The Display Kitchen

Anchored in the back of the showroom to lure customers throughout the store, the display kitchen, which houses the heavy equipment, was designed with the same intent. Opting to forego the traditional utilitarian rows of equipment (for beauty's sake as much as to save space) TriMark created its version of the back-of-the-house. Like in any other restaurant kitchen, one of each piece is positioned in its proper place. However, this particular kitchen is not only designed with ultimate efficiency in mind, it's filled with a variety of extras-a coffee and toast station, a prep area loaded with HAACP accessories, ice totes, a scale, steam table covers, etc.

"In putting together this display kitchen, we tried to show our customers how to set up an efficient space, and at the same time allude to how some of the products should be used," Egan says."The ice bin is next to the ice machine; the cutting boards are in the prep area; and the quick chills are inside the heavy-duty pot, which happens to be on the stove."

Unbeknownst to their customers, many of whom Egan has observed "making themselves at home in the kitchen," the realistic layout/design also helps the dealer get the most value out of the modest space. Because of the limited square footage in the other two areas, there's not enough room to display many of the items traditionally found on a showroom floor. So, the heavy equipment is rotated once a month to feature a particular manufacturer, and items such as scrub brushes, tongs and the big stock pot on the stove, are cleverly displayed in their natural setting.

An added benefit of the design has been the customers' response to it. "They love it," says Egan, adding that it's not uncommon to see customers enjoying, while at the same time "sizing up" the space. "I almost think it's a little more inviting. Our previous showrooms have always been a row of stoves, a row of fryers ... and people tended to walk down those rows as if they were looking at used cars. Now, I see a lot more interaction in the kitchen."

The Advantage of Going Small

Although pleased with the outcome of the showroom, Egan wasn't enthused with the idea of going small when she first heard management's decision to build a display showroom. "I wasn't a big fan of the smaller size at first because I thought a larger space would make a more impressive showroom," she says." Now that I've seen the difference, I like it."

Now, more in favor of the scaled-down design, she says there are several advantages to having a smaller showroom. There's less to clean, decreasing the chance of neglect when things inevitably get hectic. The size lends itself to a certain level of intimacy. And, along those same lines, it's less intimidating for busy customers, who used to shy away from exploring the showroom because they equated walking the more expansive aisles with wading through a sea of equipment.

"In our larger showroom, customers would come up to the front desk, pull up a barstool and say'I want, I want, I want;" Egan says. "They didn't want to walk around and when I'd ask them if they would like to see a particular item, they would say they didn't have time to walk from one end to the next. But in this showroom, it doesn't take long at all."

Which is why, she adds, more customers are browsing and picking up extra items along the way.

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