What consumers crave: designers on the front lines of kitchen cabinetry sales tell us what's hot in specialty hardware--and what's not.

When it comes to specialty cabinet hardware and accessories, many manufacturers tout things Like soft-dosing hinges and drawer slides, corner drawers and undermount drawer slides as the new, innovative items on the market. But we at Wood & Wood Products wondered--Are consumers really willing to shell out the extra dough for those unseen bells and whistles? To answer our question, we surveyed six certified kitchen designers, including two officers of the National Kitchen and Bath Assn. See what these consumer-conscious experts had to say about what's hot, what's not and why.

What's Hot

Nancy Barbee (CKD, CBD) of Waterloo, IA's Cabinetry Ideas sees the same five items used in almost every new kitchen. "The top five accessories I tell them they need are a pull-out trash system, a tilt-out storage tray, tray dividers, roll-out shelves in the base cabinets and appliance garages," she says.

While none of the other panelists cited four of Barbee's five top items, roll-out shelves, as well as full-extension drawer glides, earned a mention by each of the designers.

Owen Rapp (CKD) of Lifestyle Interiors in San Antonio, TX, says, "The roll-out drawers and roll-out trays--I put those anywhere and everywhere I possibly can. They are very well received, especially on the larger cabinets, where they can put the heavier pots and pans so they don't have to get down on their hands and knees to dig into the back. That's a big seller."

NKBA Vice President Allan Pattison (CMKBD), who works out of Kitchen Korner in Aldergrove, BC, adds that more and more people are asking for full-extension drawer glides, which "give better access to the drawer so you can use the whole space of the drawer itself." Chris Todd (CKD) of Deerfield Beach, FL's Indian River Cabinets sees the hottest item as, "Full-extension drawer glides, without a doubt. They Love it. It almost goes without saying."

Though there is some disagreement over the popularity of drawer accessories, such as interior drawer storage systems to help stack items such as dishes, bowls and saucers, Adam Marc Abrams (CKD) out of Cleveland, OH's Cabinet En-Counters says they "are really becoming big today ... as opposed to the old tradition of putting those things into wall cabinets above the countertop."

Les Petrie (CMKBD), the immediate past president of NKBA who works out of Mother Hubbard's Custom Cabinetry in Mechanicsburg, PA, says of the drawer-accessory phenomenon, "We're doing a Lot of kitchens with very few wall cabinets, but a Lot of very deep and wide drawers. In response to that, European manufacturers started making specialty dividers to put in these drawers to hold your dishes."

What's Not?

While soft-closing technology continues to cause a buzz in the manufacturing sector, it doesn't appear to have hit it big with consumers just yet--at least according to these designers.

"I think I've sold soft-closing hinges in just 1 percent of sales," Todd says. "People really don't see the perceived value in it. When I show people how a drawer closes by itself, they're like, 'Oh, that's nice.'"

Barbee, however, distinguishes between the popularity of soft-closing hinges for cabinets and soft-closing slides for drawers. "I have the soft-closing [technology] on display in one cabinet, but it's never come up. Now the soft-dosing drawer runner, we do sell. We show it as an option, and men love it--it's another gadget," she says.

In addition to soft-closing hinges on cabinets, Barbee cites pull-down shelves for shorter or handicaped people, drawer dividers and spice racks as other dust-collecting cabinet accessories.

Abrams and Petrie also say the more-expensive, too-deluxe items tend to have disappointing sales. Pantry storage systems, appliance integration and stainless steel products, for example, are what Petrie calls, "Very popular, but not bought very much."

Abrams adds, "I have had some people who say, 'Well, gee, I'm not going to spend $50 on a wood cutlery divider from the cabinet manufacturer when I can go out and buy that for five bucks. And sometimes there's no arguing with that."

Why Pay More?

"Everything's financially driven, unfortunately," Todd says. "You could explain to somebody that they're buying something better, but it's a [discount chain store] world. Everybody wants things cheaper, but they don't want to accept a cheaper quality. That's people's mentality."

So why do some consumers pay more for these so-called "gadgets"? Here are some possible answers.

1. Specialty hardware is a small percentage of the total cost.

According to Todd, specialty hardware is usually less than 10 percent of the whole package cost. "Customers are almost more willing to buy hardware than spend more money on a higher-quality cabinet because it's such a small fraction of the total cost," he says, adding that it might only cost $500 to put full-extension drawer glides on a $10,000 kitchen.

Abrams agrees, "It is [a small portion of the cost]. Once you start getting more involved in the design project, people start to realize that if they're going to spend whatever it is--10-, 15, 20-thousand dollars--what's another five-six hundred dollars here or there to make the cabinets the way they really want them?"

