Welcome to the very special episode of The kbbreview Podcast where we will reveal the full shortlist for the kbbreview Retail & Design Awards 2025.

Your hosts are kbbreview's Matt Baker and Andrew Davies and they will exclusively announce who the finalists are for all our design and retail categories. YOU won't get this list anywhere else until next week so don't miss it!

Huge thanks to our Awards Podcast Partner for 2025 Sonas Bathrooms, we couldn't do these special awards episodes without their support.

The gala black tie event where we announce the winners is on Thursday, April 24 at the iconic Tower Ballroom in Blackpool. If you want to be at the biggest KBB party of the year then book your tickets now as there is a limited capacity.

You can find out all you need to know about the kbbreview Retail & Design Awards 2025 at our website kbbreview.com/awards including how to book your seats and tables.

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Welcome to The kbbreview Podcast, your host is editor-at-large Rebecca Nottingham for another of our very special Rising Star episodes where we meet the upcoming superstars of kitchen and bathroom retail.

Between August 2024 and March 2025 we’ll be picking a monthly Rising Star to feature in the magazine, online and this very podcast. Those eight monthly winners then become the shortlist for the overall winner which will be revealed at the kbbreview Retail & Design Awards 2025 in April.

It's done with the support of our very good friends at Blum and you can find out more about them at blum.com

There are only two rules:

They must be currently employed by a retailer - which we're defining as a company that sells direct to the consumer.

AND

They must be under 30 years of age on March the 4th, 2025.

So here's our Rising Star for December, Izzy Huxford. She's a hugely impressive bathroom designer from Wilton Studios in Grimsby demonstrating real drive and passion - exactly what the Rising Star is all about…

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Welcome to The kbbreview Podcast and another of our very special Insights mini-series looking ahead to 2025. Your host is Andy Davies and we've partnered up with some key kitchen and bathroom brands to get their take on 2024 as it draws to a close AND their views on how the market might shape up in 2025.

Where are the opportunities? Where is the growth? What might be the pitfalls? And where is the focus for them?

It's an invaluable peak into the 2025 plans, ambitions and goals of some of the sector's most dynamic brands.

Today we're meeting Andrew Laidler, the UK and Ireland Sales and Marketing Director for for EGGER. They're about as big a name as it's possible to get in this market so hearing Andrew's view and thoughts on what 2025 might bring couldn't be more relevant.

You can find out everything you need to know about EGGER at egger.com.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to The kbbreview Podcast and another of our very special Insights mini-series looking ahead to 2025. Your host is Andy Davies and we've partnered up with some key kitchen and bathroom brands to get their take on 2024 as it draws to a close AND their views on how the market might shape up in 2025.

Where are the opportunities? Where is the growth? What might be the pitfalls? And where is the focus for them?

It's an invaluable peak into the 2025 plans, ambitions and goals of some of the sector's most dynamic brands.

Today we're meeting Jon Thelwell, the sales and marketing director for family-owned British furniture manufacturer JJO. It's a big name with a big history with independent retailers so Jon's views on 2025 are invaluable so don't miss it.

You can find out everything you need to know about JJO at jjoplc.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to The kbbreview Podcast and another of our very special Insights mini-series looking ahead to 2025. I'm Andy Davies and we've partnered up with some key kitchen and bathroom brands to get their take on 2024 as it draws to a close AND their views on how the market might shape up in 2025.

Where are the opportunities? Where is the growth? What might be the pitfalls? And where is the focus for them?

It's an invaluable peak into the 2025 plans, ambitions and goals of some of the sector's most dynamic brands.

Today we're meeting Dean Williams, the managing director for sinks, taps, and accessories supplier The 1810 Company. They're a big name in the UK independent retail market so Dean's views on what 2025 might hold are about as relevant as it gets.

You can find out everything you need to know about The 1810 Company at the1810company.co.uk, and that link is in the episode description.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to The kbbreview Podcast and another of our very special Insights mini-series looking ahead to 2025. We've partnered up with some key kitchen and bathroom brands to get their take on 2024 as it draws to a close AND their views on how the market might shape up in 2025.

Where are the opportunities? Where is the growth? What might be the pitfalls? And where is the focus for them?

It's an invaluable peak into the 2025 plans, ambitions and goals of some of the sector's most dynamic brands.

Today we're meeting Neal Jones, the managing director of Blanco in the UK. They're one of the biggest names in the sector so Neal's view on the market is about as relevant as it gets when it comes to forecasting what 2025 might bring so you don't want to miss this one.

You can find out everything you need to know about Blanco at blanco.co.uk

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to The kbbreview Podcast and the first episode of this very special Insights mini-series looking ahead to 2025. We've partnered up with some key kitchen and bathroom brands to get their take on 2024 as it draws to a close AND their views on how the market might shape up in 2025.

Where are the opportunities? Where is the growth? What might be the pitfalls? And where is the focus for them?

It's an invaluable peak into the 2025 plans, ambitions and goals of some of the sector's most dynamic brands.

We've got episodes coming out every day this week and we're starting today with ARMERA.

ARMERA has an extensive coordinated bathroom portfolio that brings affordable luxury with a real detail in the design and you can find out all about them at armera.co.uk.

They're a very exciting company to watch in this market and we'll be hearing their views on 2025 from joint managing director Sarah Williams.

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Welcome to The Kbbreview Podcast and another of our special episodes around the kbbreview Retail & Design Awards 2025.

This month’s episode is a peek behind the curtain of the awards, as we have a chat with some of the judges, both in the retail business categories and the design categories. We’ll find out about the approach to judging and interpreting the criteria, and what the judges expect from the 2025 awards in particular.

A huge thank you needs to go out to our awards podcast partner, Sonas Bathrooms - it’s great to have their support, as between now and the event on Thursday, April 24, at the Blackpool Tower Ballroom we'll be bringing you MORE special bonus episodes where we'll really get under the skin of the awards and celebrate the very best talent our industry has to offer.

In fact, we'll be revealing the shortlist itself in a very special episode of this podcast just before Christmas!

In any case, for more information on the awards and booking tables, you can go to kbbreview.com/awards.

On with the show!

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