Individual high style is the hallmark of an increasingly
upscale bathroom sink and faucet market.
Today’s consumers desire personalized design so rather than the
proverbial “keeping up with the Joneses,” they seek out fabulous
products the Joneses haven’t heard of yet. Originality, uniqueness
and the personal statement are all primary goals for today’s
bigger, more opulent bathrooms particularly when it comes to
choosing sinks and faucets..
“People are spending money selectively to get the things they’ve
always wanted,” declares Ed Detgen, director of marketing, Danze in
Lincolnwood, IL.
“The designs are the driver,” adds Guy Itzkovitch, v.p. for
Hamat USA in Totowa, NJ.
Indeed, today’s homeowners are increasingly sophisticated in
their comprehension of design. And the bath whether it be a
luxurious master bath or a high-style trophy powder room is the
perfect spot to translate those design ideas into reality.
“We’re finding luxury is more mainstream [now],” says Mary
McCullough, assistant channel manager for Delta Faucet Co.
in Indianapolis, IN.
She adds that people sometimes pick bath sink and faucet styles
that may be less practical or durable in order to get style for
instance, the increased use of vessel sinks in master baths.
Streamlined Style
While traditional
remains a staple of the mid-level market, the high end is
increasingly drawn to the uncluttered lines and effortless elegance
of contemporary design. Even those homeowners who want a familiar,
warm feel are choosing transitional looks, which take their cues
from the 20th century from fluid, glamorous Art Deco styles to
Modernist simplicity.
“Transitional is gaining power because [it’s] a little cleaner
than the traditional,” confirms Itzkovitch. “Pretty modern, but
with some accents that pull [the look] a little backwards, to 50
years ago.”
“Those architecturally inspired styles are beginning to
influence faucet designs,” believes Sandy Vandall, v.p./marketing
communications for Price Pfister in Lake Forest, CA.
Avi Abel, general manager, Watermark Designs in Brooklyn, NY,
thinks it’s the increasing presence of European manufacturers in
the U.S., as well as the changing demographics of the market, that
are causing this shift. Young homeowners “don’t want what their
parents have,” Abel notes.
He sees ultra-minimalist industrial looks as a hot up-and-comer.
“Gnarled edges, exposed nuts and screws, really raw stuff,” Abel
elaborates. “It’s almost the look you’d expect to see from Home
Depot for $20, but [fabricated as] a high-quality product. Adding
that designer flair to it, but [keeping] a basic, raw look [is]
gaining some momentum, especially in metropolitan areas the loft
look. [For instance], we just did a project in New York where they
converted a factory to high-end condominiums. They wanted to
maintain the feel of the old days of the building, where it was
just a factory. So they went with [Watermark’s] industrial
faucets.”
McCullough points out that Delta’s Victorian line of faucets is
also a strong seller, while Michael Isaacs, president of Mico
Designs in Chicago, IL, insists “very ornate, or French country” is
still a high-end trend.
Rainbow Finishes
In great contrast from just
a few years ago, when satin nickel was a revelation, faucets now
come in dozens of finishes and so do all accessories, reports Jim
Tomafsky, owner of Mountain Plumbing Products in West Deptford, NJ.
His company’s exposed plumbing line is available in 30 finishes,
with many tones designed to exactly match popular faucet finishes
such as Delta’s Venetian Bronze and Kohler’s Brushed Bronze.
“Our products are like jewelry,” analogizes Detgen. “We’re not
the dress, we accessorize.
[So] fashion is important to us. There are certainly more and
more options available. Even the largest companies that have been
the most conservative in product development are starting to grow
more rapidly in the decorative end of our business.”
A burgeoning niche market, exposed plumbing has crossed over to
many design styles, he adds, noting: “We’re doing more and more
contemporary exposed plumbing sales than ever before. And polished
nickel is becoming a very popular finish. The richness [of it] is a
lot nicer than polished chrome.”
“People will catch [the difference] immediately,” adds
Itzkovitch. “They won’t [necessarily] know what they see, but
they’ll feel the warmer tone. It gives them a higher value, more
expensive feel.”
The traditional market, which remains a strong seller, prefers
darker metal colors such as oil-rubbed bronze, Itzkovitch notes.
Most oil-rubbed bronze now is PVD-coated, however, as opposed to
the living finish the look started out with. “That was a fad,”
thinks Abel. “To have the look is one thing, but a finish coming
off the faucet that’s not what a consumer wants.”
“Once people know what a living finish is, they don’t want it,”
concurs Isaacs.
