LIXIL—the multinational Japanese conglomerate that owns long established, quality German fixtures brand Grohe, among others—recently opened the LIXIL Water Experience Center and it’s a game changer.
LIXIL—the multinational Japanese conglomerate that owns long established, quality German fixtures brand Grohe, among others—recently opened the LIXIL Water Experience Center and it’s a game changer.
The new LIXIL Water Experience Center showroom is located between New York’s ever-burgeoning Flatiron District and NoMad neighborhoods. The newly imagined 10-thousand square-foot showroom unfolds as a series of interactive activations allowing both consumers and specifiers to test out the diverse gamut on offer; items also from American Standard, DXV, INAX, and Basco. Such a strategy is a clear rebuke of the trend that is seeing many brick and mortar retail spaces close in favor of online sales. Such a dynamic programmatic approach is proving the importance of physical engagement; handling and witnessing these essential components before they become so integral to our homes and other everyday environments.
“The LIXIL Water Experience Center is a testament to our unwavering focus on innovation and design excellence—bringing our heritage, our customers, and our future vision together in one inspiring space,” says Nik Bafana, LIXIL Americas senior vice president and leader.
“For generations, our brands have been trusted by customers who value quality craftsmanship and rely on our deep understanding of how people interact with water. At LIXIL, we continue to blend technology and design to create solutions that make a house a home.”
LIXIL Water Experience Center, photo credit: Tori Repp
LIXIL tapped major French design practice Malherbe to join its own inhouse design team to conceive the space. The former prides itself on cohering both IRL and IVL approaches (in real and virtual life). The firm has lent its comprehensive expertise to such high-profile projects as the revamping of the La Samaritaine department store in Paris and various innovative, future-forward interventions throughout the French capital’s airport system. Other major clients include Dior, Ladurée, Hennessy and Dutch design-centric department store Hema.
The explicit and implicit throughline of the new LIXIL Water Experience Center is the inherent essence of this fundamental natural element. Nowhere are the qualities of water better expressed than in the showroom’s entrance. Here, fluid architectural lines, reflective surfaces, and a carefully curated interplay of light and movement evokes its serenity and power in equal measure. Refracted and diffused illuminations ripples against various volumes as atmospheric sounds slowly emanate but don’t overpower.
Lixil Water Experience Center, photo credit: Anna Dave
Adding an additional function to the space and its value is a multivalent events venue. Distinctive product vignettes define the rest of the showroom experienced on several floors. Each display holds to the idiosyncrasies of the various brands’ visual identities and market shares and yet there’s an even flow between them. The overall hands-on experience also includes an operational shower room with a custom music playlist and a live kitchen with functioning faucets that lets consumers and specifiers test out different spray settings. The latter can also review various finish and other modification options through a set of digital screens peppered throughout the space.
LIXIL Water Experience Center, photo credit: Tori Repp
“Brand experience centers serve as the bridge between inspiration and realization – helping make better homes for everyone, everywhere,” adds Jean-Jacques L’Hénaff, leader of LIXIL Global Design, Americas.
“They aren’t just a physical representation of a brand’s catalog—they’re collaborative hubs where designers, contractors, and homeowners come together to share ideas, refine plans, and bring visions to life. This hands-on experience fosters trust, sparks creativity, and empowers customers to make confident, informed decisions.”
Lixil Water Experience Center, photo credit: Tori Repp
The newly opened LIXIL Water Experience Center effectively communicates the conglomerate’s adherence to the latest sustainability standards and stated intent of helping to facilitate the forging of better domestic environments.
Visit the showroom located in the Flatiron District at 155 5th Avenue.
At ICFF in May, visitors will have the opportunity to immerse themselves in the Water Experience by GROHE, where innovation and design come together to redefine the future of water solutions.
If you are curious to discover more about LIXIL, check out their website, HERE
Follow Grohe on Instagram, don’t miss the Water Experience at ICFF, May 18-20, 2025
LIXIL Water Experience Center
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