The 2024 Kitchen & Bath Industry Show (KBIS) and concurrent International Builders’ Show (IBS) Attracts Largest Attendance in 15 Years 

Cascade was one of the more than 76,000 builders, remodelers, developers, architects, designers, and other home building professionals who attended the recently completed International Builders Show and Kitchen & Bath Industry shows.  The two shows filled the exhibit halls of the Las Vegas Convention Center with traditional and new innovative products.  This milestone attendance, representing more than 100 countries and the highest level since 2009, reflects the bullish outlook of the residential construction industry. 
 
Attendees visited more than 1,800 exhibitors – including 800 new exhibitors – over 678,000 net square feet, exploring innovative building products and technology to advance the industry and enhance new homes. Reflecting the strong growth of the show over its 80-year history, the size of the show floor increased nearly 12% from the 2023 show. 
 
On the hardwood side specifically, there were more companies exhibiting stained woods alongside the popular painted finishes.  There we even some grey washed finishes that incorporated knotty Alder which was good to see.  Many of the manufacturers were excited at the strong availability our Emerald line of color-matched Alder lumber and plywood, launched only 60 days ago with Murphy Plywood http://www.emerald-wood.com.  There was a big emphasis on outdoor spaces, with waterproof cabinetry seemingly a big hit at the show.  Also, many hardwoods and softwoods were shown having been treated for outdoor use under the trade names Thermory (Red Oak and Ash) Accoya, and others.   
 
The strong attendance and investments by companies to exhibit their products in larger, more elaborate displays illustrate the pent-up confidence in the housing sector of the economy.  Many feel all we need is a couple of interest rate decreases in May or June, driving 30-year mortgage rates into the 5%-5.9% range to trigger a building boom that could begin to lead us out of the sluggish housing market. 
 
The builders know America is short around 3.2 million homes, which is a big reason why prices are still high.  There needs to be more homes to keep up with the increase in households.  There’s a wave of younger millennials and Gen Z’ers in the homebuying pipeline.   Hopefully, the second half of 2024 and all of 2025 can be months were some of these shortages are eliminated and more Americans make the leap to home ownership.