcher to Neo-Metro.
14. Pairing with a designer to create stylish new product lines with a famous name attached is increasingly common. Electrolux introduced its Nicole Miller line; Jamie Drake designed products for THG; and attached to the latest Zephyr introductions are designers Fu-Tung Cheng and David Lewis.
15. Natural, or at least natural-looking materials, are popular. Bamboo can now be found inside the home, appearing everywhere from shower doors (Lasco) to faucets (Moen) to surfacing (Ann Sacks).
16. For optimum comfort, companies such as Jacuzzi and Kohler offer two-person whirlpool tubs with individual controls for personal preference.
17. Multi-function tubs with air-jets, chromatherapy and heating elements are commonplace in today's market. Jacuzzi's Elara tub takes it to the next level incorporating heated air-jets and jet-integrated Illumitherapy LED lights. Other lines that feature “the works” are offered by MTI Whirlpools, Toto and Lasco.
18. Rainshowers have moved to the next level and are now larger and more efficient. Introducing large flush-ceiling mounted options were Hansgrohe, Maax and Dornbracht.
19. As environmental awareness grows, dual-flush toilets and those with less gallons per flush are becoming an industry standard. Among the companies introducing two-flush systems and overall lower water use are Toto, Sterling, Villeroy & Boch and American Standard.
20. Urinals are finding their way into residential bathrooms. To make the incorporation smoother, companies such as Neo-Metro, Toto and Villeroy & Boch offer sleeker designs that consider odor and cleanliness.
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Drawn from independent research, The Market Forecaster Report identifies the industry's most important trends.
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