Kohler booth plays familiar role: show stopper

LAS VEGAS—Entering the 15,000 sq. ft. Kohler booth here during the 2023 Kitchen & Bath Industry Show, one gets the sense of entering a VIP lounge, or an art gallery, or maybe even a nightclub.

This year, Kohler’s pop up showroom celebrated the Kohler, Wis.-based company’s 150 years of kitchen-and-bathroom-industry history. Throughout the booth, new and past iconic products, including an emphasis on its renowned bold use of color. The space also explored Kohler's Believing in Better sustainability and social impact strategy.

As usual, the Kohler, Wis.-based company’s booth was a must-see experience. The 15,000 sq.-ft. display took home the best-booth-of-the-show award from the National Kitchen and Bath Association; Best of KBIS Product Silver award for its Abstra tile by Kohler WasteLAP, and the NKBA 30’s Choice honorary award for creative use of color.

During a tour of the booth, an editor was struck by multiple arresting innovations:

The Purist Suspend faucet is mounted on the ceiling and controlled by a wireless and water-resistant remote puck.

The Purist Suspend faucet includes "Boost Technology" to quickly fill pots.

The Numi 2.0 advanced smart toilet. Amazon Alexa is built into the product.

Here's the Numi 2.0 in white. Touchless technoloogy and an automatic deodorization system add to the toilet’s cleanliness.

Sprig infuses shower water with natural botanicals, for a spa-like treatment.

Sprig single-session shower infusion pods include Recharge and Focus.

The Sprig infusion device retrofits existing showerheads.

Fog brings a comforting feature to the Stillness Infinity Experience bath.

Kohler added a dash of bold color options to its line of residential generators.

The Abstra collection is a stunning series of bespoke brushed matte tiles for residential and commercial installations, made from nearly 100 percent recycled waste material. The WasteLAB pioneered a way to leverage the Kohler, Wis., pottery's wastewater stream for Abstra's tile body. Consisting primarily of pottery waste clay and glaze, the material is dewatered and processed into a useable base material.

The collection is available in two different styles: Abstra Feature, which is a series of abstract patterned tile with raised and relief designs and an undulating surface; and Abstra Standard, an unadorned field tile with the same undulating surface detail.

The Kohler booth's display of six Heritage Colors from throughout the company's history helped to secure the 30's Choice Award in the Creative Use of Color category. The colored enamel products spanned decades, having first been introduced into the bathroom in 1927. Visitors voted on their two favorite colors to be brought back into limited production in 2023 as part of Kohler Co.'s 150th Anniversary year celebration. Winning colors wereSpring Green and Peachblow.

The booth also paid tribute to Herbert V. Kohler, Jr., who served as CEO for 43 years. He died at the age of 83 in September. His photo was displayed along with the quote that read in part: “We strive for innovation and understand that it takes diverse talent and multiple disciplines working together to change the face of our industries.”