Welcome to The kbbreview Podcast, your host is Andy Davies and this is Episode Three of Season 14.

Today we're looking at something which asks a very difficult existential question of independent KBB retailers - do you ever think what might happen if you got into financial difficulty and couldn't finish your clients project?

In particular, we're looking at whether or not retailers should have some kind of deposit protection insurance. In other words, something that means they will get back any money they've already given you if the worst happens.

• What is deposit protection insurance and who does it work?
• What are pros and cons? Why is it not more prevalent?
• How do you talk about it with customers without sounding like you're about to go bust?
• Given the sums of money involved, should it be mandatory?

We're talking it through with Richard Hibbert from KSL in Sudbury - he's also chairman of the KBSA of course - and Nick Warrington from Stuart J Warrington in Macclesfield.

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Welcome to The kbbreview Podcast, your host today is editor-at-large Rebecca Nottingham and this is another of our very special Rising Star episodes where we meet the upcoming superstars of kitchen and bathroom retail all under the age of 30.

Between August 2024 and March 2025 we’re picking a monthly Rising Star to feature in the magazine, online and this very podcast. Those eight monthly winners then become the shortlist for the overall winner which will be revealed at the kbbreview Retail & Design Awards 2025 in April.

It's done with the support of our very good friends at Blum and you can find out more about them at blum.com…….and you can see all the Rising Stars so far at kbbreview.com/risingstar

So here's our February Rising Star - Sonny Upton, lead maker at Shape London who is not only valued for his cabinet making skills but also as a passionate, versatile and reliable member of the team.

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Welcome to The kbbreview Podcast, your host is Andy Davies as always and this is the second episode of Season 14.

This week we've got a great, and very candid, interview with Sharon Wallis, the UK head of one of most iconic and longest-established kitchen furniture brands you can find - Poggenpohl.

It has a long pedigree, of course, established as it was in 1892 in Germany by Friedemir Poggenpohl but its recent history has been a little more tumultuous.

In 2020 at the height of the pandemic it filed for insolvency in Germany and, after a scrappy and uncertain sales process, it was eventually bought by Chinese firm, Jomoo.

So, kicking off with both a lockdown AND the insolvency of the German parent, finance director Sharon Wallis took over as the new MD. A baptism of fire for anyone.

But Poggenpohl in the UK has always been a steady ship and, in fact, celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2024. It is, of course, both a retailer in its own right, and a supplier to other independents.

So, what was it like taking over at that time, how is current performance, how do you balance both retail and supply and what is it like being a female senior business leader in an industry still dominated by men?

Our kbbreview editor-at-large Rebecca Nottingham went to meet her at their Hampstead showroom….

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