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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.

Retail Class of 2018

Independent gourmet retailers opening a store or getting through their first full 12 months of business in 2018 benefitted from a relatively upbeat economy (albeit a tight labor market), but still faced the ins and outs of product assortment, merchandising and marketing that vex all new stores. How did they fare? We talked with three retailers about the joys and challenges…

Concept. In the Words of a Successful Concept Retailer

by Terri Winter We asked Terri Winter, co-owner and founder of the world-recognized concept retail store top3 by design in Australia, to share her thoughts on “experiential shopping” and concepts – what she sees is important in retail today and what has made top3 by design so successful. Your customers no longer come to your store just to shop. They go shopping to…

St. Jane Chicago, A New Boutique Hotel that Honors Chicago’s History

Enjoy These Incentives While in Chicago: Recently Reduced Rates Starting at $149.00 Complimentary Wi-Fi Complimentary Bottled Water Complimentary In-Room Nespresso Machine with a Selection of Coffees and Teas Complimentary Access to Fitness Facility LED Smart TV with Streaming Capabilities Private Bar Tastefully Stocked with Locally Sourced Items…

Enjoy Award-Winning Cuisine at Imperial Lamian During the 2019 Show

Imperial Lamian invites diners to dig their chopsticks into fresh, authentic Chinese food and settle in for a high-level dining experience. The acclaimed River North restaurant features traditional, Chinese hand- pulled lamian noodles, creative wok dishes, inventive entrees, as well as award-winning dim sum and xiao long bao (soup dumplings) - all crafted from scratch daily.…

Retail’s New Best Friend

As the heart and soul of retailing further evolves, stores and the essence of shopping will continue to morph in unimaginable ways. However, amidst the storm of change, there is one aspect of shopping that remains pure, constant and motivational – the aspirational moment. For some, an aspirational moment is walking through the ABC Carpet Emporium in New York City, where the…

Euromonitor International Presents: Global Economy in 2019

In their recent webinar, Global Economy in 2019, Euromonitor International suggests that the growth momentum in many of the top world economies may have peaked and that there is an expectation of growth to weaken in developed economies in 2019. Euromonitor anticipates that emerging economies, including China, India, Brazil, Mexico and Russia have an estimated GDP growth rate of…

A Lot Can Change in a Year! See What’s New at the 2019 Show

Every March, we organize more than 2,200 exhibitors showcasing thousands of new home products into distinctive show-within-a-show expos at the International Home + Housewares Show. And just as the industry and consumers are constantly evolving, so is the Show. So in case you're thinking, 'I've been there before, or I was just there last year, no need to attend again in…

Retail Profile: Grand Fête

Retail Profile: Grand Fête Location: Hudson, Wis. Founded: May 2017 Co-owners: Kay Timm, Jane Wegand and Lynn Ulrich Square Footage: 1,800 sq. ft. Rent or Own: Rent The Merriam-Webster dictionary describes a grande fête as a way “to honor something with a large party or public celebration” and that’s the mood the trio of owners of the Grand Fête in Hudson seek to set…

Discovering Design: Dreamfarm

by Vicki Matranga Design Programs Coordinator, International Housewares Association “Great design must solve problems” believes the crew at Dreamfarm, a problem-solving company that grows ideas for clever, useful kitchen and household products. “The hardest part of our job isn’t coming up with a solution,” says Alex Gransbury, Dreamfarm’s founder, “it’s finding a problem…