The importance of good kitchen design cannot be overstated, and when it comes to designing contract kitchens, bknc is certainly a leader not a follower.
Heading the design team in creating functional, practical and aesthetically pleasing contract kitchens is Design Manager, Hayden Price, who has been with the company for over 15 years, and he enjoys nothing more than navigating tasks – no matter what the size of the project or how straightforward or challenging.
When Hayden was asked to explain the contract kitchen design process at bknc he said “I like to open up the communication channels and offer clients ideas based ‘around’ their brief rather than to their exacting specification – contract kitchen design shouldn’t always be about planning boxes on walls. It’s about creating that certain type of style and feel to the kitchen”.
When you start working with bknc, our designers will be with you every step of the way, they will actively encourage and recommend that pre-design meetings take place between architects, specifiers, sales & marketing teams and contractors’ technical personnel to provide an opportunity to review, discuss, agree parameters and specification before official ‘as-built’ drawings are produced. This helps to eradicate any problems or technical hitches that may occur further down the line.
Occasionally, the team are asked to produce ‘like for like’ plans and reproduce competitors’ ideas but Design Manager, Hayden. prefers to educate his team and pass on his knowledge to encourage them to create their own designs.
Over the years, contract kitchen design has seen several changes that impact the team. Group deal agreements direct with the contractor/client are now playing a key role in specifications and this makes products set out in advance, difficult to move away from – especially when they do not suit the development or the project requirements. Products can also be specified from different suppliers and tend to be purely focused on price as opposed to practicality and style.
As experienced kitchen designers, Hayden and his team look out for new and emerging kitchen trends and as we move into 2022, they see a continuation of soft mat finishes and light pastel colours that absorb the light into the room (rather than reflect it) and make it feel warm. They anticipate seeing more traditional shaker doors, more open plan living areas and kitchen offices and more mixing of light colours with bold colours, smarter appliances for convenience and products sourced from sustainable materials.
Hayden says his favourite product on the market at the moment are Elica cooker hoods and hobs and the team love specifying their products.
So, what does the future hold for kitchen design?
At bknc, our kitchen designers recognise that now more than ever, kitchens are designed to improve quality of life. The pandemic has certainly made people appreciate kitchen space more and we have seen the use of the kitchen extended from cooking, eating and socialising to making zoom calls!
Whilst kitchen trends are difficult to predict, technology will undoubtedly play a huge part giving the homeowner more time to enjoy their home rather than be busy in it. Self-opening appliances (voice or touch activated), notifications of low food stock or when cooking/washing is complete as well as lights and appliances turning on when entering a room, are just some the advances predicted.
At bknc, we support contract kitchen design projects from start to finish, assigning a dedicated team to take care of everything including design, quotation, delivery, installation and after care.
Contact us today for more information!
