Steve Kleber, president of the National Remodeling Foundation, shares his personal insight on how homeowners are embracing furniture, organization and “retro” styling for upcoming remodeling projects:
Homeowners today are selecting furniture that has the strength of character powerful enough to set the interior design style, color, texture and mass for the whole space, even in the bathroom. Pursuing the ever-elusive dream of finding more storage space and increased organization leads many homeowners to discover advanced closet systems. For those seeking to achieve self-expression in their remodeling projects, many find the latest “retro” styled building products and appliances, complete with more bells and whistles than ever before.
“A recovering economy has boosted homeowners’ confidence in their property values,” says Steven Kleber, president of the National Remodeling Foundation. “Accordingly, we’re seeing them excited to invest in high-quality, luxury home and outdoor living products with a reasonable expectation for a return on that investment.”
Furniture Expands the Foundation for Interior Design
While purchasing a new dining room table or sofa certainly has been an easy way to update a home’s interior design for living spaces, homeowners today now are applying this same strategy to the bathroom. High quality bathroom furniture, such as a vanity by Ronbow, is becoming the central focus from which consumers are crafting bathroom renovation plans, much like couture designers who build a fashion runway collection. As such, if the bathroom vanity is the new “little black dress” of bathroom design, then GRAFF faucets and shower systems are the accessories. With a wide array of high design, high function faucets such as the award-winning Ametis collection, GRAFF products function as “jewelry” that accentuates the bath furniture.
Design in Unexpected Places
Organization is frequently at the top of the list of desired renovations, leading many homeowners to invest in built-in systems installed in existing closets. WoodTrac closet systems are customizable to virtually any closet size. These easy-to-install wood grain closet systems offer significant cost savings over traditional white melamine alternatives.
Woodtrac also offers suspended and direct-mount wood ceiling paneling which is gaining increased popularity in residential applications. The paneling can be applied over any ceiling surface and creates a look of luxurious, custom-crafted three-dimensional ceilings at a fraction of the cost of expensive trim carpentry and coffered millwork.
Aren’t All Refrigerators Cool?
Yes, functionally speaking, all refrigerators do provide a cool factor – that’s what they are designed to do. Yet, today’s consumer is demanding more from their traditional kitchen appliance. In fact, many homeowners wish to express their style through their kitchen equipment and find these appliances the perfect icons to help define their personalities. Elmira Northstar refrigerators boast a retro, mid-century inspired design while remaining technologically up to date with energy efficient performance. These fridges are available in nine not-so-standard colors, or can be customized to meet any customer’s color aesthetic.
“Homeowners are no longer satisfied with their living space, or the furniture and appliances within, serving only a functional purpose,” says Steven Kleber, president of the National Remodeling Foundation. “Today’s homeowner wants a whole-home experience completely reflective of them and flexible to fit their lifestyle.”
Kleber & Associates is an Atlanta-based integrated marketing communications agency serving the home and building products industry for 25 years. Visit the Kleber & Associates website for the latest news and information about marketing for home and building products for consumers, architects, builders, remodelers, designers and manufacturers. Through our marketing, advertising, public relations and digital marketing expertise — we build better brands that build a better home.
