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The NKBA Hall of Fame inductee shares his favorite NKBA memory, the changes he has seen in the K&B industry, his career since his induction and more.

By Elisa Fernández-Arias

NKBA 2006 K&B Hall of Fame Inductee Fu-Tung Cheng, Founder of Cheng Design and CHENG Products, has been an innovator in the use of concrete as a creative finished material in homes for more than 30 years. His two books, “Concrete Countertops: Designs, Forms, and Finishes for the New Kitchen and Bath” and “Concrete at Home,” published in 2002 and 2005, respectively, have sold a combined 325,000 copies to date. In the past decade, he has been focused on designing award-winning ultra-modern homes from the ground up.

NKBA recently spoke with Cheng about his favorite NKBA memory, the future of the K&B industry, his top career advice and more.

Favorite NKBA Memory

When asked about his favorite NKBA memory, Cheng said that he had several. Still, one did rise to the top: the 1997 SubZero Gala in Scottsdale, AZ. He and his wife, along with over 100 other guests, were waiting to hear who won Best Design Kitchen of 1996. Seconds before the winner was announced, Cheng accidentally dropped the program brochure under the table.

“Both my wife and I simultaneously bent down to retrieve it,” said Cheng. “When we finally managed to get it and return upright in our seats, everyone had already stood up and was clapping. Bewildered, we stood up and started clapping too. The room erupted in laughter as they realized that we had no idea that, while we’d been under the table, I had won the Grand Prize — and $10,000, huge for us at the time!”

Changes and the Future of the K&B Industry

Since his induction into NKBA’s K&B Hall of Fame in 2006, Cheng feels that the balance of Modern design style and “so-called ‘traditional’” design style has equalized, or tilted slightly toward the more modern. “Creative, hand-made, crafted objects, such as furniture and artwork, and imperfection and eccentricity, will hopefully be appreciated as we enter this Brave New World of AI, 3D-printed environments, machine-generated design and production of everything, everywhere at once,” said Cheng.

As for the future of the K&B industry, Cheng hopes to see a commitment to sustainability with cradle-to-grave recycling of all the appliances and manufactured products. He envisions a future where the world, including the K&B industry, “will come together and learn to harmonize with the planet and nature.”

Cheng’s Career Since His Induction

After his induction in 2006, Cheng’s career evolved to where he now works in residential architectural design, focusing  on designing ultra-modern custom homes from the ground up at his design firm, Cheng Design. Many of his homes have won awards — and, according to Cheng, the kitchens and baths have continued to receive focus, attention and innovation within the architecture.

“I credit my formative years — 1988 to 2009 — in the kitchen and bath industry  as the foundation for what I’m doing now,” said Cheng. “Architectural structure with craftsmanship that permeates our projects top to bottom. The inclusion of sculptural structural steel; cast concrete floors, counters, and walls; integrated cabinetry of wood and metal are based on lessons learned and innovations instituted during that period. I simply scaled up to meet the challenges of designing entire homes from scratch.”

Career Advice

The best advice Cheng ever received was, “Stick to and focus on your core competency. Enjoy creative designing and building and don’t divert your attention to being a businessman and the business of making products.” He also said that he didn’t take this advice — so to make up for lost time, he is now solely concentrating on creative design.