KBB show..now tell!

As we gear up for the UK's largest kitchen and bathroom trade show, we ask brand director of UBM Andrew Vaughan what can we expect of KBB Birmingham? The show takes place at the NEC from March 4-7, 2012.

How does kbb Birmingham compare to the show in 2010 in terms of exhibitors and size?

It looks like we will finish level year-on-year and hit the targets we set ourselves in these challenging times. kbb Birmingham 2012 will have a great mix of new and old exhibitors and reflect what is happening in the markets we serve. Hopefully showing how resilient and enterprising these industries are.

How many visitors do you expect to attend?

Let’s be realistic, in these tough climates if we attract along the 16,000 visitors who attended 2010 with the same quality of retailers, specifiers, developers and interiors designers we will all be happy.

A criticism of kbb Birmingham in 2010 was the lack of bathroom manufacturer representation. What are you going to do to attract more bathroom exhibitors?

Our bathroom customers have told us their main challenge to exhibiting is money. They recognise the importance of kbb as a show, but they often find getting the required ROI difficult because they build large stands, which can prove to be expensive. In association with the Bathroom Manufacturers Association, we have just launched the BMA Pavilion. [It]allow BMA members to take get beautiful brand-friendly stand builds, for a third of the normal cost they would pay if they used an individual stand builder.

Another area specifically for bathroom exhibitors is Heart of Relaxation, where we are inviting exhibitors to create the ultimate bathing experience.

We appreciate that some bathroom companies are looking to move more into the contract market, so we will be exploring the future of this sector in Contract Spaces. Companies will create the ultimate space that inspires and educates a contract focussed audience of architects, designers and developers.

Tell us about the seminar programme…

From our extensive research, an overriding theme occurred of retail master classes, to give our retail audience insight into strategies that could help their business especially in this time of economic crisis. So were working with Econsultancy to provide a day of marketing masterclasses featuring ecommerce, website, email and digital - really cost effective things that all business can benefit from.

We’re also working with The Society of British Interior Designers SBID to provide sessions for interior designers and Global Color Research will present the latest information on trends.

For the full interview see the January issue of Kitchens & Bathrooms News.