This week, hundreds of thousands of design and construction professionals will come together… for the largest annual gathering of North America’s design and construction industry.

Design & Construction Week features the co-location of the National Association of Home Builders’ International Builders’ Show® (IBS) and the National Kitchen & Bath Association’s Kitchen & Bath Industry Show® (KBIS) together with the National Hardware Show, the Las Vegas Winter Market and The International Surface Event.

IBS and KBIS have filled the entire 2.5 million square feet of the Las Vegas Convention Center with the most revolutionary products available for builders, specifiers and influencers from across the globe.

K&A is proud to be appointed Agency of Record for PrimeSource Building ProductsRichelieu Hardware as well as StoneCoat and all three brands are ready to help propel this year’s show experiences to be the most memorable in history.

Steve Kleber explained this unique opportunity, “With the prospect of the worst of inflation ending in 2023 – and confidence that interest rates will be topping out soon — it’s no wonder that progressive Building Product Brands are increasing their commitment to marketing.” After all, the industry is continuing to grow. Kleber added, “Construction employment rose 3.1% in 2022, rising in 11 of the 12 months. The sector never appeared to lose real momentum when rate hikes started to gain traction.” Instead, the channel continued to add jobs at a steady clip. The 28,000 construction positions added in December was the highest since May.

One of the largest purveyors of fasteners in the world and one of the largest distributors of building materials in North America, PrimeSource Building Products, appointed K&A to lead public relations and major branding initiatives including event activations and content strategy as well as influencer and social media engagement.

With 35 distribution centers across North America, PrimeSource Building Products represents the leading brands for residential and commercial construction… spanning product categories that include collated fasteners, hand-drive screws and nails, insulation, fencing and perimeter security, as well as railing, roofing, gypsum, siding, tools and accessories.

Exclusive brands include Grip-Rite®, Pro-Twist®, Nationwide Industries™, RailFX®, Ultra-tec®, GRX®, Complete, KlinchPak and Lockey USA™.

“We see in K&A a partner who will work side-by-side with our team to elevate the PrimeSource Building Products house of brands while generating visibility for our diverse portfolio among an even broader audience,” said Allyson Horst, vice president of marketing for PrimeSource Building Products. “K&A’s extensive industry networks and deep knowledge of navigating media and influencer channels — along with brand building and thought leadership expertise — makes them a great fit to support us in our growth objectives.”

K&A is leading PR, thought leadership and media planning for Richelieu Hardware. Based in Montreal, Canada, Richelieu is an importer, manufacturer, distributor and supplier for specialty hardware and complementary products. Employing more than 2,700 with over 100,000 customers in North America, target audiences include kitchen and bathroom cabinet, storage and closet as well as home furnishing and office furniture manufacturers. The brand also focuses on doors and windows, residential and commercial woodworking and hardware retailers… including renovation superstores.

Launching the latest innovations in lighting, ergonomic solutions and decorative hardware, Richelieu is proud that its Riverso drawer system has been selected to be among the finalists in “The Best of KBIS.”

StoneCoat will be launching its innovative exterior cladding and interior high-performance finish solutions at the company’s first IBS. The brand provides the distinctive look of stucco and stacked stone, designed to help the building industry achieve NetZero goals. Its patented formula leverages the natural properties of limestone — while minimizing the impact on the environment – and is 90 percent less carbon emissive than other traditional cement-based stucco, brick and manufactured stone.

“This is an important endeavor for our growing company with the launch of a national marketing campaign,” said Joseph Mrak, StoneCoat CEO. “Kleber & Associates has a long history of building better brands, and we are honored to have them as a trusted collaborator.”

Design & Construction Week is an opportunity for the entire industry to come together to network. To explore. And most importantly, to plan for what’s ahead.

Creating dynamic tradeshow experiences are vital opportunities for maximizing campaign launches. If you’d like to discuss tradeshow strategies further, send an e-mail to Steve at sk@kleberandassociates.com to get the conversation started.