When leaving for Europe I did not realize that I would be visiting “The Living Kitchen Show” in Cologne, Germany. As I indicated earlier, my plans were to meet with designers and architects to learn about the kitchen business in Europe. I was also interested in seeing if the possibility existed to market and sell cabinetry made in America, in Europe.

My last visit to the “kitchen” show in Cologne was in 2000. It seems that after the Eurocucina show held in Milan the following year, interest in the Cologne show waned and eventually ceased to exist.

After monumental efforts put forth by some very committed people over the past year, the show returned. It was very exciting to be a part of this event. From the moment I stepped off of the train, I could tell it was going to be special. There were buses waiting to take people directly from the train station to the entrance of the Kitchen Show. The three halls that housed the kitchen portion of the show were very crowded compared to the other halls that contained furniture and other home furnishings.

This new show was quite a departure from the old show since now appliance and plumbing manufactures could be in the same hall with the kitchen displays. “We now have our own KBIS,” said one exhibitor that was familiar with and had visited the KBIS show, here in the US.

I was very interested to learn that the “new” Cologne show was organized to show products that are currently available for consumers to purchase, unlike Eurocucina, where design concepts are exhibited and not readily available for purchase. The pictures attached are a kitchen that was constructed by an Italian firm and available for purchase. The peninsula/island is complete with a fiberglass boat hull and incorporates a cooktop in the raised center area. I am not sure how much demand there is for this design but it demonstrates creative thinking and a company that is not afraid of taking a chance.