Kitchen & Bath Design News is the industry's leading business, design and product resource for the kitchen and bath trade.
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Editorial { Eliot Sefrin, Publisher Emeritus } ® A CYGNUS BUSINESS MEDIA PUBLICATION Success Today Means Getting to Know What Makes Diverse Clients Tick Kitchen designers, marketing professionals and others need to understand the thinking unique to multiple generations of consumers in order to achieve success in today's diverse, fragmented market. I n a market grown ever-more fragmented, knowing what makes your client tick may be more critical than ever to the success of design firms and product suppliers alike. The reason, quite simply, is because kitchen consumers have become more diverse, more educated, more demanding and more defnitive about their likes and dislikes – regardless of age, lifestyle, family size and household composition. They expect their kitchens to be designed specifically to their needs and preferences, regardless of what those hot buttons are. And make no mistake: client ages, lifestyles and family compositions – along with hot buttons – run the gamut today. In fact, never has the market spanned so broad a range of kitchen remodeling clients as today. Never have client needs and hot buttons been so diverse. Never has the need been greater for designers and product suppliers to get into their clients' heads and respond with such an expansive array of products, projects and services. Evidence of that resonates in this month's issue of Kitchen & Bath Design News, specifcally in the portfolio of kitchen projects designed for clients ranging from a mid30s couple with two young children to a single woman in her 80s (see story, Page 46). It's similarly refected in a recent study by the Charlotte, NC-based Research Institute for Cooking & Kitchen Intelligence (RICKI), the newly named strategic research partner of KBDN. study concludes, of the four major generational groups: ⊕ Gen Y, an 80-millionstrong population cohort aged 18 to 29, tends to lean heavily toward modern kitchen styling, and uses food, cooking or other kitchen-related mobile apps signifcantly more than other generations. "Kitchen consumers have become more defnitive about their likes and dislikes – regardless of age, lifestyle, family size and household composition." According to RICKI, it's resoundingly clear that different generations think differently about kitchens. Their remodeling plans are different; so are their attitudes, buying patterns and style/feature/finish preferences for key products. Different generations also place different levels of importance on various components of a kitchen, such as cabinets, countertops, sinks and various appliances. For example, the RICKI ⊕ Gen X, aged 30 to 44 and estimated at 61 million people, seeks modern-styled kitchens that are wired for a computer, and prefers stainless-steel appliances more than any other generation. ⊕ Baby Boomers, at ages 45 to 64, and 76 million people strong, are signifcantly more likely to eat at home compared to both younger and older population cohorts, and exhibit significant differences between younger members of the generation Facebook.com/KitchenBathDesignNews (ages 45-54) and older ones (ages 55-64). ⊕ Matures, aged 65 and older, have a design aesthetic that's more traditional than that of younger generations, and their favorite feature of their kitchen is their dishwasher. The implications of these fndings ought to be crystal clear. While there are distinct similarities across generations of consumers – for example, granite is the preferred countertop material across all cohorts, and there are similarities when it comes to product color and fnish preferences – there are signifcant diferences as well. Kitchen designers, marketing professionals and others need to understand the thinking that's unique to each generation of consumers, and must target their designs, products, services and marketing efforts at whatever generation they serve…likely all of them. In other words, in today's diverse market – as always – getting inside your client's head is the surest path to success. ForResidentialPros.com | Editor Janice Anne Costa Managing Editor Anita Shaw Senior Editor Kim Berndtson Contributing Writers Elizabeth Richards Denise Vermeulen Columnists Ellen Cheever, CMKBD, ASID, CAPS Hank Darlington Leslie Hart Bruce Kelleran, CKD, CPA Stephen Nicholls Ken Peterson, CKD Mary Jo Peterson, CKD, CBD, CAPS Sarah Reep, CMKBD, ASID, CMG, CAPS, IIDA Bryan Reiss, CMKBD Eric Schimelpfenig, AKBD Art Director Kirsten Crock Media Production Rep Cindy Rusch Editor, ForResidentialPros.com Andrea Girolamo Web Site Manager Thamaraj Udomwongyont Audience Development Manager Tammy Steller Reader Service Manager Jeff Heine Administrative Assistant Jenni Ehlke-Heyer Chief Executive Ofcer John French Chief Financial Ofcer Paul Bonaiuto E.V.P., Building & Construction Kris Flitcroft V.P., Content Greg Udelhofen V.P., Marketing Debbie George Director, Digital Sales Norine Conroy V.P., Production Operations Curt Pordes V.P., Audience Development Julie Nachtigal V.P., Technology Eric Kammerzelt V.P., Human Resources Ed Wood Copyright © 2013 by Cygnus Business Media, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this magazine September be produced in any form, including electronically, without written permission from the publisher of Kitchen & Bath Design News. @KitchenBathDesignNews September 2013 Publisher Emeritus Eliot Sefrin 7