The International Housewares Association annual International Home + Housewares Show Preview, held in New York City, demonstrated that the home merchandise sector continues to dream up new ways to make the lives of consumers easier and more interesting.
For example, Bradshaw International featured its GoodCook Touch Ice Cube Tray at the event. The product, which is under consideration for a 2018 Housewares Design Award, provides two fluid-ounce capacity compartments that can be lidded so consumers can freeze portions of anything from baby food to herbal oil starters.
Chefman threw a spotlight on the Froth and Brew, which enables users to make cappuccinos and lattes with a single appliance and a single process, as well as the newly developed Conveyor Toaster, which provides a feature intended to attract busy consumers. Food can be placed on a conveyor outside the oven itself for carriage through to the far side where it can be retrieved, so keeping the cooking process moving along.
Many participants at the IHA event offered improvements on earlier ideas, such as the Casabella Ergo Broom Plus with Dustpan. Designed for comfortable use, Casabella showcased a feature in the form of a new replaceable broom head that permits users to replace fraying with new bristles.
As new multi-purpose products enter a market where consumers often look for items that can do more for less of an investment and in less space, Crane USA previewed the Crane Evaporative Humidifier, one that can be converted to an air purifier with the purchase of an additional kit that includes a filter. And speaking of space savings, Meyer Corp’s Farberware Neat Nest cookware incorporates a lock in the handle so that saucepans and sauce pots store together in a pile that never rubs the exterior of one piece against the cooking surface of another.
Foodies certainly got their due at the event, where new products included the Vacuvita One Touch Vacuum Storage System, which allows shoppers to store food in bags and hard containers using a bread box-sized appliance designed to suit any countertop. Van Berkel USA introduced a line of electric and hand-operated slicers with industrial-style designs that might stand as statement pieces for the home chef.
To build on broader trends in the home, Robinson Home Products presented the Craft Kitchen and Studio Cuisine collections, kitchen tools that address the popular demand for artisanal and rustic looks.
The preview event housewares and many others will welcome participants to the International Home + Housewares Show, running from March 10 to 13 in Chicago.