Despite the current slowdown in business, the Q3 Kitchen & Bath Market Index (KBMI) by the National Kitchen & Bath Association indicates the outlook for 2024 is mostly positive, with 44% of all kitchen and bath firms and 49% of manufacturers expecting sales revenue to increase next year, particularly in the second half of 2024.

Additional research supports this. The Freedonia Group projects cabinet demand in the United States to grow 3.1% annually to $26.5 billion in 2026. Growth will be driven by new building construction, such as schools and senior living facilities, as well as continued investments in residential renovation projects.

When it comes to style, the 2024 Kitchen Trends report by NKBA/KBIS finds homeowners prefer multi-function designs, ample storage, eat-in dining areas, sustainable materials and advanced technology. The report also identified a connection to the outdoors as an emerging theme for color choices, with green (32%) as the top color choice, wood (28%) now in the second spot, followed by white (26%), blue (25%), gray (19%) and brown (18%). Texture is also in, not only for backsplashes but also on cabinetry (high-texture wood grain look). Additionally, more than half of those surveyed predict more honed or matte finishes on countertops.

Click on the infographic to enlarge. Find more market data in the December 2023 FDMC Wood Industry Almanac.

Quick Stats (Includes items not shown in print.)
• According to KCMA’s monthly Trend of Business Survey, cabinet manufacturers reported a decrease in overall cabinet sales of 11.4% for September 2023 compared to 2022 figures. Custom sales were down 0.6%, semi-custom dropped 10.3% and stock sales declined 28.7%. Cabinet quantity also decreased by 21.0% compared to September 2022 figures. Year-to-date cabinet sales are even, with custom sales up 9.9%, semi-custom sales up 4.1%, stock sales down 22.8%, and cabinet quantity also down 15.1% compared to 2022.

• The global countertop market is projected to reach $106.1 billion by 2027, at a CAGR of 3.1% (2023-2027). North America is the largest region in the market, with the main driver being residential construction projects, according to The Business Research Co.

• What do kitchen design professionals want from manufacturers? Topping the list is quality samples (86%), followed by trend information (62%), quality brochures (60%), marketing content (50%) and market research (48%), according to research by RICKI.

• The global cabinet market is projected to grow $22.57 billion from 2022 to 2027, at a CAGR of 5.73% according to Technavio. The kitchen cabinet segment will account for the major share of the growth.

• The median spend for kitchen and bath remodels continues to increase steadily.  In 2022, it reached $20,000 for kitchens and $13,500 for primary bathrooms, an increase of 33% and 50%, respectively, compared with 2021, according to the 2023 U.S. Houzz & Home study.

• Rising labor costs and availability of labor continue to be the biggest challenge the kitchen and bath industry is facing, according to the NKBA’s Q3 2023 Kitchen & Bath Market Index. K&B firms rate the cost and availability of skilled labor as a highly pressing concern.  Firms expect to raise their hourly wages by nearly 5 percent on average in 2024, while 33 percent expect their hourly labor costs to increase 6 percent or more.

Market Data Sources: National Kitchen & Bath Assn. (NKBA), The Freedonia Group, Houzz, Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers Assn. (KCMA), Canadian Kitchen Cabinet Assn. (CKCA), Cabinet Makers Assn. (CMA), U.S. Census Bureau, Statistics Canada/StatCan, RICKI, The Business Research Co., Technavio. Category: Cabinets & countertops include: kitchen cabinetry, bath cabinetry, vanities, countertops and islands.

More data on North American woodworking and the specific wood product market segments can be found in the December 2023 FDMC Wood Industry Almanac. Also, find market data year-round at WoodworkingNetwork.com/news/almanac-market-data.