With the vast evolution of today’s retail landscape continuing to effect the way housewares are marketed and sold both in-store and online, the International Housewares Association (IHA) will focus its annual Chief Housewares Executive SuperSession (CHESS) on how suppliers can use current challenges to grow their business.
To be held in Rosemont, IL from October 3 to October 4, the event will focus on the overall theme “Consumer Alignment… Embracing Change for Growth,” and feature a keynote address from Wayfair CEO and co-founder, Niraj Shah, as well as executives from Google, One Click Retail and The NPD Group.
According to the IHA, Shah will discuss the evolution of e-commerce on October 3, in the “The Evolution of E-Commerce – Key Considerations for Manufacturers as Consumers Shift Spending Online,” session. The session will focus on how Shah and co-founder Steve Conine rapidly grew the business, outline the strategies they use to remain competitive online and offer solutions addressing typical pain points manufacturers experience as they transform their business to serve the online channel.
Futurist David Houle will host the event’s first session, “Future Shift and Transformation: 2017-2037,” examining the transformation in energy, transportation, healthcare, intelligence, production and distribution and how to adapt in the age of climate change.
Other CHESS sessions include, “Housewares Hot Seat Panel: Changing Channels,” in which Peter Giannetti, editor-in-chief of HomeWorld Business, will moderate a panel of housewares CEO’s including Bruce Kaminstein, Casabella Holdings; Kris Malkoski, World Kitchen; and Neal Asbury, The Legacy Companies, which will explore mounting channel management challenges because of e-commerce disruption.
“The Future is So Bright,” will explore the five to 10 year window of growth the housewares industry hasn’t seen since the 1990s, with Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst, and Joe Derochowski, chief home analyst, The NPD Group
“Generational Family Feud” will simulate the TV show, pitting a team of Millennials versus a team of Baby Boomers to see how they answer questions about their shopping habits with Warren Shoulberg, editorial director of HFN, Gifts & Decorative Accessories and Home + Textiles Today, and Maureen Azzato, publisher/editorial director, HFN.
Session will also include social media influencer marketing with Inspired Home contributors from Clean My Space and Bigger Bolder Baking; retail trends with Dana Telsey and Joe Feldman of Telsey Advisory Group; a review of anti-trust pricing challenges by attorney Wendy Newton; and a look at consumers’ online behavior with executives from Google, Wayfair and One Click Retail.
