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26 | Kitchen & Bath Design News | November 2015 By Jamie Gold, CKD, CAPS Trend Spotting I f you're like many professionals in the kitchen and bath industry, you serve an increasingly diverse clientele. This is true in most regions of the U.S. and Canada, with many showing growth in multiple segments, not just one. What may surprise you – or not, if you're already on top of your game – is that amid all of the political and media noise about immigration, these cultures represent a signifcant op- portunity for this industry. "What we see in the data is that Hispanic, Asian and multiracial home- owners devote larger shares of their remodeling budgets to discretionary projects, such as kitchen and bath re- modeling, than white homeowners," shares Abbe Will, a research analyst at Harvard University's Joint Center for Housing Studies (JCHS). These groups are also growing within the U.S., increasing the oppor- tunity. Is your business well positioned to serve them? What does it take? SCOPE OF TREND "Companies looking to target multicultural consumers should con- sider targeting Hispanics and Asian Americans," says Iris Yim with Spar- kle Insights, a multicultural research consultancy based in Chapel Hill, NC. Not only are these the fastest- growing segments in the U.S., they're a sizeable factor in the housing indus- try. "According to the 2013 American Housing Survey, home ownership among Hispanics is 46.9 percent and home ownership among Asians is 57.9 percent," Yim says. Although the Asian-American segment is much smaller than the Hispanic population, it's the fastest-growing cultural group in the U.S., she notes. In fact, accord- ing to the Pew Research Center, Asians will surpass Hispanics as the largest foreign-born group in the U.S. by 2055. Immigration itself will account for 88 percent of U.S. population growth over the next 50 years, the center adds. Asians are also the most afu- ent immigrant group, Yim shares. Median household income for Asian Americans is $66,000 compared to $49,800 for the overall U.S. popula- tion, according to the Census data crossing her desk. So, what does this mean for your business operations? That depends, in large part, on which end of the business you're in. If you're a global manufacturer, you apply the lessons you've learned abroad to your prod - uct development and launch plans in North America. If you're a retailer with multiple locations, you hire associates who speak the languages of your cus- tomers and train their colleagues on local cultural mores. If you're an im- migrant retailer or designer yourself, you're likely to market frst to your own community to get established. DESIGNER AND REMODELER POINTS "We started out mainly advertising through the local Chinese papers and Yellow Pages ," shares Jennifer Ho, CKD, CBD, CID. She is the senior designer at De Anza Interior, the frm her Chinese parents started in San Jose, CA after immigrating from Taiwan. Close to 35 percent of the frm's clientele are frst-generation Chinese, she shares. Another 30 percent are non-Chinese Asian immigrants (with Indians mak- ing up a large portion). "Being born in Taiwan and raised in California, I have the unique position of straddling both the immigrant background and the American-born background," she says. The balance of De Anza's clientele refects the high-tech melting pot that is the Silicon Valley. "I can say that we've worked with pretty much ev- eryone at this point! East Asian, South Asian, Middle Eastern, European – to name a few," Ho notes. "I always learn something new from each and every client. Every region has its diferent cultural subtleties." Here are some les- Serving a Diverse Clientele Asian Kitchen: Multiple cooking surfaces appeal to multi-culturals with large families. Asian Bath: Japanese-inspired wet rooms are popular with Asian customers. Photo: De Anza Interior Photo: De Anza Interior