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IHA’s blog features informative posts written to keep the housewares industry educated and informed about key strategic issues and IHA member services.

2014 CHESS Conference Highlights: Eric Greitens

Day Two: Session One Inspired Leadership Through Challenging Times Eric Greitens Day Two of the 2014 CHESS conference opened with the keynote address by Eric Greitens, a former Navy SEAL, founder of The Mission Continues and an award-winning author of The Heart and the Fist. Named to TIME magazine’s 2013 list of the “100 Most Influential People in the World” and Fortune’s…

2014 CHESS Conference Highlights: Helaine Suval

Day One: Session Four The Secret Sauce of Modern Retail: It’s Physical WITH Digital Helaine Suval, President, Suval Consultants; Board of Directors, Lenox; Former EVP/GMM, Macys.com What draws you into a store? If there’s a sense of excitement and entertainment and electricity, you want to be there! Did you know that 90% of all retail sales are still transacted in stores,…

2014 CHESS Conference Highlights: Walter Herbst, Paul Rowan, and Joanne Domeniconi

Day One: Session Three Design/Innovation: Leveraging the Maker Movement We are in a period of rapid transformation fueled by technology. Technology platforms are shaping the way ideas become designs, designs become prototypes, prototypes become products, projects get funded, projects become businesses and the way that businesses find customers. The Designer’s…

2014 CHESS Conference Highlights: Tony Chapman

Day One: Session Two Path to Purchase – The Big Picture Tony Chapman, Founder/CEO, Capital C A wave of disruptive change is rendering conventional marketing strategy obsolete: retail is saturated, media is fragmented, clicks are overrunning the bricks and working dollars have to work harder. Chapman sees an unprecedented opportunity for entrepreneurs who have the courage to…

2014 CHESS Conference Highlights: AJ Khubani, Brian Melzer, Jay Zilinskas, Peter Giannetti, and Richard Boynton

Chief Housewares Executives Gather at Annual Strategic Senior-Level Conference Tuesday, October 7, 2014 By Vicki Matranga, Design Programs Coordinator Chief housewares executives eager to hear the latest from the front lines of the industry learned from experts who addressed IHA’s annual CHESS conference October 7 and 8. The two-day conference, held at the Loews Chicago…

CHESS 2014 Examines the “Consumer Path to Purchase”

The consumer’s path to purchase has grown from simply shopping at brick and mortar stores to surfing online retailers, buying direct from manufacturer websites or visiting a store to see a product then finding the best deal online. Industry experts and senior housewares executives will explore what navigating this omni-channel retailing means to housewares suppliers during the…

Brazil’s Booming Internet Retailing

by Vicki Matranga, Design Programs Coordinator Digital businesses are investing in Latin America’s rapidly evolving B2C retailing, according to the September 2014 issue of Internet Retailer, published by Chicago-based Vertical Web Media, LLC. The magazine maps internet retail’s growth in Latin America and describes how web merchants spend heavily and think creatively to…

Industry Update from the Japan DIY Industry Association

Information provided by the Japan DIY Industry Association shows remarkable development in the sales and number of DIY stores/home centers in Japan since the first DIY store was opened in the country over 40 years ago. There are now over 4,500 DIY stores/home centers in Japan, the annual general proceeds reaching 3.97 trillion yen. Home centers have expanded throughout Japan…

Housewares Exports to the UK Market

Report and analysis by: Laura Spingola, Trade Resources Ltd. The United Kingdom represents a special market for U.S. housewares exporters. Ranking third among global markets for U.S. housewares exporters, many IHA members are active in the UK, yet many more new-to-export and experienced exporters should make “go/no-go” decisions about this important and inviting single market…