Are Showrooms Still Relevant?

COVID-19 caused most every decorative plumbing and hardware showroom to pivot. Sheltering in place orders proved necessity is truly the mother of invention. Savvy operators held webinars that proved to be one of the showroom’s most effective marketing tools. Others developed templates for their clients to use to measure their bathroom space that enabled showroom professionals to develop preliminary recommendations. DPHA members learned to present plans and recommendations remotely, using video conferencing and screen sharing and conducted showroom tours via Zoom or Facetime.

With so many clients shopping from home, DPHA members learned that both social media and an improved web presence can be competitive differentiators and invaluable tools to reach customers who were sheltering in place.

Now that showrooms have re-opened, many DPHA members have adopted an “appointment only” model that has proven to be highly effective because prospects who make an appointment tend to be more serious. Appointment only has deterred the tire kickers. It also has reinforced the value of what the showroom brings to a client. It’s hard to visualize different finishes, dimensions or textures on a Zoom call. Plus, when customers experience vignettes, working displays and different product categories firsthand, a showroom serves as a source of creativity and inspiration that can’t be duplicated online or via Facetime.

Showrooms are not going away. A valuable pandemic lesson is that people still want to interact with people, face-to-face. At the end of the day, a decorative plumbing and hardware showroom is a service business. Customers who are willing to trust a showroom to renovate one of the most important rooms in their home expect a certain caliber of service otherwise they would go to a home center or order online. As Doug Stephens pointed out during his DPHA keynote address, there is nothing particularly satisfying or emotionally gratifying about shopping online. Purchasing on Amazon is the quickest way from wanting to receiving.

COVID-19 illustrates the value of upping a showroom’s digital presence. However, most customers want to see, touch and experience the products they select for their new baths firsthand and that can only be accomplished by visiting a showroom. When the COVID-19 crisis ends, showrooms will continue to be venues for exhibits, vignettes, social gatherings, education, information and experiences that customers desire.