Author: Phillip Brandl, President, IHA
This day of giving thanks celebrated in the U.S. on Thursday is the official beginning of the holiday season – bringing families together and putting consumers into a shopping frenzy for holiday gift-giving. And housewares plays a vital role on both fronts.
As families gather for the Thanksgiving meal, housewares and homegoods products surround us – from the cook and bakeware used to make the turkey, stuffing, vegetables, pumpkin pie and all the trimmings, to the tableware and dinnerware used to serve and eat our bountiful feast. Special platters for turkey serving, themed-dinnerware and festive table linens add to the special occasion and have become an integral part of the celebration.
After the football games and pumpkin pie, the focus turns to shopping strategies for Black Friday. As retail analysts make their predictions on what products will be popular for gift-giving, we are hearing that housewares will be a hot seller this holiday season as people are staying home and entertaining more. The economic challenges facing consumers are driving them to spend more time at home. And housewares manufacturers are meeting their needs with affordable products for home decorating, holiday cooking and baking, clean up, home organization and festive entertaining.
Even in these challenging times, our industry has much to be thankful for. We at the International Housewares Association would like to wish all our industry’s global partners, buyers, sellers and all other industry professionals the most successful of holiday seasons.
