Tailor Your Kitchen To Your Customer And Sell More Homes
If your business is building and selling new homes, you’ll already know that the kitchen takes centre stage when it comes to creating wow factor and encouraging buyers to sign on the dotted line.
You’ll also know the customer groups you want to target with your development.
But can you join the dots by understanding the unique tastes and preferences of different groups and combining those insights with trend analysis to design them their perfect kitchen?
At Commodore Design, we believe connecting the design process with an in-depth understanding of the customer’s tastes, preferences, lifestyle and practical needs is fundamental to achieving sales. By creating a kitchen that’s bespoke as standard, we help developers convert sales faster, with kitchens that excite buyers with new ideas and contemporary features.
Here, we’ll reveal how we get under the skin of the customer and advise developers on kitchen choices that sell homes faster.
How do we understand buyers better?
As a residential developer, you know your customers. You will have researched the area local to your development and found out what kind of buyer is purchasing which kind of home. Knowing what sells in the local market is fundamental to the success of any development but, more than likely, your competitors are doing that too.
So how do you give your development an edge?
Understanding in depth end-buyer profiles and what different groups are looking for in a kitchen takes this research process to another level, which could give you the edge in achieving sales in the local market. In an environment where the kitchen can be the deciding factor in a buyer’s choice between your development and a competitor’s site, applying an evidence-based approach to achieving the optimum spec can make all the difference.
At Commodore Design we’ve embedded that approach in our design process. As part of Nobia, Europe’s leading kitchen specialist with more than 20 brands, we have unparalleled experience in kitchen design and access to valuable consumer data. Our experts work with developers to identify who their buyers are and use retail kitchen buyer data to help them identify what those buyers want from their kitchen.
We have developed six end-buyer customer profiles, which are based on a data-driven research process that considers both demographic and psychographic characteristics.
What does that mean? When assessing psychographic characteristics we consider the generational factors that affect buyers’ tastes and choices. That includes the design elements that they’ve grown up with and will expect from a kitchen, along with the experiences that will switch them off elements that could be appealing to a different psychographic profile.
When considering demographic characteristics, we leverage understanding of what’s affecting the buyer’s choices right now. Regardless of their age or social background, a buyer’s current stage in life will dictate what they need from their kitchen.
Our Super Six
This proven approach has led us to create six buyer profiles. Combined with the style of property, knowledge of the local area and future trend analysis, these can be used to inform our tailored approach to kitchen design, aligned to your brand and requirements.
Our super six customer profiles are:
Co-living – for young professionals who prefer shared living or are not ready to settle down. This category is also useful for build-to-rent developments and investor-buyers to appeal to co-living tenants
First time buyers – these people want the best they can afford and a property that will increase in value. They also want a space they can be proud of when entertaining friends and family
New kids on the block – this group needs a kitchen that can withstand the rigours of small children and offer both practicality and safety
Mature family – as families grow and children group up, lifestyles change and the kitchen needs to reflect those changes
Empty nesters – while they have more disposable income to eat out, this group also has more freedom to cook and entertain in their home and has earned some wow-factor touches
Retired – practicality is critical for this group, along with an acknowledgement that they will be more likely to look for a tradition and a kitchen that allows them to enjoy things they’ve collected over the years
What does improved understanding of buyers deliver in superior design?
Understanding the customer’s tastes and needs is only part of the story. At Commodore Design, we also know selecting the right features for each customer group and aligning them to a design that fits the development is also key.
Let’s take first time buyers as an example. Largely made up of millennials who grew up with technology for cooking, communicating and entertainment, this group appreciates pop-up sockets that can be stored neatly within surfaces when not in use, or wireless charging installed into the worktop.
Studies show that millennials prefer the kitchen to the dining room favoured by their parents’ generation for eating and entertaining so the kitchen will be a social space for them. It has to function as a relaxed space for sharing a coffee, a glass of wine or cooking and eating as a couple or with guests in the hub of the home. As the property will be a home for just one or two people, an island or peninsula is a much higher priority than storage, because the kitchen is all about bringing people together and making memories.
The dual characteristics of tech-savvy and minimalist should be combined in the appliances, with integrated, connected appliances providing a neat and space-saving contemporary aesthetic and down-draft extraction helping to maintain clean lines and flat surfaces.
It’s important to remember that people in this group is are often more experimental in their style and will take design risks more readily, because this is the first home they can call their own. Design touches such as gold or brass hot taps and colour-matching handle less rails provide a design edge combined with a kitchen that’s high tech, uncluttered and easy to maintain. Meanwhile, navy, black and light oak along with handle less draws and cupboards provide the right combination of statement style and effortless practicality.
Combining market insight with trend analysis to drive sales
Knowing the customer’s tastes and preferences only provides a design advantage if these insights are dovetailed with expert trend analysis.
At Commodore Design, we track the industry closely, using research into evolving consumer behaviour and influences to predict how people will be living, what they’ll be buying and the aesthetic choices they’ll be making.
In this way, we can make sure that your buyers walk into their dream kitchen at your development, picture themselves living in the space and feel that the property has been designed around their needs.
No customer is off the shelf, so we believe their kitchens shouldn’t be either. By starting the design process with the customer in mind, you can deliver a better experience, a targeted product and, ultimately, an improved opportunity to close on sales.
If you want to talk to us about how we can tailor your homes to your customers, please get in touch.