67th annual home show continues at Expo Hall through Sunday

Vendors prepare for the Wichita Home Show at Century II Convention Center. The show runs February 25-28. (February 24, 2021)

Vendors prepare for the Wichita Home Show at Century II Convention Center. The show runs February 25-28. (February 24, 2021)

The Wichita Eagle

Area consumers are turning master bathrooms into places to rest and relax, installing new products with lower maintenance demands and creating outdoor spaces to enjoy, according to local home improvement contractors.

If you’re in the market to make some of those improvements, Home Show 2021 — happening until Sunday, Feb. 28, at Century II’s Expo Hall — brings together more than 150 home improvement and new construction vendors who will showcase their products. Local industry experts will also offer seminars on remodeling, lighting, flooring, windows and decks.

“It’s like a big composite showroom,” said Wess Gaylon, president and CEO of the Wichita Area Builders Association which is producing the 67th annual show.

You can even see if raising backyard chickens might be for you. The local Rent the Chicken franchise, which will have a show booth, offers portable chicken coops and egg-laying hens to rent for a several-month stay in your backyard.

The local home improvement industry was able to recover after a short slowdown during the initial months of the pandemic shutdown, said Gaylon and owners of three home improvement companies in Wichita.

Among the factors that led to the uptick: homeowners spending 24/7 in their homes, a tight local housing market, and money being diverted from vacation and other entertainment activities into home improvements.

“Homes became more than just a place to sleep at and comfort became an issue,” said Steve Hund, owner of All Seasons Construction, a 30-year, second-generation family business in Wichita that started offering virtual consultations. Homeowners can take company reps on virtual tours to show areas they wanted to upgrade. Hund said those virtual visits will likely continue past the pandemic.

“People being stuck in their home … reminded them that there were some things they didn’t like,” said Michael Gatschet, president of Heartland Home Improvement. “With homes selling so fast, people are staying in their current homes and investing in the home they have.”

Hund, Gatschet and Granite Transformations owner Clay Morse said local consumers are indicating that they are diverting money normally spent for vacations and other entertainment into making home improvements.

Things like replacing drafty windows, upgrading master bathrooms, creating covered porches and more outdoor living spaces, and giving kitchen countertops and cabinets a new facelift are keeping the three companies busy.

People also are looking for new, improved products that won’t require maintenance and add one more thing to busy lives. Items like luxury vinyl and engineered stone are quality, durable alternatives to natural flooring and stone countertops and require little to no upkeep. For example, engineered stone won’t crack or spider like natural stone, Morse said.

Hund, whose business focuses on windows, siding, roofing and bathroom remodels, said his customers are wanting spa- or hotel-like features to their master bedrooms, with narrower vanities, relaxing and lighter colors.

Creating a relaxing space within a master bedroom is not only a local trend but also a national one. According to a 2020 study by the home design website Houzz, two of every five renovating homeowners see their master bath as a relaxing retreat.

Replacing shower/tub combinations with walk-in or low curb showers is another local trend, Hund and Morse said.

To stage Home Show 2021, the builders association has worked with county officials to develop a pandemic safety plan that includes directional and social distancing signage, hand sanitation stations, attendance tracking and nightly decontamination treatment. Temperature checks and masks will be required to enter Expo Hall, with complimentary masks available. Masks also will be required for riders who use the free shuttle service from nearby parking lots.

Home Show 2021

What: 67th annual show produced by the Wichita Area Builders Association featuring 150 exhibitors and daily seminars.

Where: Century II Expo Hall, 225 W. Douglas. Free parking and shuttle service available from parking lots near the former Gander Mountain store on Water Street, just north of Kellogg.

When: 1-8 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 25; 10 a. m.-8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Feb. 26-27; and 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 28

Admission: $10 for adults, $8 for ages 65 and older, $4 for children ages 7-12, free for children ages 6 and under. Available at the door or online at wichitatix.com. Masks and contactless temperature checks will be required when visiting the Home Show. Masks also will be required if riding the parking shuttles.

More information: 316-265-4226, wabahome.com, facebook.com/wabahome

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