More than 100 new handles are being added to the offer at Hill’s Panel Products (HPP), all reflecting current and emerging trends for colours and finishes.
The new additions include individual handles, families of products and a designer collection by interior designer, Deborah Hill.
Matt black, satin brass, along with coppers and bronze, all feature prominently among the new products, which also include several knurled handles, carefully cut, and etched with a pattern of straight, angled, or crossed lines pressed or cut into the handle to create a tactile finish.
“They’re all quite different from the colours and textures we sell at the moment,” comments Gary Kinder, HPP’s purchasing manager. “There is a definite shift away from the plain finish handles that have been popular historically towards the textured finishes we are now seeing. We think the extra variety provided by our new handles is a perfect fit for the market.”
The new handles are the culmination of several months research by Gary and his purchasing team, who liaise closely with suppliers at home and abroad, as well as attending trade shows such as the Interzum suppliers fair in Germany, to keep abreast of the market.
And it is those latest trends that have influenced Deborah Hill, who has run her My Secret House interior design business for the past 25 years, to hand-pick the 22 handles and four optional backplates that make up her top-of-the-range collection. It will also come with its own display board to differentiate it from the remainder of the range.
“Deborah has helped us to overhaul our handle ranges with an emphasis on bringing in warmer tones with plenty of golds and bronzes and matt black in terms of colour trends,” says Dan Mounsey, HPP’s marketing and business development director. “She has also pushed for much more texture with knurled and ribbed finishes.”
HPP, which manufactures and supplies board, doors, fittings and accessories for the fitted kitchen and bedroom industry from its Oldham base and Sheffield trade counter, has 210 handles in its existing range.
With some less popular variations due to be phased out, the new additions will take HPP’s handles offer to approximately 300 options – all suitable for both kitchens and bathrooms – available for its trade customers.
As well as the new handles, HPP recently announced it was evolving its stock doors range by adding five new super matt colours – Indigo Blue, Monument Grey, Light Grey, Soft Grey and Angora Grey – to its Avanti Opus off-the-shelf doors collection, along with a high gloss option in Graphite.
