International Housewares Association

Industry Education, Tradeshow, Resources + More - IHA

  • All Posts
  • Show
  • Executive Networking
    • CHESS Conference
    • CORE Networking Groups
  • Global Opportunities
    • Connect GLOBAL
    • IBC Global Forum
    • Trade Missions
    • Key Buyer / Market Reports
    • Export 101
    • Global Retail Intelligence
  • Education
    • Smart Home
    • Gourmet Home
    • Webinars
    • Trends
    • Housewares History
  • Industry Resources
    • U.S. Retail Intelligence
    • IHSA Shippers Association
    • Government Affairs & Legal
  • Inspiration Magazine
    • Design
    • Innovation
    • Inspiration
    • Trends
Terri Winter

Introducing…Terri Winter

February 17, 2013

Terri WinterTerri Winter is a curator of great design. The co-owner and founder of retail store top3 by design, she explores the world online and on foot, ensuring that the products her store carries are deemed to be the top three in the world: in their product category, by design experts and by winning awards.

Before opening the doors of the first top3 by design in 2001 with her husband, Creative Director Bernd Winter, Terri Winter was a graphic designer. “My graphic design background and passion for digital media has proven a great asset in my current role,” she says. “An online and in-store synergy is imperative in today’s retail world, and being able to control this ever-changing environment keeps us up to date and at the forefront of our industry.”

top3 became one of five gia Global Honorees at the 2009 Global Innovation Awards, with the store also winning the Martin M. Pegler Award for Excellence in Visual Merchandising. Among other things such as product display and promotions, the judges were incredibly impressed with the innovative concept behind the store’s creation – the offering of an edited choice of the best products in the world for homes and lifestyle.

Winter is heavily involved in the design scene in Australia. She also regularly travels the world, attending design and retail trade shows, exploring an endless emergence of new retail concepts and checking out the established stores, always gathering new ideas and products for top3.

Terri Winter“I am also a judge on the Australian International Design Awards Panel,” says Terri Winter. “And through that, I was recently part of a three-day design debate with professionals involved in all aspects of design from all around the world. It is always a wonderful experience, and being able to witness the caliber of new design hitting the market is always so exciting! Just like my involvement in the Discover Design panel for the International Home + Housewares Show in Chicago, the process unearths some great ranges for me to pursue for top3.”

Winter’s ongoing pet project is designbank.com.au. “Recently, we supplied around 40 designers and artists around the world with the classic streamliner car from Playsam, in its raw state, and they customized the toy. The diversity of results is astounding! Each of these cars will ultimately be auctioned off to raise funds for Australia’s first contemporary design museum for small objects.”

This museum is a good fit for Winter, as design and how it affects the little things in life is her passion. “I love design that changes the everyday, rather then the ‘wow – look at me’ kind of design, and I have a particular soft spot for design that unfolds to reveal its cleverness.”

Winter finds these clever designs and inspiration everywhere. “Blogs and design sites are a daily inspiration,” she says. “International trips and downtime often provide the best time for me – for very broad thinking about the business. Removal of the day-to-day pressures of running a business can change my focus, and so some of the best overall business decisions stem from my ‘time-out’ in January. Running your own business and having a genuine passion for design means there is no such thing as real ‘time-out’ though!”

Terri Winter’s advice to others striving to make a difference in retail, or any chosen field, is a simple mantra. But it’s something many of us forget as we move through life, chasing our dreams: “Celebrate small achievements, keeping in mind that everyone else sees what you have done, not the list of things you wish you had done!”

Filed Under: All Posts, Design, Inspiration Magazine Tagged With: 13.1, design, Inspiration Magazine, Retail Design, Terri Winter, Top3

Recent Inspiration Magazine Posts

Heart of the Community

Wings of Success

Immersion in the Weekend Life

Embracing New Fine Living

The French Connection

The Inspired Home Show 2022

IHA
6400 Shafer Court, Suite 650
Rosemont, IL 60018
United States of America

T: +1-847-292-4200
F: +1-847-292-4211

Staff Directory
Privacy and Legal

Connect With IHA

International Housewares Association
  • Facebook
  • Linkedin
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Connect With The Inspired Home

The Inspired Home
  • Bloglovin
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

© 2023 International Housewares Association · Design by Brian Lis · Log in

By clicking Accept, I agree with IHA’s privacy and cookie policies. Click here to review the policies