INDUSTRY VIEWS INDUSTRY
VIEWS
Hob Extractors: Bringing Smarter
As open-plan kitchens continue to evolve into multifunctional living spaces, effective ventilation has become an increasingly important consideration for both retailers and homeowners. Hob extractors offer a smart solution, combining cooking and extraction within a single, streamlined appliance and with a quietness that allows cooking and daily life to simply unfold. For consumers,
Functionality to Kitchen The path fromfirst search to showroom door now decides who gets the kitchen. The national retailers own that path end to end. For independents it’s split between retailer and supplier, and the join is where customers get lost. Almost all digital work
Digital Should Drive Footfall, Not Replace It
Comment by Chris Gallagher, Sales Director, Franke UK
the appeal lies in creating a cleaner,more cohesive kitchen without the visual impact of a traditional overhead hood. Integrated extraction can helpmaintain clear sightlines and preserve the aesthetics of contemporary kitchen schemes, while advanced technology supports the effective removal at source of steam, odours and airborne grease. For retailers, hob extractors provide an opportunity to
demonstrate how technology can be integratedmore discreetly into kitchen design without compromising performance. They also offer flexibility when planning layouts, particularly where an overhead hoodmay not be desirable or practical.
Delivering ValueWithout
Compromising on Quality In a competitive KBBmarket, value has never beenmore important, but value shouldn’t simplymean being the lowest price. For retailers, it’s about having confidence in their suppliers – fromconsistent product quality and dependable service to a range that gives themthe flexibility tomeet different customer requirements. At TradeMouldings, that’s something we’re continuing to invest in.We’ve seen strongmomentum
following our recent rebrand and the launch of Studio Vivre, providing our retail partners with a strong showroomproposition backed by ourmanufacturing expertise. We’ve also continued to strengthen our product offering. Fenton hasmade a real impact since its
recent launch, receiving an excellent response fromcustomers.We’re also seeing oakmake a strong comeback, with retailers asking us for greater choice in natural oak finishes. In response, we’ve introduced CasellaOak across both our established five-piece and vinyl collections. Asmanufacturers, our role is to help retailers remain competitive by delivering the right combination of quality, choice, service and value.
Comment by Bryan Gargett, Head of Sales and Marketing, Trade Mouldings
here is done by retailers themselves: their websites, local search, social, enquiry handling, most with a fraction of a national brand’s resource. Suppliers contribute imagery, inspiration, brand credibility, and a route onward to a local specialist. That division of labour
is sound. The gap is the handover: assets built for brochures rather than feeds. The retailer programmes now emerging are the right instinct, a supplier generating demand and passing it to a named local specialist; but all of us can domore, and the digital landscape won’t wait for us. Consumers will keep arriving better informed.Our job ismaking sure they arrive
Comment by Anjum Ahmed, Chief Marketing Officer, The Uform Group
at all.
BKU SEPTEMBER 2026
5
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68
