“The Tao of Shower”



Contact: Ginny Long

Director of Public Affairs

Moen Incorporated

(800) 321-8809, Ext. 2019 January, 2005

Jennifer Allanson

Robert Falls & Co. Public Relations

(216) 696-0229

THE LINE ON DESIGN

North Olmsted, Ohio – In today’s market for plumbing products, the most successful Wholesalers and Builders provide consumers with as broad a presentation of the latest and greatest faucet brands and styles as possible. Many Wholesalers augment this offering with showrooms, outfitted with complete kitchen and bathroom product displays and staffed with knowledgeable design consultants to guide consumers through the planning, selection and purchase of faucets and fixtures. Many regional and national Builders of new homes have adapted the showroom concept to their own Builder Design Centers, again fueled by savvy design consultants and displays of product upgrades.

By displaying a range of product offerings and educating homebuyers about product features and benefits, Builders seek to encourage the selection of upgrades from standard products – boosting Builder productivity while helping homebuyers “customize” their new homes. Because these Showroom and Builder Design Center Consultants represent the “front line” of communication with consumers buying or selecting faucets, they gain a keen understanding of consumer preferences in terms of faucet type, brand, finish and style.

To tap this rich source of information about consumer trends, faucet manufacturer Moen Incorporated regularly hosts seminars to check in with their “Showroom of Distinction” and Builder Design Center Consultants. At one such recent seminar, Moen led participating consultants in a discussion of how consumers and homebuyers typically progress through the purchase or selection of a bathroom faucet for a master or primary bath, and how they describe or define various decorating styles in the process. The design consultants also were asked to “map out” currently popular faucet styles and future trend directions based on their experiences with consumers and homebuyers. While this research is considered qualitative and directional in nature because of the relatively small number of participants, the findings provide valuable insights into consumer behavior.

In any given year, about 10% of homeowners purchase a bathroom faucet. Some of the specific aspects about a faucet consumers take into consideration include:

• Type: Number of handles, spout height or reach, etc.

• Model: Specific faucet seen or recommended elsewhere

• Brand: Preferred or featured manufacturer’s product offering

• Style: Look of the faucet, how it complements other home furnishings or

decorating taste, etc.; generally described as Traditional, Contemporary, or Transitional (somewhere in between Traditional and Contemporary)

According to these design consultants who assist consumers in the purchase or selection of a bathroom faucet, most (64%) feel the majority of consumers and homebuyers select the faucet for the master or primary bathroom prior to selecting the sink. More than half of the designers (56%) believe that these customers do not have a faucet type in mind before they enter the showroom or design center. These design consultants say that an even greater number of Wholesale channel consumers do not request an actual faucet model (76%).

However, when it comes to style, a bit more than half of participating designers (55%) claim that most consumers do have a predetermined decorating style in mind and seek out faucets they perceive to have those characteristics. As far as style is concerned, designers say that the best selling bathroom faucets tend to be more Traditional (50%) or Transitional (32%) and less Contemporary (18%). Within the overall style, the finish of the bathroom faucet is an important attribute in the selection process, with “brushed” finishes as an important trend.

Following this discussion of general observations about the consumer hierarchy of purchase preferences, the Showroom and Builder Design Consultants were asked to consider their customers’ preferences for bathroom faucets while reviewing an assortment of faucet styles ranging from “Traditional” to “Contemporary” as well as from “Simple” to “Elaborate.” Traditional bathroom styling includes rounded or sculpted shapes that often include vintage treatments or details, while Contemporary styles for the bath tend more toward the modern, with cleaner, simpler lines that can even be angular or geometric. “Transitional” styling generally falls somewhere along the continuum between Traditional and Contemporary, and may have elements of each style.

Generally, participating designers say that their customers currently prefer Traditional styles (76%) when selecting a bathroom faucet; however, the designers expect to see growth in consumer preferences for Contemporary styles, resulting in more balance between the style categories in the future.

Now Future

Traditional 76% ( 54%

Contemporary 24% ( 46%

Similarly, while designers indicate that consumers currently prefer more Elaborate styles (62%) for bathroom faucets, they believe that consumer preferences will shift definitively to more Simple designs going forward.

Now Future

Elaborate 62% ( 47%

Simple 38% ( 53%

The insights and projections provided by these Showroom and Builder Design Center Consultants help Moen Incorporated stay ahead of the curve of consumer preferences for faucets. With bathroom upgrades and remodeling still some of the most important and rewarding home investments, getting on the same wavelength with consumers means that Moen can continue to provide stylish faucets that make America’s bathrooms more beautiful.

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EDITOR’S NOTE: Moen Incorporated is one of the world's largest producers of residential and commercial plumbing products. Moen is the #1 brand of faucets in North America. The company manufactures a complete line of single- and two-handle faucets in a wide assortment of styles and finishes. It is also a leading producer of residential and commercial sinks, a variety of shower accessories and bathroom accessories (sold under the brands Moen, Cleveland Faucet Group, Creative Specialties International, and ShowHouse by Moen).

Moen Incorporated is an operating company of Fortune Brands, Inc. (NYSE: FO, ), the consumer products company.

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