"It's kind of like me buying a suit and looking at a $25 tie versus a $35 tie. I'm not going to be too concerned about the price difference between the two. I'm going to buy something that looks good with the suit," Pattison explains.

2. The emphasis is shifting from form to function.

Though Barbee says "We've been in the Form over Function era," she agrees with other designers who say that the emphasis on function is becoming a more significant part of the hardware-purchasing decision.

"In general," Abrams says, "most people today are clearly looking for more functional accessories in interior hardware, from the drawer-guide system that pulls the drawer out, to the roll-out shelves inside cabinets to all kinds of other accessories--miser lifts, pull-out waste baskets, tilt-out soap trays, spice racks, the list goes on and on."

Pattison agrees. "Once the customer has chosen from a fashion standpoint what they're looking for, they look at the function of it," he says.

3. The consumer is more educated.

Today's consumer has done his research prior to purchasing, says Rapp. "Most of my clients are very savvy on what's available, and they've made up their minds about what they want," he says. "Ten years ago, you sat down with a client and the client was just sitting there with this blank look on his face. That happens only very rarely anymore."

While Rapp suggests that consumer magazines help educate the modern client, Petrie also says that the popularly of home improvement shows, such as those shown on HGTV or TLC, are a big help. "A year ago, we would have to educate the majority of the clients on things like this. Today, over half or more are asking for pull-out shelves, roll-out drawers and the soft-close, undermount drawer glides."

4. Consumers want to be more involved in their kitchens.

"The clients I deal with who are willing to go the extra mile like the soft-closing drawer glides, and they like other accessories," Rapp says. "They like the ability for them to be adjustable. They like to be involved."

Petrie explains, "Consumers are wiling to pay the price for the accessories and the accoutrements that promote an easier lifestyle, an easier way to navigate and work around the kitchen."

Petrie also notes that the kitchen is once again becoming the central gathering place in the home. "It's no longer a kitchen," Petrie declares. "It's a living environment in which we happen to cook. I think the trend today is back to cooking because cooking is fun. We noticed that we can cook and still have that easy, casual lifestyle that we're accustomed to. If we can work the two together, we're a much happier lot."

5. Specialty hardware is on a different part of the priority list.

"In order of priority, we're finding that number one with customers is the best layout possible for the kitchen floor plan, the second thing is a well-lighted work area and the third thing is to put all of the accessories that they're asking for into that kitchen, at least those that fit into their budget," Petrie says.

Pattison echoes Petrie's thoughts and adds, "I wouldn't say that [specialty hardware] is first on their list of things that they took for. How could it be? I think we deal more with cabinet style and those types of issues first. But hardware is important later on."

"It is not that it's low on the priority list, it's just an 'etcetera'," Rapp explains. "Most of my clients consider hardware an accessory, a bell and whistle."

Kitchen cabinets of years past had drawers that extended only three quarters of their actual lengths, doors that slammed shut and plastic container lids that disappeared in the depths of base cabinets. Consumers today are willing to go the extra mile--and spend the extra buck--to avoid these nuisances because they are more educated about which products will give them the most bang for their buck in a room that holds increasing importance to them as families.

NKBA Surveys Explore Hardware Trends

In the 2001 National Kitchen and Bath Assn.'s Design Trends Survey, certified kitchen and bathroom designers, along with dealers, designers, distributors, retailers, manufacturers, fabricators and other NKBA membership groups were surveyed about the "latest and most influential elements of kitchen and bathroom design."

In relation to specialty cabinet hardware, participants were asked which kitchen storage options they used. The most-used hardware--with 90% of the participants using one--was spice racks. Appliance garages and tilt-out bins, which Nancy Barbee of Cabinetry Ideas in Waterloo, IA, says are two of her top five selling items, came in at 80% and 76%, respectively.

When asked to specify how various components each contribute to the overall budget for a typical complete residential kitchen remodeling job, fixtures and hardware came in at 6%, while cabinets and countertops combined for 50% of the budget.

KITCHEN STORAGE OPTIONS

Item                       % Users

Glass front cabinetry           96
Spice drawers/racks             90
Home recycling center           83
Rotating shelves                80
Appliance garage                80
Tilt-out bins                   76
Free-standing furniture         63
Knife block                     44
Walk-in pantry                  43
Pot racks                       34
Other                           32

KITCHEN BUDGET

Item                 Total %

Cabinets                  36
Countertops               14
Appliances                12
Flooring                   6
Fixtures/Hardware          6
Design Services            6
Lighting                   5
Other                      4

Source: National Kitchen and Bath Assn. 2001 Design Trends Survey and 2002 Design Trends Survey Update.