KBB EXHIBITION HAILED A SUCCESS

Kbb Birmingham 2022, the industry´s kitchen, bedroom and bathroom design show, held in March, saw over 12,400 visitors pass through its doors. The organisers say that the event featured the UK’s largest collection of KBB brands under one roof and offered more innovation, new products and sustainable choices than ever before.

Jon Johnston, kbb sales director comments, “It has been fantastic to be back at the NEC again and seeing so many familiar as well as new faces. There were hundreds of exhibitors across 26 different product categories who were busy meeting visitors throughout the four-day event. There was a steady stream of people attending the show all extremely interested in finding out more about our exhibitors, new products and the latest trends. The show has been a huge success and it was great to see the KBB industry thriving. We are looking forward to doing it all again in 2024.”

Stands Award Winners

Acquabella’s exotic beach inspired stand with their creative shower tray sun loungers, was awarded the ‘Best Bathroom Stand over 30 square metres’. Origins Living won Best Bathroom stand under 30 square metres for their stylish, nature-inspired stand, which showcased their range of designer mirrors, storage and bathroom accessories.

Belgian extraction and hobs specialist Novy won Best Kitchen Stand over 50 square metres with their stylish stand and inspirational show kitchen that really delivered the wow factor.

Elfin Kitchens won Best Kitchen Stand under 50 square meters which showcased their prebuilt compact kitchens for easy installation. This includes their new range of designline kitchens and new outdoor kitchens, the perfect solution for outdoor entertainment with family and friends with optional fridge, hob or sink components.

Showerwall won the Best Surfaces category for their creative and vibrant stand which reflected consumer demand for unique patterns and interiors. It drew inspiration from nature, with intricate details and fun, funky and playful creations for those looking for brighter bolder patterns.

Trends Led the Way for New Launches

The vibrant show floor reflected key industry design trends, such as sustainability with a huge range of exciting innovations from the sector. Rotpunkt focussed on trends at the show explaining that 2022 will be a landmark year for blended kitchen spaces. The modern kitchen is being reinvented with industrial style spaces becoming more visually quiet and gender neutral in terms of colours, materials and finishes. MERLYN demonstrated how sensory design can transform the most private of spaces and created an experience-led stand featuring six unique zones.

As in previous years, kbb delivered an outstanding launch pad for showcasing new product launches to a captive market of KBB retailers and specifiers. Stand out launches included Formed and its handle rebrand from Momo, to Hendel and Hendel. The company says the new brand and evolving positioning, perfectly reflects its growing ambition in the marketplace. Samsung used the show as a platform to launch its new oven range which features new ways to steam, air fry → "It has been fantastic to be back at the NEC again and seeing so many familiar as well as new faces. There were hundreds of exhibitors across 26 different product categories who were busy meeting visitors throughout the four-day event."

and air sous vide food. Countless companies took the opportunity to launch new brands including House of Rohl, which presented its brassware brand Riobel for the first time.

Sustainability

Sustainability came into focus during this year’s event with both the organisers and exhibitors placing it centre stage. kbb Birmingham and The Used Kitchen Company (TUKC) announced a partnership to help exhibitors sell their displays ahead of the show to encourage a more sustainable event, and to make a valuable contribution towards recycling within the kitchen industry. The show also ensured that all its feature areas were created with sustainability in mind and were designed to minimise waste.

Exhibitor Feedback

Across the show floor, exhibitors were delighted to be meeting with customers and partners once more. Rashpal Sidhu, Managing Director, Roca Group said: “We’ve had a superb few days at kbb Birmingham with a huge number of visitors to view new products and meet with our team. It was fantastic to showcase new ranges to our customers in person, for the first time and

“The show has been a demonstration of everything that is fantastic about the industry, and we've really enjoyed being back face to face with our genuinely lovely customers."

to truly reconnect and engage with retailers and partners, and we are delighted with the feedback we’ve had.”

Natalie Davenport, Marketing Director at Hafele comments; “The show has been a demonstration of everything that is fantastic about the industry, and we've really enjoyed being back face to face with our genuinely lovely customers. There has been a brilliant energy on stand, from attendees who've really relished being able to immerse themselves in our vast range of products and the millions of different opportunities they offer when combined together. There was some great interaction between attendees and the BBCs Laura Jane Clark who joined us to deliver two masterclasses, and the functional living spaces we've created on stand have triggered some important talking points about how the kitchen industry can better meet customers' varied needs. We look forward to being back for KBB 2024.”

It seems that kbb Birmingham continues to go from strength to strength and this year, perhaps more than any other, demonstrated the value of events and meeting face-to-face. The show will return to the NEC from 3-6 March 2024.