The Power of the In-Between: Why the Middle Matters More Than Ever (Available Live + On Demand)

This presentation focuses on three key areas of outdoor kitchen design: the existing landscape, the architectural style, and the human element. Learn how to create sophisticated, functional spaces that prioritize client comfort and ensure long-term durability.

Attendees will gain actionable strategies for designing sophisticated and functional outdoor kitchens that blend seamlessly with the natural landscape and surrounding architecture. They'll learn how to prioritize client comfort, incorporate key human-centric design elements, and ensure lasting performance in outdoor cooking and entertaining spaces.

Stuck between minimalism and maximalism, today’s consumers are carving out a new space that feels expressive, curated, and emotionally grounded. Enter Medium-ism, a fresh design direction that embraces contrast, layers with intention, and celebrates the middle path.

In this upbeat and eye-opening session, we’ll explore emerging style movements that resonate with the mainstream, including Tailored Prep, Vogue Crafted, Nordic Noir, Colorful Cottage, and Mid-Century Academia. These styles reflect the evolving needs for individuality, comfort, and stability. Discover how each style tells a deeper story and how to use them to create homes that are as meaningful as they are modern. You’ll leave with a new framework for design that’s practical, personal, and anything but boring.

Tariffs. Interest rates. Inflation. Global instability. The headlines have been relentless—and so has their effect on homeowner confidence.

Whether they were planning to buy their first home, move up to a larger one, or finally tackle the kitchen or master bath they have been putting off, millions of homeowners have pressed pause. But how long is that pause, really? And what would it take to end it?  This session presents original research, debuted at KBIS, on the psychology of the delayed homeowner.

We go beyond measuring hesitation to understand it: which specific economic conditions are doing the most damage, how homeowners are thinking about the future, and, most critically, which signals they are watching for that would give them the confidence to move forward. We also look at how professionals on the ground are reading this moment and maintaining relationships with clients who are not ready to pull the trigger today but will be. The findings offer a clear-eyed picture of where demand is going and how industry professionals can position themselves to capture it when the window reopens.