I try to refrain from featuring a particular manufacturer or model here on Mobile Home Living. By remaining neutral and never accepted advertising from dealers or builders, I can put the readers first which has always been my first priority. However, when a company deserves a little pat on the back I don’t mind a bit to give it to them and this is one of those cases.
Clayton’s Gen-Now Concept Home is Impressive
Clayton Homes tried to bring more modern and environmentally friendly manufactured homes to the market a few years ago with the ihouse and ehouse. Unfortunately, the prices were a bit too much for the market to handle and they never caught on. Still, it was refreshing to see what the future may hold for manufactured home design.
Clayton’s Gen-Now Concept Home is a beautiful home. It’s sleek, modern design is a breath of fresh air. Much thought has obviously been put into the design. Clayton seems to understand how people use the space within their home well.
Here’s the press release from Clayton Homes:
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (April 25, 2014) – Clayton Homes, the nation’s largest home builder*, will unveil its new Concept House at the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Meeting on May 3, 2014, in Omaha, Neb. The Concept House, which reinvents the way homeowners live in their homes, was designed to suit the specific interests and lifestyles of the 19 – 37 age group (Gen Now) and reinvents traditional floor plans to accommodate “larger living.”
By 2020, the housing market will consist of more first-time homeowners than ever before. With 92 million Gen Now consumers enter the market. The Gen Now group challenges the norm, embraces individuality and perceives the home as a personal reflection. The design of Clayton Homes’ Concept House is based on extensive research and insight into Gen Now and represents the innovative details that this generation looks for in their homes. Its aesthetics include cool and trendy elements, while its spaces offer flexible rooms, useful areas, and built-in storage. Rooms are designed to evolve and grow with the homeowner over time and adapt to changing needs.
Included in the Concept House are Smart Points, Clayton Homes’ collection of features and technologies that provide unexpected conveniences, such as a recharging station for electronics, sliding barn doors that transform spaces, unique storage areas, and modern design elements
“We have spent a lot of time learning about Gen Now in order to create a home that truly represents it,” said Kevin Clayton, CEO of Clayton Homes. “Our designers have put careful thought and attention into supplementing this generation’s lifestyle throughout the home. We constantly focus on innovation, and we wanted to create a home that would meet the needs of this impactful age group.”
Clayton’s Gen-Now Concept Home Marketing Fails
I’m not a big fan of the way Clayton Home’s markets themselves.This home is an example of why I have reached that opinion over the last couple of years. It seems that they fail to understand exactly who their customers are time and time again.
“The Concept House, which reinvents the way homeowners live in their homes, was designed to suit the specific interests and lifestyles of the 19 – 37 age group (Gen Now). It reinvents traditional floor plans to accommodate “larger living.”
Was it really necessary to tag this home to a particular age range or generation? I understand they want to market to the first-time buyers that will be hitting the market in the next few years. But, why not market their products to all potential buyers instead of a select few? I’m over the age range they stated above but I love this home, it’s exactly the type of manufactured home I would want to buy if I ever decided to buy a new one (and we have been seriously thinking about it, to be honest). It’s a small pet peeve and I’m not offended by it. But it is yet another example of the company failing to truly understand who their buyers are. I wish they would stop trying to appeal to one small group and market to all of us!
Still, it’s a nice home with a great deal of thought put into the design and I appreciate that. If they do produce these homes on a mass scale and at an affordable price, and I hope they do, I’m sure it will be a success.
As always, thank you for reading Mobile Home Living!