INDUSTRY VIEWS
INDUSTRY VIEWS
Going forward into 2023, industry insights
‘As we enter more turbulent social and economic times trends tend to return to the classic with clean modern or traditional lines. I see an emphasis on quality and good balanced design but at the same time we are seeing more personal bathrooms with certainly tiles far more adventurous than previously. I believe sustainability is going to continue to become more and more important as well as ethical sourcing. The high trend finishes always eventually wain, we have seen rose gold, and copper rise
exponentially and then fall just as rapidly. I believe antique brass as a finish will do the same. The solid metals including brass and stainless steel with their different end finishes be it polished, brushed or actually aged and unlacquered brass will always have a solid market. Matt black finishes do seem to have remained popular.’
Comment by Richard Thelwell, Managing Director, JIS Europe Enhance your business
The post-pandemic boom led to independent KBB specialists being inundated with enquiries, with kitchens and bathrooms almost selling themselves. Now that demand is expecting to slow down with consumers becoming more wary of spending due to the rising cost-of-living, retailers will have the chance to improve their showrooms and the overall running of their business. Every opportunity should be used to ensure that showroom/s are up to
date with new displays, and that websites, lead generation and social media strategies are strong and performing well. Are you using Instagram effectively? This has become the ‘go to’ platform for consumers researching a new project. Independent retailers
Comment by Bill Miller, Managing Director, KBBG
should also be encouraged to offer additional services to ensure their business is at the top of its game. For example, with many consumers watching their spend more than ever before, why not consider offering customers consumer credit? Having a competitive finance package available may not only help to secure sales, it would also result in some very happy customers enabling them to afford their dream kitchen/bathroom.
Embracing electric
Making the move to electric can often seem challenging in a commercial setting. Taking it one step further and generating electricity yourself or installing the infrastructure to support increased electricity consumption can prove even more tricky, but we’ve found that the rewards are really worth the effort. Transitioning over
has been a gradual process and our journey isn’t finished yet, but over the past three years we’ve switched all Area Sales Managers to electric and hybrid vehicles, installed a number of employee carpark charging points at HiB’s Inspire House Distribution site and have begun trialing electric vans to support our delivery fleet. We’ve had lots of interest from retailers who are intrigued about the van
Comment by Richard Berry Logistics Director, HiB
trial and are keen to know more. While the technology and network isn’t quite there yet for us to move to a fully-electric fleet, I’m confident that as a business we can take positives from what we’ve learned and embrace electric power where possible. In the meantime, we’re continuing to investigate, trial and test how we can become more sustainable, so we can play our part in protecting the environment.
6 BKU JANUARY 2023
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