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Trends: Software blocks ads and retail dollars

Many retailers with websites find that online ads help finance those sites, but a new study finds the rise of ad-blocking software is leading to a decline in online ad revenue. The ad-blocking browsers allow users to remove online ads when they use the Internet. Ad blockers also make websites load faster by saving data, which helps explain why nearly 200 million people…

Retail Profile: The Kitchen Place

Retailer: The Kitchen Place Locations: Marlborough, Mass.; Salem, N.H. Owner: Pamela Sullivan Founded: 1987 Square footage: Marlborough--1700 sq. ft.; Salem--1,900 sq. ft. The first thing a customer notices about The Kitchen Place is a proud sign posted at the front of each of the two stores: “We are a locally owned business” it starts, noting that the stores have been…

Drinkware Parties On

Thanks to the two largest generations entering new life stages, and apparently celebrating along the way, specialty retailers say sales of drinkware continue to rise. Consumers between the ages of 25 and 34, otherwise known as Millennials, and Baby Boomers in their 50s and 60s are helping to fuel those sales, retailers say. Researchers at the NPD Group agree, noting in a…

Trends: More Young Men than Women Living with Mom

For the first time since the 1880s, more young adults are living with their mothers than living with a spouse or partner, a trend that may have an impact in how that group shops for housewares. According to a new Pew Research Center report, census data shows that adults ages 18-34 were more likely to be living with their parents in their parents’ homes, rather than setting up…

Stats: Living with Mom & Dad

Staying with Mom and Dad is now the most common young adult living arrangement for the first time on record, according to the Pew Research Center, mostly thanks to a drop in the number of young Americans who want to settle down with a romantic partner. It is a trend that predicts the number of households being set up within that age group and one that housewares retailers…

Retail Profile: The Grey Goose Cookery

Retailer: The Grey Goose Cookery Location: Mystic, Conn. Owner: Suzanne Lane Square footage: 4,000 sq. ft. The Grey Goose Cookery bills itself as a “one-stop kitchen store,” and with 4,000 square feet filled with products ranging from cutlery to gourmet foods, it fits that bill for the locals and tourists alike in Mystic, Conn. Located in the heart of Mystic’s prime…

Retailers Not Chipping In On Credit Cards

Even though banks mandated the use of chip-enhanced credit and debit cards last October, many small specialty retailers have yet to adopt the technology. Though the major credit card companies are calling the changeover a success, retailers are not convinced, citing the extra time it seems to take for each transaction along with the cost of implementing the technology as…

Trends: Turning Food Shoppers into Housewares Buyers

Thanks to the rebound of home cooking, retailers have more chances than ever to turn food shoppers into housewares buyers, according to a panel of retailers and category experts at the 2016 International Home + Housewares Show. Think healthy cooking, starting with the gadgets used to slice and dice a home-cooked meal. For those who might have missed the Show, the seminar,…

Retail Profile: The Good Table

Retailer: The Good Table Location: Belfast, Maine Owner: Vicki Tarbell Founded: 1989 Square footage: 4,000 sq. ft. The sleepy town of Belfast, Maine, has changed since Vicki Tarbell first opened her store, The Good Table, in 1989. Buoyed by the stunning mid-coast Maine scenery, the area has grown as a vacation destination for summer visitors and residents from, as…