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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.

LIVE from the IBC Global Forum: Mark Zhang, DUHUB International, China

By Vicki Matranga, Design Programs Coordinator Wednesday, June 18, 2014 After an exciting first day of sessions and yesterday’s deep dive into the customer-centered marketing approach presented by Jonathan Knowles,Day 2 of the IBC Global Forum offers five country market overviews from retailers in China, Russia, Brazil, Czech Republic and Australia. Mark Zhang,…

LIVE from the IBC Global Forum: Robert Parker, General Trader Group, Australia

Wednesday, June 18, 2014 By Vicki Matranga, Design Programs Coordinator Robert Parker has been involved in the Australian homewares industry for more than 40 years. He served as president of the Tasmanian Divisionof the Australian Retailers Association and has been a long-time member of the association’s governing National Council. In 2011 when Mr. Parker merged his…

LIVE from the IBC Global Forum: Mark Ladham, Retail Overview Safat Home, Kuwait

Tuesday, June 17, 2014 by Vicki Matranga, Design Programs Coordinator Mark Ladham, senior general manager of Safat Home’s Home Division, has more than 25 years of retail experience. Safat Home is part ofAlghanim Industries, a privately owned, multi-national enterprise with business operations in multiple sectors including housewares retail in Kuwait. With two large stores…

LIVE from the IBC Global Forum: Jonathan Knowles, Rethinking the 4 P’s — From Selling Products to Selling Solutions (Part II)

by Vicki Matranga, Design Programs Coordinator (Jonathan Knowles continued) Participants Share Common Issues and Discover Relevancies in Workshop Exercises After tabulating the morning’s exercise worksheets during the lunch break, Knowles presented a simple analysis at the afternoon session. He commented on different dynamics at companies of varied sizes: smaller companies…

LIVE from the IBC Global Forum: Jonathan Knowles, Rethinking the 4 P’s — From Selling Products to Selling Solutions

by Vicki Matranga, Design Programs Coordinator Tuesday, June 17, 2014 IHA’s Global Forum kicked off with Jonathan Knowles’ engaging presentation that updated the traditional 4 P’s of marketing—product, price, place and promotion—for a fresh approach to marketing in today’s global business-to-business environment. Those earlier strategies lead marketing and sales teams to…

International Housewares Business Leaders Meet Today in Rosemont

by Vicki Matranga, Design Programs Coordinator IHA opens its Global Forum, the essential annual meeting for sales professionals and companies looking to grow their international business, on Tuesday, June 17 at the Intercontinental O’Hare hotel. Participants will hear market overviews by retailers from Kuwait, China, Russia, Brazil, Czech Republic and Australia and will learn…

The Art and Heart of Branding – Adrienne Weiss

Adrienne Weiss and her team are legendary in branding in the U.S. and around the world. If you have eaten a burger or a donut, bought jeans or pumped your own gas, you have probably been up close and personal with brands they have helped create or energize. Weiss’s branding prowess started when she worked for Applause and helped build the “Smurfs” into a monster global brand in…

Inspiring the Industry – Adrienne Weiss

Adrienne Weiss is an inspiration to everyone she meets and especially those with whom she works. Her portfolio reads like a who’s who of the world’s top companies, and she’s worked with a huge diversity of industries such as food and beverage, retail, consumer products, convenience stores, real estate developments, sports stadiums and entertainment concepts. Her goal in…

A Milestone Win: Lakeland

Michelle Hespe catches up with Matthew Canwell, Director of Buying for Lakeland in the United Kingdom – one of six 2014 Global Honorees at the gia Global Innovation Awards in Chicago. It all began back in 1964, in a humble garage in the United Kingdom. In that garage, a family started selling plastic freezer bags, and the demand for the bags gradually grew. By the 70’s, the…