Zuo looks to show product to wider audience at kitchen and bath industry event

The collaboration between the Las Vegas Market and four other major January trade shows has led Zuo to secure a high-profile sponsorship role at the annual Kitchen and Bath Industry show (KBIS), the premier event for kitchen and bath designers.

 

No, Zuo isn’t planning to add kitchen sinks or bathroom vanities to its product line anytime soon, but the sponsorship allows the company to tout its importance to the restaurant industry by supplying all the seating and other furnishings for a lounge that will host a variety of presentations at the KBIS show. (Restaurant designers shop KBIS because, after all, those businesses need kitchens and bathrooms, too.)

 

Both shows take place Jan. 29-Feb. 2 in Las Vegas. The Las Vegas Market, where Zuo maintains a year-round showroom, is at the familiar World Market Center, while KBIS is at the recently expanded Las Vegas Convention Center.

 

“It’s a great opportunity to expose our product line to a wider audience,” Luis Ruesga, CEO of Zuo, said of the sponsorship deal, noting that the restaurant industry has become an increasingly important distribution channel in recent years.

 

“The industry was hammered by the pandemic, but it’s rebounding because business and leisure travel are on the upswing,” he added.

 

The lounge, known as the DMM Talks Lounge because its headline sponsors are the design firm Design Milk and the marketing firm Modenus Media, will host a number of presentations about the design business, social media monetization, global design trends, and the like. KBIS organizers say the presentations will feature 15-minute, rapid-fire interviews with exhibitors and design VIPs that are designed to accommodate the busy schedules of attendees.

 

KBIS is one of four trade shows taking place Jan. 29-Feb. 2 in Las Vegas that are collaborating with the Las Vegas Market. The International Builders Show and the National Hardware Show also are at the Las Vegas Convention Center, while the International Surface Event, a trade show for the floor covering, stone and tile industries, is at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center.

 

“Having access to five incredible shows covering all aspects of the housing industry is an unbeatable value for our attendees. Las Vegas is the place to be for our industry that week,” said Jerry Howard, CEO of the National Association of Home Builders, which runs the Builders Show.

 

Free shuttles will connect the three trade show venues, and the five shows will honor each other’s badges for attendees.