Great BORA Herford building opening and a sparkling array of new products
BORA has opened a spectacular new flagship store in the heart of the East Westphalian kitchen furniture industry and the entire sector is raving about it: during the first BORA Experience Days, from 16 to 21 September, almost 7,500 visitors experienced the entire brand & product world (which has been expanded to include refrigeration & freezing systems and lighting systems) as well as the ‘BORA principle’ at Live Cooking Events and a number of social meet-ups.
The new BORA Flagship Store on the outskirts of Herford was completed and officially opened on schedule, just in time for the ‘Küchenherbst’ trade fair in mid-September. The spectacular building structure made from steel and glass is a real eye catcher. From a distance, it looks like an aircraft wing as it appears to float around three metres above the ground on slender steel supports. Instead of a conventional ground floor, there is a large parking area beneath the building. Steps lead visitors to the first floor of this dramatically sloping, diamond-shaped building, the tip of which virtually overhangs the adjacent main road. BORA founder and CEO Willi Bruckbauer wanted to create astounding architecture which optimally showcases BORA in the heart of the German kitchen furniture industry – and had the building constructed in a record time of just 18 months. At the launch evening, he ‘cut’ the opening ribbon with fire instead of scissors to prepare visitors for the sparkling array of new BORA products that lay ahead.
Live Cooking Events celebrate the consistently positive cooking experience with BORA
Fire, water, ice: the provider of innovative premium built-in kitchen appliances is bringing things full circle with its BORA Cool and BORA Freeze refrigeration and freezing systems that were showcased for the first time at the BORA Experience Days: from the heat of cooktops through water and steam to cold and ice. The expanded product range offers users a coherent cooking experience, which goes beyond preparing food on cooktops and in the BORA X BO, the professional steam oven for the home. Visitors to our in-house trade fair experienced the three elements of fire, water and ice first-hand. This comprehensive product experience took place in three show kitchens in the Food Mile on the first floor of the hall-like flagship store. Indeed, the building’s impressively high ceilings make it look much bigger on the inside than you’d expect from the outside. Good food was not only a highlight at the BORA Herford opening, visitors will be able to enjoy it on a regular basis at Live Cooking events from 25 September onwards. In addition to the striking building and the way it was showcased, that fact that Willi Bruckbauer’s team managed to organise and host the eight-day event using in-house resources alone, without any external service providers, is quite remarkable in itself. The BORA Herford team and its partners look forward to showing the highlights of the new site and the expanded product range to visitors from the fields of construction, home living and furnishing during the store’s opening hours from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday to Saturday.
BORA products cut a fine figure in the display kitchens of strong partner companies
Opposite the show kitchens on the left-hand side, there is the ‘Product Mile’ on the right, where BORA showcases its new products. After the digital product launch, they will also be available online on the newly revised bora.com website. At the opening event, Willi Bruckbauer unveiled the new BORA QVac built-in vacuum sealer, the functional and emotional BORA Stars and BORA Horizon lighting systems and, as a real highlight, various versions of the new BORA Cool and BORA Freeze refrigeration and freezing systems. The timeless design of all BORA premium appliances – including the new M Pure cooktop extractor system as the latest addition to the Pure family – is characterised by an impressive level of minimalism. The entire product range is so visually discreet that the appliances fit into the widest range of environments and home interior styles and offer maximum design freedom in the kitchen as a living space. This is impressively demonstrated in the new BORA flagship store, particularly in the partner presentations. In eight equal-sized wooden stands – which symbolise BORA’s proximity to the carpentry trade as a leitmotif throughout the interior design of the building – eight kitchen furniture manufacturers showcase their current interpretation of the kitchen as a living space. BORA’s premium kitchen appliances blend seamlessly into the widest range of designs.
Haute cuisine and the BORA FanShop under Germany’s biggest convertible roof
On the top floor of the new BORA Flagship Store with sweeping views over the surroundings, there is FanShop plus a virtual reality area where visitors can view BORA products in a variety of scenarios. What’s more, from the beginning of October the ‘Mirror’ restaurant, run by celebrity chef Timo Hinkelmann, will welcome guests with good food, cooking classes and a ‘Chef’s Table’, offering an extravagant cooking experience for those who are interested. This area is topped by Germany’s largest convertible roof: two large, retractable glass panels, each measuring 63 square metres, can be opened at the touch of a button – for pure indulgence in the open air. The first BORA Experience Days were attended by almost 7,500 visitors, all of whom were blown away by the overall experience at the new BORA Herford site. This successful in-house trade fair has therefore made a name for itself as a future highlight of the calendar: from now on, the BORA Experience Days at Herford will always take place within the scope of the East Westphalian ‘Küchenmeile’ trade fair.
About the company
BORA develops and produces innovative premium built-in kitchen appliances with impressive design standards. The German-Austrian company group positions its portfolio internationally with the claim ‘More than cooking.’ Since Willi Bruckbauer founded BORA in 2007, the company has been committed to revolutionising the kitchen as a living space by questioning the ordinary. Its mission: to offer extraordinary products for extraordinary experiences. The story began with the innovative cooktop extractor systems, which use intelligent technology to draw cooking vapours downwards and are continually developed through BORA’s own drive for perfection. After the expansion of the product range to include the BORA X BO, a professional steam oven for your home, and the associated BORA multi-drawer, refrigeration and freezing systems as well as lighting followed. BORA products are characterised by outstanding performance, simple cleaning and simple operation. Thanks to their timeless design, they fit perfectly into any kitchen, where they provide fresh air and a clear view. BORA employs over 500 people, primarily at its sites in Raubling, Niederndorf and Sydney as well as in its flagship stores in Munich and Herford, and sells its products in over 60 countries worldwide.
Back in 2009, the company received its first award within the scope of the innovation contest 365 Orte im Land der Ideen, followed by the Deutscher Gründerpreis and numerous Red Dot Awards, Plus X Awards, German Design Awards, Iconic Awards, German Brand Awards, Good Design Awards and iF Design Awards, among others.
Contacts for press enquiries about BORA
neumann communication Communication partner in relation to the opening of BORA’s Herford site bora@neumann-communication.de
BORA Public Relations pr@bora.com
BORA Vertriebs GmbH & Co KG Innstrasse 1 6342 Niederndorf Austria
