This year’s Kitchen & Bath Industry Show (KBIS) concluded last week with over 70,000 attendees after a two-year in-person hiatus. Held at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida, the experience intermixed KBIS with the International Builders Show (IBS)—proving just how big the kitchen, bath, building, and remodeling industry truly is. With 375 exhibitors—85 of which were new to the show—KBIS was primed to succeed—and succeed it did. According to show numbers, approximately 48% of attendees were new to KBIS.

At True Residential, we took advantage of the opportunity to connect in person and showcase some of our most vibrant hues, our large array of indoor/outdoor undercounter units, and the variety of full-size refrigeration options we carry. And it was a huge success—not only did we welcome in tried and true customers, but we made quite a few new connections, established ideas for upcoming projects, and connected with press and color theory experts at the same time—some of whom’s outfits complemented our vibrant finishes and/or we’ve tapped as experts in the understanding of how certain colors affect interiors and our psyches.

We also launched our gorgeous new colorway, Sage. It’s a refreshing grey/green finish that emanates a quiet elegance. It also lured in quite a few kitchen aficionados. We consistently heard the word “calming” as kitchen designers, builders, and more wandered in. Carolyn Ames Noble, Design Principal of Ames Design Collective, also stopped by. Her vast knowledge of color theory gave us an added boost of confidence in our choice of hues to launch. In her words: “The color sage green is rooted in ecology, and the desire to germinate and preserve the growing of fresh herbs in a home garden. The duality of Sage is extraordinary—it can present as a pigmented neutral in the kitchen or as a statement hue all on its own.” Noble’s work is rooted in research and lifestyle, where one of her specialties is CMF (color, material, finish) design development services.

KBIS 2022 also saw the launch of our powerfully-enhanced new Clear Ice Machine.  Not only does it have a bin capacity of 28lbs, but the new model can produce an industry-leading 85lbs of ice per day—with a 30% increase in energy efficiency and a 16% decrease in water usage than its predecessor. Ul-rated for outdoors, it is a great boon to both homeowners and designers as this year just solidified the public’s growing interest in entertaining outdoors and expanding the interior footprint out. It also gave us a chance to reconnect as a team and experience a wonderful moment of celebration.