HKUK had another record year of sales in 2024 and we were delighted to serve our end user customers and repeat orders from the trade with some quality kitchen products. We sold the whole spectrum of product but with a few changes for example, fewer five piece doors, migration from greys to bright pastels and towards the end of the year, more solid wood doors. So what trends are we anticipating in the next year, what are manufacturers planning and generally where next for the industry?
Kitchen Colours, Finishes and Styles
Above is a photo of a kitchen our sister company supplied and installed last year. It is a Madison five piece shaker door that was hand painted in a ‘Mister David Yellow’ from the Little Greene paint company. The customer was delighted with the finish and has inspired many customers whilst the traditional Shaker kitchen remains a timeless favourite. So whilst not ‘new’ for 2025, Shaker kitchens have an enduring appeal with their balance of simplicity, craftsmanship, and versatility. The open shelving option has also become popular with clients and will do so through 2025.
Along with the Shaker, we also saw a strong desire for narrow grooved kitchen doors. We had a bespoke kitchen made in this style a few years ago which was then followed by OS Doors bringing out a complete range, namely the Aria, Ella, Lena, Mila and Olivia doors.
As already mentioned, we saw our customers shift away from the safe whites and soft greys traditionally associated with this style and opting for deeper, richer tones that make a bold impression on their kitchen users. Autumnal hues such as forest green, pastel blue, indigo and warm terracotta are becoming popular choices, alongside earthy browns and even striking black.
The image below shows a render of a kitchen design we will be fitting in early 2025. Scott Peterson, our head of design said “the customer has specified a modern looking kitchen with a pop / splash of colour and they were delighted with the contrast of the orange island. This could just as easily have been yellow”. This slab door with integrated handle will again have a hand painted finish.
Shaker kitchens will always be timeless and ideal for the country kitchen look. Below is a photo of a finished kitchen set in an historic farm cottage. This kitchen features a duo colour combination with shaker doors hand painted in antique red and reed green. Scott commented on his team’s design saying “these colour palette combinations transform a traditional Shaker kitchen into spaces that feel at once classic and daring”.
Kitchen Door Material Trends
The majority of the doors we sell are made from traditional MDF or solid wood either hand painted or wrapped in vinyl. Something we are keeping an eye on in 2025 are kitchen doors made from plywood. Slightly more expensive than MDF, they are also sturdy and robust with a premium quality feel, much like solid timber doors.
The photo above is of a kitchen made from Plywood. As you can see, it is a modern / slab door with integrated handles and looks identical to a traditional kitchen. A kitchen made from plywood has a number of benefits including being lightweight, moisture resistant, sustainable and most important, durable with a resistance to warping over time with its layered strength. Below is a cross section photo of the plywood kitchen door / cupboard.
Kitchen Appliances and Accessories
We are delighted to be a supplier and installer of many top kitchen brand appliances and accessories. One of those brands that is consistently ahead of the design curve is Elica who we sell plenty of. As well as the standard offering on-line, they also have a number of products that are showroom only which are available only at our Chenies Kitchen Showroom. We particularly like the Elica LHOV which we saw at the trade show earlier in 2024 (photo above), below is their corporate video of the product and we think this oven / hob combo will look fabulous in any kitchen.
A Quooker tap is specified in almost every new kitchen we do. They are more expensive to purchase, but once a customer has one installed, they are confounded at what a difference it makes to their day having instant hot or chilled water. No more hanging around for the kettle to boil for cups of tea / coffee or food cooking for less ongoing cost so we see Quooker as an ongoing trend in 2025.
We have recently been adding to our range of kitchen pull outs. We saw some innovative products that are coming and that can really add to your storage space versatility. This coupled with lighting, hinges and door openings will change the way we use our kitchen and how it looks aesthetically. Below is a video of some of the new products / trends that we saw at the industry trade show in 2024.
We hope you have found this useful. If you are looking to replace your kitchen, or individual parts of your kitchen, please contact us and we can assist no matter what the budget. If you have seen something you like that isn’t on our web site, please get in touch as we can source almost anything that is commercially available or made to measure!
