I hope by now most of us are seeing an improvement in the business climate. I think it’s safe to say that over the past nine months, many of us have made some major changes in our business thought processes. But while many of us have changed our way of doing business, have we realized the potential for bigger fish to catch?

An example of this would be the outdoor kitchen industry. I used to think that this was an industry that wasn’t pertinent to my market, since I live in a climate that has four seasons. I figured my clients really wouldn’t have a need for an outdoor kitchen.

New Profit Avenues

Well, because of the slowdown of our business, we had to take a good hard look at other opportunities and how we could capture some of that work. When we explored the idea of selling outdoor kitchens, we found that there are numerous outdoor kitchen cabinet companies that supply products for these projects. There are stone and tile companies making products for the outdoors, and more and more appliance manufacturers are getting into outdoor cooking equipment as well as sinks and refrigeration.

With the variety of products that can suit anything from a tiny to a large outdoor living space, you as a kitchen designer are better equipped to design and sell these projects than any other industry professional. There’s really no new training of sorts, just a different place to put the products you’ve already been designing with for many years.

But one thing you need to do is let people know that you can handle these types of projects.

My next door neighbors just finished some major outdoor renovations, and when they had me over to look at what I thought was going to be some stone and brick work, I was surprised to see their brand new outdoor kitchen. I told them that we can do that sort of work and they said, “We thought you only did indoor kitchens.” All I can say is there was a sale right next door to me and because I didn’t let people know what we can do, I lost out on a great opportunity.

Another opportunity comes in the form of lighting. Why do so many kitchen and bath designers think it’s not their responsibility to help with the lighting of a kitchen or bath? In reality, lighting is a major part of the success of a kitchen or bath project, and that alone makes it our responsibility.