Kitchen & Bath Business - February/March 2020 - 40

HOT TOPIC

"[Technology] will change the
knowledge and skills needed
to do the job and how we
should educate workers.
Maybe we shouldn't be so
afraid of AI and robots."
MIKAEL ÅKERBERG
Nobilia
"This will be the support," he added. "It will
change the knowledge and skills needed to do the
job and how we should educate workers. Maybe
we shouldn't be so afraid of AI and robots."
Sandow pointed to augmented reality (AR),
like the Google glasses, as a real game-changer in
perhaps 10 years. As AR helps to guide the worker,
the fear factor is removed, and the worker can do
things he or she didn't know. It will make the work
more interesting, faster and more efficient, and
appeal to younger people.
TECH'S DELICATE BALANCE

Francis asked about the balancing act between the
rapid advancements in home technology that can
be simultaneously terrific and terrifying. Warner
acknowledged this is a challenge. In the luxury
appliance sector, especially, the customer is not
particularly comfortable with high tech.
"We're owned by Samsung, so we have all the
latest technology we could want,"he said."But you
have to know your audience. So, we don't lead with
the tech.We lead with style, design and craftsmanship first, with technology on the back burner. All
of our products are fully Wi-Fi capable, but I don't

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believe today's customer is utilizing that to its capacity. It's coming... Samsung
is driving that for the millennial customer. We aren't there yet, but we will be."
Pien concurred that LIXIL strives to deliver the products and technology consumers want and need,that it's not technology for technology's sake.Two out of
three consumers do a lot of their research online.They read up on these purchases,
read ratings and reviews and virtually see how they will look in their homes.
"That technology is very helpful to the consumer," she added, "so we have
to be sure we're informing and supporting her with the technology that she
finds helpful and makes her purchase journey easier."
In fact, Pien noted that the industry is on the precipice of disruption by
tech companies and start-ups, with e-commerce taking over.
"We see it in our business, with significant double-digit growth," she said.
"This is how millennials shop. So businesses have to adapt and sell the way
consumers want to shop, rather than the way we've always sold it."
Warner, however, said pure e-commerce still presents a challenge.
"If we didn't have [the designers and installers] to support us, it'd be a nightmare for consumers to buy online and install themselves," he added. "The
return rate would be astronomical. If you're spending $100,000 to remodel a
kitchen, you're going to invest in a designer to make sure it's all right. We sell
a puzzle to put into a kitchen. In the first place, if we were to ship a range to
a home, it's 400 pounds, and a refrigerator is 300 pounds. Installation is very
difficult. So I think we're protected for a time from e-commerce."
Åkerberg concluded that thinking ahead is the key to any endeavor.
"Flexibility is very important and how you plan your business and invest,"he
said. "You have to keep an eye on the short term as well as the long term." 

"If we didn't have [the designers and
installers] to support us, it'd be a nightmare
for consumers to buy online and install
themselves. If you're spending $100,000
to remodel a kitchen, you're going to invest
in a designer to make sure it's all right."
RANDY WARNER
Dacor

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Kitchen & Bath Business - February/March 2020

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