All Posts

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

Market Opportunities – Latin America and India

IHA International Offices and Representatives: Mexico, South America, Columbia, Ecuador and India On May 19, IHA representatives presented market reports from Latin America and India. They discussed the top five trends in each region and outlined economic trends impacting retail developments. The presenters noted eating habits and purchasing behaviors that differed from…

KEYNOTE: Key Retailer Update Mercado Libre — LATAM

By Debbie Teschke Mercado Libre, the largest e-commerce retailer in Latin America, offers housewares suppliers access to a market of more than 636 million people in a region with one of the world’s fastest-growing Internet penetration rates. Mariano Migues, cross border trade manager at Mercado Libre, opened Connect GLOBAL, this year’s virtual edition of the International…

Off-Price Rethinks Its E-Commerce Resistance

by Peter Giannetti Off-price retailing for years has been an immovable brick-and-mortar object against the irresistible force of e-commerce. Such physical store reliance, though, was put to the test when most off-price stores had to close—without a meaningful digital commerce fallback—during the early months of the pandemic. Burlington Stores announced suspension of…

Connect GLOBAL Offers Buyer Connections, Market Overviews, Networking Through Virtual Education Series

ROSEMONT, ILL (May 12, 2021)—Connect GLOBAL, a virtual presentation of the International Business Council’s Global Forum, will be held May 18-20, offering housewares suppliers overviews of key international markets through daily keynote presentations given by industry experts. Sessions are applicable for both suppliers new to the international arena or veteran sales executives…

Food52 Cooks Up a Surprise

By Peter Giannetti Recent news that Food52 was acquiring Dansk probably caught more than few industry observers by surprise. Perhaps it was no surprise that Centre Lane Partners, the new private-equity owner of a Lenox business in transition, spun off a Dansk cookware and tableware brand that still holds solid brand equity despite a clear need for a revival. What may…

Tax Hikes on the Congressional Agenda

On March 31, President Biden announced the first half of his “Build Back Better” initiative, the $2.25 trillion American Jobs Plan. Presented by the White House as an infrastructure plan, this massive proposal covers a broad range of functions that go beyond the conventional notion of “infrastructure” to include programs such as $400 billion for home and community-based…

U.S. Retail Intelligence – April

April 30 – Target works toward goal of opening 40 stores this yearTarget appears to be on track to reach its goal of opening 30 to 40 stores this year with 12 new locations already operating, including a site along Hollywood's Walk of Fame in Los Angeles and a small-format store near the University of Georgia campus. This slide show offers a look at the retailer's newest…

Encouraging Signs From Bed Bath & Beyond

By Peter Giannetti I was greeted upon my arrival at the International Housewares Association in March with the opportunity to participate in the inaugural IHA Connect SPRING virtual event. The event’s array of keynotes, sessions and virtual product demonstrations delivered compelling insight into how developments of the past year have recalibrated practices and products…

Asia to U.S. Contracted Container Space is Sold Out

It is going to be a challenging year for the entire shipping industry. March imports in the Transpacific jumped 51%. Every major trade publication is predicting that the 2021 space issues will be much worse than what the industry experienced in 2020. The carriers have sold out all space for the 2021-22 contract period. This unprecedented space crisis is going to present many…