As many of you know, the Home Intel team spent several days in Las Vegas for the 2010 International Builders’ Show a few weeks ago. While we were at the show, we talked to representatives from a few of the industry’s top brands about their outlook for 2010.
Check out their insights in the following video clip. We’re happy to hear that many people seem to be cautiously optimistic.
We’d love to hear your thoughts too, so feel free to send us your expert opinion.
While there were undertones of Haiti and the Massachusetts election on the IBS show floor, the overwhelming attitude was one of renewed optimism — something we haven’t seen at IBS for several years.
We interviewed leading manufacturers in a range of categories serving all aspects of the home to hear first-hand whether the outlook for 2010 should be categorized as positive, negative or neutral. Cautious optimism is the best way to summarize the tone from marketing command centers across the show floor.
The majority pointed to improvements in consumer attitudes and a lift in residential, while commercial will continue to lag. Others predict the positive trend for residential will come, but not until the back half of the year. Several manufacturers cited diversified customer bases as the key to navigating down markets and prevailing in 2010.
When asked about new customer demands, we confirmed our belief that homeowners are, on one hand, actively seeking value and are, on the other hand, acutely interested in energy efficiency and other proof points of sustainability that directly benefit them.
For images from the show, check out the below slideshow. Next up….KBIS!
This week, the Home Intel team is heading to Las Vegas for the International Builder’s Show. Its hard to believe that its already here, but we’re excited to hit the floor and report on the latest products and trends from the industry’s top manufacturers.
Check in daily for updates from the show. We’ll be capturing highlights below and on our Twitter feed - @homeintel.
Couldn’t make it to West Coast Green this year? That’s okay, we’re here live, and we are excited to share everything we see and learn. Enjoy the show from our perspective with live pictures below. Or you can follow us on Twitter @GreenIntel for information on new innovations introduced and key developments that will influence the greening of the home industry.
This week, thousands of architects, interior designers and engineers attended NeoCon World’s Trade Fair. At the show, attendees had the opportunity to preview thousands of innovative products and resources for office, hospitality, health care, retail, government institutional and residential interiors from more than 1,200 showrooms and exhibitors.
Photo Courtesy of Neocon.com
In addition to scouring product displays, uncovering the latest trends in interior design, attending keynote presentations that focus on the future of design, the art of lighting and the relationship between creativity and motivation, show attendees could sit in on afternoon spotlights to learn more about how they can position their firms for success and better understand how they can impact change in the 21st century.
For the first time ever, attending bloggers and trade professionals could also capture and share activities and events happening at the show via Twitter, which allowed many people who could not attend this year’s event due to budget cuts or scheduling conflicts to follow show updates virtually.
While attendance may have been down at this year’s show, it appears that the trade show world continues to attract not only the hottest new products, but also the fastest means of communicating show floor events with the public.
As more brands embrace social media, we anticipate that we’ll see more people “attending” trade shows virtually by following updates on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and other outlets designed to provide real-time updates.
Check out the below video to learn about the benefits of W.A.C. Lighting’s product line and how the company practices “responsible lighting.”
Todd Weber of Kohler talks about how easy it is for homeowners to save water with today’s newest toilets, shower-heads and faucets. In addition, Todd addresses the latest trends in finishes and colors, including honed white and modern gold.
Take a look at the video below to learn more from the experts at Kohler.
At Home Intel, we are lucky to have the opportunity to talk directly to the people behind the scenes at our brands. Recently, we sat down with Lorenzo Marquez of Cosentino to learn more about the benefits of Silestone and a new product that is made up of 75% recycled content.
Take a look at the video below to see our interview with our industry expert.
Last week, we talked about how Amerock is celebrating 80 years as an innovator in the decorative hardware industry with its largest launch to date, including five new trend collections and more than 330 new products. Now, we invite you to listen first-hand as Claire Parrish addresses industry trends and how Amerock is helping people achieve big impact through small, inexpensive updates and changes.
Recently, Home Intel met up with John Stein of Kirei USA to talk about the green movement and how he is seeing it affect American consumers. Take a look at the below video to hear his thoughts.
