Monday February 4 2019 THE NATIONAL MOTORCYCLE MUSEUM, BIRMINGHAM
and business rates will allow, retailers must embrace change. Brexit and the internet are here, whether we like it or not, and consumers are not going to change their habits to suit us. The independent retailer has the advantage to
step up, offer service, evolve and rotate their product offer over their rivals. I therefore see the changing nature of our
industry as a real opportunity to embrace a fresh approach. Suppliers and retailers are all in this together - so we should be open-minded to supporting each other.
What’s the biggest challenge and opportunity facing housewares suppliers? Suppliers are facing a decline in our independent customer base, coupled with the well published struggles of the multiple retailers, where the focus has been on endless discounting events and an own-label strategy - leaving less and less to go for. For me, the opportunity lies more with niche
‘lifestyle’ brands that can appeal to a wide range of distribution channels to broaden sales and reduce my risk within any given category.
Witloft Classic Leather Apron in Black/Cognac
the loyalty and genuine interest from their local customer base. It’s a fine example of how an independent can triumph over the internet and multiples. Trevor Mottram cookshop [in the Kent town of
Tunbridge Wells] has always been a favourite of mine. It is always evolving… trying new product and offering quality - and [joint managing director] Sarah Wood is an oracle of knowledge and wisdom when it comes to product!
What’s the biggest challenge and opportunity facing housewares retailers? Obviously the countrywide decline of our high street is a major challenge for us all. But where rents
What’s the biggest change you’ve seen since you joined the housewares industry? With great sadness, it’s the downturn in the independent sector. I remember when I was out and about as a territory manager some years ago; it was easy to arrange three or four appointments a day as part of a regular journey plan. Due to all the major challenges that independents now face, supporting them with such a model cost-effectively becomes harder. I have had to adapt my own business model and have sadly moved away from using territory agents, focusing more on direct emailing, Instagram and the good old phone call instead. It’s not like the good old days and I miss them. But I accept that’s the new reality.
What one change would you like to see in the housewares industry? It’s a pipe dream I know, but I would love to see the
Nicola range by VIVA Scandinavia
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industry move away from the never-ending discounting trap driven by the big boys. I find the whole Black Friday concept abhorrent. It
devalues what we strive to do, dilutes sales and erodes margin. I would love to see so much more emphasis put on customer service and quality. That is what will keep people in our stores. When I go shopping, what I remember is the
service I receive, good or bad. The ‘saving’ I may have made I easily forget.
What advice would you give to someone starting out in the housewares industry? From my perspective as a supplier, its people, people, people. Yes, we now operate in challenging times, but what still makes our industry for me is the people within it. Take time to get to know people, ask their opinions and listen. Nurture your customers and go the extra mile for them. Never be too busy or important to spend some time on the shop floor with the people who sell your products, and say thank you. It costs nothing and goes a long way.
Five years ago this month in Housewares Magazine…
• Lifetime Brands acquired Thomas Plant (Birmingham) Ltd, which trades as KitchenCraft, for an undisclosed sum. The deal broadened the customer base of Lifetime Brands in the UK and Europe.
• Celebrity cook Mary Berry linked up with Lakeland to launch her first exclusive range of bakeware with the housewares chain. Meanwhile, Lakeland director and co-founder Martin Rayner announced his retirement from his day-to-day role within the buying team, after 42 years working for the business that his father founded in 1964.
• Denby celebrated the 25th anniversary of its Imperial Blue tableware pattern.
• The Pantone Color Institute revealed that PANTONE 18-3224 Radiant Orchid was its Colour of the Year for 2014.
• TICCuk bread proving baskets and Kitchen Craft Home Made glass storage jars were the current best-selling products at Loose’s Cookshop in Norwich and The Billericay Cookshop in Essex respectively.
• Housewares supplier BergHOFF UK launched in the UK, making its debut at Spring Fair with the focus on its cookware, tea & coffee and tools & gadgets collections, as well as its designer and eco-conscious ranges. Headquartered in Belgium, BergHOFF UK is part of the BergHOFF Worldwide family.
• German knife manufacturer Wusthof commemorated 200 years of trading, at the German trade show Ambiente.
January/February 2019
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Source: Housewares Magazine January/February 2014
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