The UK's kitchen culture

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28th January 2021

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The UK's kitchen culture

* kitchen-culture.jpg Five-star acrylic sheet supplier The Plastic People, a company that creates kitchen splashbacks to add a stylish touch to a cooking area, has delved into what the UK's kitchen culture looks like today.

From the items bought for the kitchen to the country's cooking habits, there's so much to discover from the research below:

Sales of various kitchen appliances

According to research carried out by Mintel:

- Sales of small kitchen appliances have increased from £635 million in 2011 to £897 million in 2015 - a 41 per cent boost
- Sales of food preparation appliances have increased by 145 per cent from 2011 to 2015
- Sales of hot beverage making appliances have increased from £78 million in 2011 to an estimated £148 million in 2015 - an 89 per cent boost

The UK's most popular kitchen appliance

The aforementioned Mintel research also revealed that in 2015:

- 42 per cent of Brits bought a kettle
- 30 per cent of Brits bought a toaster
- 15 per cent of Brits bought a sandwich maker or grilling machine
- 13 per cent of Brits bought a juicer of smoothie maker
- 13 per cent of Brits bought a coffee capsule or pod drink maker
- 11 per cent of Brits bought a filter coffee machine

The UK's most popular kitchen appliance upgrade

The following is the frequency of upgraded appliance types in the kitchen, from homeowners who either renovated their kitchen in the 12 months prior to the release of the 2017 Houzz Kitchen Trends Study - UK, are currently renovating their kitchen, or are looking to do so over the three months after the release of the research:

- Dishwasher(s) - 82 per cent
- Fridge/freezer - 78 per cent
-Extractor fan - 77 per cent
- Hob(s) - 75 per cent
- Wall oven(s) - 56 per cent
- Microwave - 53 per cent

The same study also revealed that stainless steel was the most popular colour when upgrading appliances (47 per cent opted for this tone), followed by black (22 per cent) and then white (10 per cent).

How Brits are updating their kitchens

The 2017 Houzz Kitchen Trends Study - UK delved into the following details about how and why Brits are going about upgrading their kitchens:

- The frequency of increasing kitchen sizes sat at 63 per cent in the 12 months up to the release of the research, for those currently renovating their kitchens and for those planning to renovate the space over the three months after the release of the research

The most popular events that triggered Brits to update their kitchen were:

- 42 per cent had only recently purchased their home and wanted to make their kitchen their own
- 32 per cent had wanted to update their kitchen all along and finally had the means to do so
- 30 per cent could no longer stand their old kitchen
- 26 per cent acknowledged that their old kitchen had either deteriorated, broke down or became unsafe
- 14 per cent were adapting to recent changes that had happened to their family and lifestyle

The top kitchen layouts were as follows:

- 32 per cent opted for a U-shaped design
- 28 per cent opted for a L-shaped design
- 14 per cent opted for a Galley design

Features Brits install into their kitchens

The following is the frequency of upgraded products and materials, according to the Houzz survey:

93 per cent upgraded with worktops, and the top materials used are as follows:

- Quartz (engineered) - Used by 24 per cent
- Granite - Used by 20 per cent
- Laminate - Used by 17 per cent

White was also the top colour for these worktops (27 per cent selected this tone), followed by grey (17 per cent) and then black (15 per cent).

- 93 per cent upgraded with cabinets
- 90 per cent upgraded with taps and other plumbing fixtures
- 90 per cent upgraded with lighting fixtures
- 90 per cent upgraded with a sink or set of sinks
- 89 per cent upgraded with appliances
- 88 per cent upgraded through their choice of flooring, of which the top materials used were as follows:

- Ceramic or porcelain tile - Used by 30 per cent
- Engineered wood - Used by 16 per cent
- Stone - Used by 16 per cent

Grey was also the top colour for these flooring solutions (23 per cent selected this tone), followed by medium wood (21 per cent) and then light wood (13 per cent)

- 85 per cent upgraded by looking at their kitchen wall's finish
- 84 per cent upgraded with a new kitchen splashback

Houzz' research also revealed the top new features for built-in kitchens for the same study group:

- 42 per cent opted for a kitchen island
- 40 per cent opted for a pantry cupboard
- 34 per cent opted for a breakfast bar
- 29 per cent opted for a built-in wine fridge or rack
- 12 per cent opted for a peninsula

Storage solutions in kitchens

Again making use of the 2017 Houzz Kitchen Trends Study - UK, these are top kitchen storage solutions that homeowners opted:

- 77 per cent updated their kitchen with a cutlery organiser
- 61 per cent updated their kitchen with deep drawer organisers
- 51 per cent updated their kitchen with pull-out waste or recycling cabinets
- 41 per cent updated their kitchen with a corner carousel
- 39 per cent updated their kitchen with a pot and pan organiser
- 36 per cent updated their kitchen with pull-out trays and/or shelves

According to Houzz' study, the reasons why homeowners looked into new storage solutions for their kitchen are as follows:

- 79 per cent were motivated as they wanted to make better use of the space available to them
- 57 per cent were motivated as they wanted to reduce clutter
- 55 per cent were motivated as they wanted to make it easier to find items in their kitchens
- 36 per cent were motivated as they wanted to utilise spaces which they were unable to reach
- 21 per cent were motivated as they wanted to make it easier to cook or bake in their kitchens