Top Stories » Special Features » All Categories

Ambiente is traditionally the place where kitchenware manufacturers unveil their newest introductions and provide a preview of the trends and directions for the coming year. Our editors spent three days at the exposition to unearth the upcoming trends and discover what they mean for the housewares industry.  »

Unfortunately, the tabletop category is often an afterthought for specialty gourmet retailers who focus on providing the best in kitchen tools, equipment, and accessories for their customers. All too frequently, tabletop departments become a hodgepodge of elements that meet a few scattered desires, but don't completely fill your customers' tables. »

In spite of a massive peace rally, unseasonably gorgeous weather, and an AFC Championship game being played just across the bay, the aisles were crowded and buyers were focused at the 28th Winter Fancy Food Show in San Francisco. »

This year, our three-part gift registry series will examine how retailers across the country have constructed the gift registry portion of their business. In Part I, we discuss what to do to prepare for gift registry, and then in Part II, we'll take you through how retailers work with registry customers and their guests, and finally, in Part III, we'll illustrate successful follow-up strategies.  »

The dawning of a new year always generates great anticipation about how business will fare in the coming months. The answers to these questions help manufacturers, importers, and retailers predict to some extent the direction of the coming year. »

Think natural, not neutral. Replace serenity with simplicity. Creating lifestyles instead of mere settings will enable you to create add-on sales as customers swoop up complementary accessories off of your shelves in a quest to design their own oases in their homes. »

Licensing is actually the leasing of a legally protected entity, be it a name, logo, saying, character, or combination of elements. In short, licensing is a marketing tool crafted to gain visibility and creditability and generate sales from a well-known name. »