Porland of Turkey, one of the five gia Global Honorees this year, has a long, rich and colorful history. We look into what makes this manufacturer and retailer of porcelain stand out from the rest. by Michelle Hespe Porland’s logo features a ballerina executing a perfect pirouette. This elegant symbol conveys both beauty and strength, reflecting the grounding philosophy of this manufacturer and retailer of porcelain. The word…

CHESS 2019 – Retail’s Seismic Shift: Understanding the Forces Changing Housewares Consumers

Presented by: Michael Dart, Partner, Consumer/Retail Practice, A.T. Kearney Retail specialist and visionary, Michael Dart advises retail and consumer companies on how best to navigate retail’s seismic shifts. He combines his economics and finance training from Oxford University and the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, with more than 25 years of experience consulting with A.T. Kearney and Bain & Co. to provide a unique…

Global Retail Intelligence – April

April 14 – JD.com Creates Offline Catering Supply Chain SolutionJD.com with Juqi, a dinning chain in Beijing, announced a supply chain cooperation, positioning JD.com as the first platform in China capable of providing a one-stop supply chain solution covering both the full category of food and materials supply, and integrated warehousing and distribution services. Through the cooperation, JD will also provide intelligent inventory…

Navigating The Wild West of Ocean Shipping

by Dave Akers, IHSA "Good Judgment comes from experience and a lot of that comes from bad judgment." — Will Rogers Here is how the modern shipping business mirrors the Wild West: 1. The “Gold Rush” Boom and Bust Cycles The Old West was defined by the gold rush with sudden, explosive wealth that created overnight millionaires, followed by devastating busts that left ghost towns behind. Shipping operates on the exact same…

IHA Plans Sourcing Mission to Vietnam

To help members investigate alternatives to sourcing from China, the International Housewares Association will hold a sourcing mission to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, next year. The 2020 Vietnam Sourcing Mission will be offered in two sessions: April 20-22 or April 23-25. Each session is limited to just six companies to provide a high level of service and allow for private meetings and factory tours. The dates were chosen to allow…

Guide to Effective Retail Store Design

by Martin M. Pegler If RETAILING is your chosen path of livelihood, here are some simple guidelines you might like to consider when planning your retail store. 1. Let There Be Light! Without the proper light the merchandise cannot be seen or judged, colors cannot be appreciated, coordinates cannot be assembled, nor buying decisions made. Let your light be the best you can afford to install and use—or, if necessary, skimp on…

gia

2018 Global Honoree – Harrods

By Michelle Hespe Harrods needs no introduction, however, many people might not realize how progressive and innovative Harrods Home has become in recent years. No words are minced when it comes to the mission statement of Harrods. The iconic store’s goal is “to be the number one department store in the world for luxury branded merchandise, maintaining an unprecedented…

2018 gia Global Honoree – The Chopping Block

by Michelle Hespe We catch up with Shelley Young, Founder and CEO of one of the five 2018 gia Global Honorees, The Chopping Block of the USA. There are three major components to The Chopping Block, and although they sit under the same umbrella, they are like three separate businesses. There’s the cooking classes, private events and the retail sector. However, make no…

2018 gia Global Honoree – Manufactum

by Michelle Hespe At the 2018 IHA Global Innovation Awards (gia) in Chicago, German retailer Manufactum was announced as one of the top five most innovative stores in the world. Here we take a look at what makes this retail store so great, and so grounded. In today’s technology-driven world, where so much of life is lived online, and there’s a distinct lack of human…

Eight Companies Honored with Global Innovation Awards for Booth Excellence

Eight International Home + Housewares Show exhibitors were honored with Global Innovation Awards (gia) for Booth Excellence on Monday, March 12, with two companies named Global Honoree. Two finalists were selected in each Show expo, one each for large and small booths. The winners were announced during special presentations at the 2018 International Home + Housewares Show at…

2018 Gia Global Honorees for Retail Excellence Announced at International Home + Housewares Show

The International Home + Housewares Show and the International Housewares Association (IHA), the global sponsors and organizers of the IHA Global Innovation Awards (gia) program, today announced the 2018 gia Global Honorees for Retail Excellence. The Global Honorees are: Tugó - Colombia Manufactum - Germany Pollmann sinds 1890 - Netherlands Harrods - United…

IHA Announces Finalists for Global Innovation Awards (gia) for Product Design

The 65 finalists in the IHA Global Innovations Awards (gia) for product design have been announced by the International Housewares Association (IHA). Global honorees in each of 13 categories will be announced in during the invitation-only gia dinner Saturday, March 10. The finalists and global honorees will be on display in the Hall of Global Innovation in the Lakeside Center…

gia – Celebration of Retail Excellence and Innovation

Every March in Chicago, the IHA Global Innovation Awards (gia) are hosted by the International Housewares Association. The gia awards, “the Oscars® of the housewares industry”, bring together the world’s most innovative retailers, all having been voted as the best in their country. The IHA Global Innovation Awards program was created to celebrate excellence and innovation in…

Generations of Inspiration

Michelle Hespe speaks to Patricia Lockhart, owner and director of Uruguay’s award-winning retail store, Bazar La Iberica and its focus on generations of inspiration. Achieving 100 years in business is something worth talking about. But Bazar La Iberica, a family-run retailer operating in a country with only 3 million inhabitants (half of which live on very low income) has…

Recycling and Display Props

By Martin M. Pegler Props, I would imagine, is short for “properties” and “properties” can be anything that adds something to a scene, a setting, a display. If we were to look around us, we would see we are standing in the center of a field of display props: from the furniture in the room, the plants, the unused rolls of wallpaper, the tableware, the collection of pots and…

Perfectly Porland