INTRO
Shawn Ashby: Hi. I'm Shawn Ashby.
Katie Sadler: And I'm Katie Sadler, and we're brand managers here at Whirlpool. We're so excited to be back with you on the show floor at the 2022 International Builders Show here in Orlando. Whirlpool Corporation has exciting new innovations in the kitchen and in the laundry room to share with you.
Shawn Ashby: Each space of the Whirlpool Corporation booth has been designed to satisfy the specific needs, preferences and price points of today's homebuyers and also showcase some of the most on demand industry trends.
THE “FOURWARD”-THINKING KITCHEN
Katie Sadler: The induction cooking market is rapidly growing due to induction efficiency, both in terms of heat transfer and cooking time. What's great about induction is cooking surface actually gets a little bit less hot and a traditional radiant cooktop or gas cooking surface, making it a great option for multi-generational homes in which have young kids or aging parents. This Whirlpool® Induction Cooktop is a 30-inch version that has four burners.
Katie Sadler: Wall ovens are a great option for consumers who are aging in their homes because they can be installed at different heights. For example, this wall oven is installed at the perfect height for me to easily remove a pot or pan from the oven and easily transfer it to cooking surface. What's great about wall ovens and especially this Whirlpool® Smart Wall Oven, is that it is also is able to evolve with the homebuyer in terms of the features over time. This has been recently received an over-the-air update, giving it a little bit more functionality than what I had on day one.
THE URBAN OASIS KITCHEN
Shawn Ashby: Small space living continues to be a trend that we see growing. Making sure homebuyers have the right appliances to maximize the space that they now have is key. Take, for instance, this compact, stackable, front-load laundry set. This is going to give homebuyers two appliances in the footprint where they originally had one.
Katie Sadler: When it comes to kitchen appliances, it's really important that we can offer lots of features, even in compact spaces. Homebuyers don't want to have to sacrifice all the different meals that they would want to cook in a full sized kitchen. So as we look at this 24-inch Whirlpool® Wall Oven not only is it a smart oven, so you're getting a lot of capabilities, right at the tip of your fingers, whether you're in or out of your kitchen, you're also getting nine different cooking modes in one appliance. As we move on to our cooktop, we have a 24-inch induction cooktop here. This is going to be great for those big meals that you have a couple of times a year, you can still cook four different things on it at once.
Katie Sadler: As we move into ventilation, ventilation is really important, especially in small spaces. So this Whirlpool® hood offers full-width filters allowing for maximum air capture.
Katie Sadler: And then as we move into our Whirlpool® refrigerator, this bottom-mount offers you a lot of flexible organization. We know small spaces doesn't mean that you don't cook a lot of food. So with this refrigerator, you have a lot of different functional features that allow you to optimize every inch of space that you do have.
AIR FRY OVENS
Katie Sadler: Health consciousness is top of mind in 2022, both in terms of physical health and mental health.
Shawn Ashby: And following this health conscious trend, we know that buyers are looking for healthy ways to cook in their home.
Katie Sadler: In order to accommodate this trend, Whirlpool has launched an entire line of air fry ranges to help buyers better cook meals at home in a slightly healthier way.
Shawn Ashby: Select Whirlpool® ranges come equipped with the air fry basket, giving them all the tools they need to cook in their home.
CUSTOMIZABLE LAUNDRY
Shawn Ashby: One of the growing trends that we see in the laundry space is customization. We know home buyers want the ability to customize each load of laundry that they do. That's why Whirlpool is pleased to announce the industry's first 2-in-1 removable agitator, giving homeowners the customization to wash a normal load of clothes with an agitator, or if they need more space to wash a comforter or other large item, they can simply remove the agitator.
Shawn Ashby: Another great product that we're super excited to be showcasing on the floor this year is the Whirlpool® 27-inch, all-in-one washer and dryer. What's great about this unit is it gives homebuyers the ability to wash and dry a single load of clothes, never having to transfer from the washer to the dryer. Another great feature about this is the Load and Go™ detergent system. Load and Go allows the consumer to fill up this cartridge with their detergent. This will hold enough detergent to wash about 20 loads of laundry, eliminating the need to fill up the detergent with every load of laundry that they do.
THE WEEKEND ENTERTAINER KITCHEN
Katie Sadler: Builders can cater to buyers who like to entertain by selecting the right appliances. For example, this KitchenAid® commercial-style range offers a lot of possibilities when it comes to culinary exploration. Anywhere from our convertible wok grates to all the different cycles that you have in this commercial-style range.
Katie Sadler: When it comes to cleaning up, buyers are really interested in making cleanup easy. So this KitchenAid® FreeFlex™ dishwasher will allow you to not only clean up all of your normal items, but also the extra mugs and bowls on the third rack or any of your kitchen utensils to make cleanup a breeze.
Katie Sadler: When we think about entertainers, it's really important for them to have all the space we need for all the food that's going to be in their kitchen. This KitchenAid® Side-By-Side refrigerator is going to offer a lot of both frozen and fresh storage space, making sure entertainers have all the space they need with different food options that they're going to be offering their guests.
Katie Sadler: And then lastly, as we think about the last couple of years, home bartending has become a huge trend, as consumers are spending more time at home – they're really interested in exploring all their different options when it comes to drinks. We've seen an increase in buyers who want either under cabinet wine cellars or refrigerators to help accommodate their home bartending needs.