Weathered or brushed copper finishes are another up-and-comer,
notes McCullough, who also mentions aluminum tones.
Abel also sees a niche market for black wrought iron as a component
for rustic or French country looks. And, of course, good old
polished chrome is still a stock mainstay, but is also often the
finish of choice for minimalist industrial looks.
As for faucet style, high-end picks seem to be trending toward
wall-mounts. “We sell a lot of wall-mounted faucets,” says Abel.
“That [design has] made its mark. That’s not a fad that’s going
away. People use them in powder rooms, because when you have guests
coming over, you want them to ooh and aah,” he quips. “[But] for
practicality reasons, people are used to deck-mounted faucets, so
that’s what’s going in all of the other baths in the house.” There,
Detgen sees an increase in two-handle, widespread faucets, rather
than centersets.
Heavily trafficked bathrooms often need to put function first,
believes Vandall, who cites Price Pfister’s recently introduced
bathroom pull-out. The bathroom variation of that popular kitchen
style makes for easy cleaning
of the sink area, as well as other functions, such as washing
hair.
Sink as Sculpture
Can a sink be a work of
art? In the case of high-end vessel bowls, the answer is a
resounding yes, say manufacturers. “There’s a personalization,”
notes McCullough. “[You see] hand-painted vessel sinks, textures
[and] more of the mixed mediums ceramic and glass, wood and metal,
glass and metal.”
Innovative materials, such as glass and cast metal, enable
manufacturers to come up with enormous diversity in style, explains
Joe Jumalon, president of Elite Bath, Inc. in Newburg, OR, who
cites his company’s cast bronze line as an example. “Cast bronze
allows for more diversity in design versus a typical fabricated
copper sink,” he notes.
Cast metal can give a sink an almost sculpture-like look that
provides a strong focal point for bathroom design for instance,
Elite’s stainless steel sink with a nickel bronze front.
Vlad Frigman, creative director at Contemporary Bath Design,
L.P. in New York, NY, also mentions glass as a high-end material
that allows for a lot of creative innovation, particularly with
vessel bowls. “It’s possible to [put] different textures underneath
[glass, which] you can see through the thickness of the glass,” he
says.
This gives the textured underlayer a continuously changing look,
rather like the feel of ocean water. “The glass provides the light.
It’s beautiful,” Frigman adds. “It’s also very easy for
maintenance, and it doesn’t have pores, [which means] no bacteria,
which is important today.”
Glass can mimic marble or steel, and can adapt to any
application, from textures that look like cut rock to ancient Roman
pottery to marble, he further reports.
However, other manufacturers surveyed believe that some glass
looks which also include glass countertops and tile have already
peaked on the high end.
“Glass vessels themselves are at the tail end [of their trend],”
believes Abel. “It’s not exciting any more.”
A staple of kitchen design, a stainless steel sink, is another
adventure pick for the bathroom.
“I don’t believe stainless steel will ever reach the popularity
in the bathroom that it has in the kitchen, since much of the trend
was fueled by the appliance industry,” opines Vandall. “Without
that influence you have much more flexibility and creativity to
experiment with alternative finishes and textures.”
But John Lauer, merchandise and communications manager for
Blanco in Cinnaminson, NJ, believes his company’s new steel
bathroom sink is a logical progression from the kitchen and bar
sink. Additionally, stainless steel makes for an elegant, modern
look that works particularly well with industrial loft looks and
sleek European contemporary designs. Abel also cites “china basins
with square edges, not really deep, very simple” as a popular pick
for a modern look.
For transitional and traditional looks, the pedestal sink
remains strong, says Itzkovitch. “It’s a niche market, but it’s
gaining more and more followers,” he says. “It’s different. You can
do a lot of [innovative] designs.” One down side of the pedestal
the storage space of that former, big vanity box must be re-located
to another part of the bathroom.” Some solutions include a storage
closet echoing the newly popular walk-in butler’s pantry in
furniture-look kitchens cabinetry above the toilet, larger medicine
cabinets or a separate furniture piece.
In terms of color, however, consumers are staying with the
classics.
“The majority of what we’re doing is white china,” says
Itzkovitch. “Twenty years ago, people were trying to play with
everything here, they just go with a newer, fresher design.”
“The phenomenon I’m seeing is, you cannot see enough different
[design] styles,” says Detgen.
He also cites statistics that indicate consumers will redecorate
a new home within the first few years of ownership. “They
want
to make it their own,” Detgen concludes. “So, the more options they
have, [the better]. That is really a key issue that the market is
responding to.” KBDN