KCMA Design Awards 2027
Competition brief
KCMA Design Awards 2027 recognises kitchen remodels completed in 2025 or 2026 using cabinetry made by members of the Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers Association. This is recognition of existing work, not a new building commission.
Eligibility and timetable
| Entrants | Design-firm owners/employees aged 18+, in kitchen design, interiors or architecture. Rules name the United States/DC and Canada, but legal-residency wording is unclear for Canadian entrants; confirm eligibility. Not open to the general public. |
| Cabinets | KCMA-member cabinetry required. A161.1 Quality Certification or Environmental Stewardship Program certification earns additional consideration. |
| Fee | No entry-fee amount was identified in the reviewed rules or public form. Universal free entry is not established. |
| Submission | 18 December 2026, 11:59 pm ET: 19 December, 04:59 UTC. Registration and submission use one form. |
| Judging / notification | 1–15 February 2027 / around 1 April 2027. |
What to submit
Supply clearly named before-and-after photographs and floor plans. The form permits four before files and six after files, in JPG/JPEG, PNG or PDF, with a stated 25 MB limit. Describe the challenge and solution within 200 words and complete the required manufacturer, costs, layout and material details. Further entries must concern different kitchens.
Judging, awards and rights
Sponsor representatives assess originality, before-and-after transformation and decorative details with equal weighting. Individual jurors are not named in the reviewed rules. First place receives a KCMA-booked conference trip including airfare, accommodation and a USD 1,000 expense stipend, plus industry publicity including a full-page advertisement. Second place receives USD 500. Winners bear award-related taxes.
Entrants need design and image permissions. Participation grants KCMA a non-exclusive, worldwide, perpetual, irrevocable, transferable, royalty-free licence, including derivative works and promotion. Check client and photographer agreements before uploading.
The HTML rules specify April 2027 notification; the downloadable 2027 PDF retains April 2026 in that clause. The general winner-list clause also conflicts with the judging sequence. Confirm the timetable. Current rules use three criteria, rather than seven in earlier publicity.
✦ ArchUp Competition Review
Comparable before-and-after plans can reveal changes in working routes, storage access and the relationship between preparation and gathering. A dramatic visual transformation alone does not prove better use. Entrants should explain the functional difference rather than leaving the comparison to decorative photography.
The member-cabinet restriction makes this an industry-specific award. Assess its exposure against the broad publication licence and the effort required to secure permissions. Certification is a consideration within this programme, not evidence of whole-kitchen performance.
Reviewed 4 November 2026 against the official rules, two-page regulations PDF, live entry form and shareable flyer. Residency, fee and notification limitations are identified above.
Time remaining for submission
Official cutoff: 18 December 2026, 11:59 pm ET (EST, UTC−5), equivalent to 19 December, 04:59 UTC. Registration and submission close together.
Official rules and entry
Read eligibility, rights and submission instructions before entering.
