KBzine: the original kitchen and bathroom industry e-news - since 2002
20th December 2013
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  International News
Products New countertop basins from Bauhaus are beautifully crafted
 Luna cabinets offer a flexible bathroom storage solution
Abode splashes out in John Lewis
PWS injects new colour palette to Metris collection
Coram introduces shower tray collection for new Premier Range
Save time and money with Space-Plug
New Elite mirrored doors and side panels from Simpsons Enclosures offer discreet showering
Modern Homes wins KBSA Small Business Saturday promotion
Tina is a worthy winner as not only did she share details of the event she is running in the showroom on Saturday with the KBSA but her business was also profiled on the Small Business Saturday Facebook page www.facebook.com, which has 8,409 likes! Astracast appoints Louise Craven to position of National Account Manager
Hansgrohe takes the headache out of selecting the optimum shower experience
Ellis Furniture launches Reflection Gloss Maize
Electrolux Supplier Awards 2013 winners announced
Visions in High Gloss in Red by Kitchen Door Workshop
Deserved promotion for Laura Weeks!
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Those that celebrate Christmas but use it as an excuse for commercialism and excess are likely to be inflicting heavy use on their credit or debit cards over the next few days. I wonder though, whether the news this week that our insatiable desire for electrical and electronic goods produced a frightening 48.9 million tonnes of e-waste globally last year, might make them think twice? The volume of this waste is rising dramatically. The UK apparently throws out around £762million worth of electrical and electronic gadgets each year. It produced 1.3million tonnes of this waste in 2012, but the UN predicts that this will rise by a third by 2017. However, the UK’s not the biggest culprit. An interesting analogy comes with the report on Qatar, which produced 1.1million tonnes of e-waste last year – working out at 139lbs per person. This is the equivalent of 11 times the weight of the Pyramid of Giza or 200 Empire State Buildings! The Solving the E-Waste Problem (StEP) Initiative - a partnership of UN organisations, industry, governments, non-government and science organisations, has produced an interesting interactive map at http://www.step-initiative.org/index.php/WorldMap.html which compares the amount of e-waste produced by 184 countries (that’s almost as many as Cleanzine goes to!). If you’re thinking of spending out on electrical and electronic gadgets for a friend or loved one for Christmas, take a look at the map first. On a personal level it might save you some money, but on a global level (if everyone takes note) it could make a real difference to those landfill sites if everyone giving gifts uses what they’ve learned to persuade the recipients to dispose responsibly of unwanted gadgets… Have a happy and safe Christmas and New Year – and look out for our next issue of KBzine, which will be with you on 10th January.
Yours,
 This Week's News
The Kitchen Bathroom Bedroom Specialists Association tells us that, having analysed the results of its recent research project, it is going to work towards repositioning itself in order to develop consumer interest and awareness. This will include new messaging and a new value proposition for both consumers and current / potential members. Pivotal role for Laufen's customisable solid surface material in futuristic bathroom design
Renolit new solid colours: modern colours in trend setting textured surfaces
15% of companies have sales catalogue but not a website with e-commerce A staggering 15% of companies have a website without e-commerce, yet these same companies have a catalogue to drive sales, according to a new report. British Ceramic Tile extends its HD collection
One of the company's fastest growing collections to date, the fabulous HD range now includes new concrete and wood-effect tiles, together with imitation marble and sandstone in a range of colours from emerald green through to terracotta. Galaxy Showers refreshes its product range to meet customer demand
GDHA named White Goods Supplier of the Year at CIH Awards
Vibrant Vessini - for the perfect bathroom
The stunning products in the mid/top range portfolio include shower screens, brassware, sanitaryware, baths and furniture and all boast technical excellence and cutting edge design.
Utopia's Movember team in all their hairy glory
Well, it's not actually a 'most wanted' poster but six brave chaps from Utopia Bathroom Group who grew moustaches in November as part of the Movember fund-raising campaign. Fearlessly shrugging off the hilarity and horror of their partners, friends and colleagues, the members of the Utopia team raised well over £1,000 for this international charity which supports a number of key men's health issues.
Ian Railton has been promoted to General Manager, Northern Europe, and is responsible for the Nordics, UK and Ireland. Ian is now based in Stockholm, Sweden. The KBzine Archive Search We keep an extensive archive of news stories and product information that have featured in past issues of The KBzine. If you would like to run a search of the The KBzine web site using the search tool below please just go ahead by entering in the name of the person, product or company or any other key words that you are looking for. How to contact us at The KBzine:
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clicking the link above. Recent News
Latest Bathroom Retailers Market Report just published The latest report on the UK Bathroom Retailers Market has now been published. Celebrate the 12 Daves of Christmas with Utopia You can never have too many Daves - we know that's true because at Utopia they have got 12 of them! This unusual fact has prompted the team to celebrate its Daves and Christmas together with its new festive Facebook campaign, 'The 12 Daves of Christmas'. Don't deflate the van tyres for winter Van users are being advised not to follow outdated advice on winter driving. Steve Clarke says: "There is a long-held view that reducing tyre pressures will increase grip on awkward surfaces. This might be all right for driving over desert sand, but it is certainly not safe for winter driving." As marketing manager for The Fuelcard People, part of Fuel Card Group, he has been working with van users for years and knows the challenges they face.  NHBC new home registrations continue to soar New home registration statistics for the UK, released today by NHBC, show that the number of new homes being registered continues to improve on last year's figures with an overall 24% increase for the rolling quarter August to October compared to the same period in 2012. KBBG applauds 'Small Business Saturday' initiative The Kitchen Bathroom Buying Group, a subsidiary of the kitchen & bathroom buying group in Europe, DER KREIS, supports the UK's first 'Small Business Saturday' that takes place on 7th December 2013. The Cook’s Kitchen, by Mark Wilkinson OBE, first to win Design Classic Award
Marketing
Franke launches 'More in Store' campaign supporting independent specialist retailers More in Store is the major new campaign being launched by Franke on January 1st and continues Franke's strategy to directly support its independent specialist retailers.
The campaign follows on from the recent introduction of new sales and distribution policies designed to uphold the values of the Franke brand and protect retailers from unregulated internet trading by 'market free-riders.' |
