Global Opportunities

Benefit from IHA’s International Business Council, which offers opportunities, education and insight to help members succeed in the global marketplace!

Meet Home and Housewares Suppliers in Toronto

The International Housewares Association (IHA), manager of the International Home + Housewares Show in partnership with Canada’s HomeStyle Magazine, invite all Canadian home and housewares distributors and retailers to a buyer reception on September 25. The event will feature a Tabletop Trade Show, allowing buyers to meet home and housewares product suppliers while enjoying…

Gain More Than Education at the IBC Global Forum

Although one key component of the IBC Global Forum is the education received through the retailer and distributor presentations, there are several other tangible benefits to attending this annual event. The 2018 IBC Global Forum will feature a Tabletop Trade Show as exclusive opportunity for attendees to expand their network and grow sales. This component to the Global Forum…

IBC 101: International Essentials

As a preview to the presentation during the upcoming IBC Global Forum, the following is a brief on the IBC 101: International Essentials workshop: The IBC Global Forum serves to provide attendees with practical, pragmatic resources to assist in developing resources that ultimately help support global sales. An important component to the Global Forum are the suppliers who…

August Currency Outlook

In their August 2018 Currency Outlook report, Tempus, an exchange rate and global payments company, provides a detailed report including the following topics and sections: In Brief The USD lost .5% of its value, ending its appreciation run that had been ongoing for three months Tensions over proposed tariffs added pressure to the strength of the USD, but it stayed…

Global Retail Intelligence – August

To follow is a brief review of retail news from around the world: August 16 – Mexico’s Elektra Announces Online Shopping to Compete with Amazon Mexican department store chain Elektra announced it will launch an on-line shopping portal to compete with Amazon. Elektra’s marketplace will launch with 25 consumer products business partner brands and the goal of expanding to…

Tariffs Update: Impacts of Proposed Tariffs on Housewares Suppliers

As a preview to the upcoming IBC Global Forum, to follow is additional information on the session focusing on the latest tariff actions unfolding in Washington DC presented by Jonathan Gold, Vice President, Supply Chain and Customs Policy, for the National Retail Federation: Jonathan Gold of the National Retail Federation (NRF) will provide an update on the latest tariff…

Sodimac: Key Colombia Retailer Update

As a preview into the upcoming IBC Global Forum, to follow is additional information on the retail overview session presented by Marta Córdoba Vélez, Assistant Commercial Manager of Sodimac (Homecenter) Colombia: With more than 240 stores in Latin America, Sodimac has nearly 40 stores in Colombia. Sodimac is owned by Chilean retailer, Falabella, which operates stores in…

Wayfair/CastleGate: European e-Market Overview

As a preview to the upcoming IBC Global Forum, to follow is additional information on the European e-Market session presented by Evangeline Wiles, Associate Director, Wayfair/CastleGate: Wayfair’s order fulfillment and logistics division, CastleGate, partners with suppliers to provide access to a portfolio of services, including inventory management and reporting,…

Lakeland: Key UK Retailer Update

As a preview to the upcoming IBC Global Forum, to follow is additional information on the Key UK Retailer session presented by Samm Swain, Buying & Merchandising Director for Lakeland: With more than 50 years of operating a successful business, Lakeland is a renowned home and housewares retailer in the UK. In addition to their online business, Lakeland runs 68 stores…