The COVID-19 pandemic has left a lasting imprint on the fabric of American life, fundamentally transforming people’s perception of their home, creating enormous untapped demand and resulting in nothing short of a historic paradigm shift in how Americans live.
Now it’s up to designers, remodelers, manufacturers and other decision makers to seize the opportunities resulting from COVID-wrought changes in homeowner lifestyles, attitudes, design preferences and product-purchasing decisions.
Nothing less than the viability of the kitchen and bath design trade is at stake.
The impact of COVID on current and future homes is underlined by the findings of a pair of major studies highlighted in this month’s issue of Kitchen & Bath News.
The first of those studies – conducted by KBDN and its exclusive research partner, the Research Institute of Kitchen & Cooking Intelligence – found a distinct tie between COVID and a plethora of products and features that homeowners are reportedly seeking in their kitchens, baths and other living spaces. The second project, known as the America at Home Study, provided important insights into how Americans feel about their current home, and how they plan to live in a post-pandemic society (see stories, Pages 80 and 81).
According to the findings of both studies, the word “home” evokes more powerful emotions now than prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, with today’s “ideal” home identified as a safe, secure, relaxing and comfortable sanctuary that provides an overall sense of physical health and personal wellness.
Indeed, the rising focus on wellness and its tie to people’s physical environment is fueling an entire new palette of products and features that people desire for their homes.
This overarching desire for wellness – coupled with the growing importance of home and the permanent reality of lifestyle changes such as remote and hybrid work arrangements – is also resulting in an unprecedented abundance of profit opportunities.
For example, while Americans say they are more attuned than ever to the notions of physical and emotional wellness, they apparently feel less “well” than desired. Specifically, when asked about products and features that are currently absent in their home, respondents to both the KBDN/RICKI and the America at Home Study identified germ-resistant, easy-to-clean surfaces, state-of-the-art home technology, energy efficiency, increased storage capacity and better-equipped kitchens and baths. With climate change a major concern, there’s also a preponderance of eco-friendly features people point to when they detail the attributes in a home that are important to them.
A private outdoor space was identified as a priority. So were products tied to the notion of cleanliness, personal hygiene, sustainability and biophilic design. Water conservation, eliminating chemicals and VOCs, low-energy windows and a home that minimizes its impact on the environment are also among the features reportedly growing in importance.
And therein lies the opportunities.
Insights like those provided by both the KBDN/RICKI study and the America at Home Study can help kitchen and bath design pros respond to homeowners’ changing needs by gaining a key understanding of potential new markets, helping to craft marketing campaigns and sales presentations, and creating residential spaces based on the attitudes, values and needs of their client base.
How people live and what they want from their homes are evolving in very palpable ways, and design pros who respond to today’s new realities will best be able to deliver the value proposition that clients are looking for in their homes.
Kitchen and bath design pros must transform homeowners’ COVID-driven preferences into livable realities if they’re to thrive in both the current and the future market. ▪