Registration Opens for KBIS 2021
HACKETTSTOWN, N.J. — Registration is now open for the 2021 Kitchen & Bath Industry Show (KBIS), set for Feb. 9-11 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Fla.
The annual event from the National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA) is the largest North American trade destination for kitchen and bath industry professionals, and runs concurrently with the International Builders’ Show (IBS) under the name of Design & Construction Week.
This year’s event will be the first in-person show next year that will feature the hard-surfaces industry. The International Surface Event (TISE), originally set for late January, will now open in Las Vegas this June.
KBIS will offer the in-person event with strengthened health and safety protocols. Onsite safety measures at KBIS will include one-way traffic aisles, contactless registration with remote badging and enhanced cleaning protocols. All attendees will also be required to wear masks inside the OCCC and practice social distancing.
“We want to assure our attendees they can register for KBIS with confidence. We are taking the necessary steps to produce a show experience that maintains their health and safety, as well as continues to excite and inspire them,“ said Amy Hornby, KBIS show director. “Critical to this has been keeping an open dialogue with all of our show partners and exhibitors to continuously evaluate all possible scenarios.”
The Orange County Convention Center (OCCC) is the host site for the 2021 show and was one of the first facilities in the country to receive the Global Biorisk Advisory Council® (GBAC) Star™ accreditation on outbreak prevention, response and recovery. Since receiving this distinction, the OCCC has instituted the industry’s highest standards for cleaning and disinfecting.
“To ease the planning process, we are also providing attendees with additional promotions,” Hornby added. “We’ve extended our attendee refund policy through January and have established an incentive with our hotel partner, OnPeak, to allow people to cancel a hotel room reservation up to 72 hours before they arrive without risk of penalties.”
To continue to bring new and interesting brands and design inspiration to the show, KBIS has also created a partnership with the International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF), which was forced to cancel its New York trade fair in May 2020, to create the ICFF Pavilion at KBIS. The pavilion will include a curated showcase of new-to-KBIS brands that specialize in contemporary design.
KBIS 2021 will also include an integration of on-site and online programming. Attendees who register for KBIS receive their onsite expo pass and automatically gain exclusive access to an expanded digital KBIS experience that includes virtual access to exhibitors, as well as a mix of live and recorded video panels, discussions and CEUs.
“Throughout the last six months, this pandemic has demonstrated the resilience and importance of what we do,” said Suzie Williford, NKBA Chief Strategy Officer and Executive Vice President of Industry Relations. “KBIS brings so much opportunity to discover new brands, new products, new trends and new people. Part of the magic of this show is the networking and the conversations that happen — even in masks — among people who are passionate about kitchen and bath design.”
A complete detailed list of precautionary measures being implemented for the show can be found in the Emerald Preparedness, Prevention & Response Plan on KBIS.com.
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