According to the International Housewares Association (IHA), housewares accounted for $301 billion (U.S.) at retail worldwide in 2007. So what will drive those sales into next year? Respecting Generational Divides, Living Within Our Means, the Live-In Kitchen, the Green Kitchen, the Wellness Kitchen and Cooking for Fun are the most important trends at work in the consumer marketplace in the future, said a panel of experts at the 2009 International Home + Housewares Show earlier this week.
Owned and operated by the IHA, the Show, held March 21-24 at McCormick Place, Chicago, featured nearly 2,000 exhibitors from five continents, including more than 400 new companies that introduced thousands of new products.
The panel discussion, “Top Trends for 2010,” was led by Tom Mirabile, vice president, global trend and design, at Lifetime Brands, Inc. Joining Mirabile was Susan Yashinsky, vice president, marketing, Sphere Trending, a trend consulting firm; Sharilyn Ruckman, president, Ruckman + Company, a creative strategy and product development company; and Curt Bailey, president, Sundberg-Ferar, Inc., a leading industrial design firm.
The panelists gave the six top trends for the housewares industry for 2010 for four age groups — Gen Y, Gen X, Baby Boomers and Prime Timers — and provided recession-proof strategies for all of them. The groups view the kitchen differently, and the panelists cited one trend as respecting the generational divides between them.
The Gen Y group is aged 14-33 and is completely connected and wired all day. Most rent an apartment rather than own a home, are still in school or are just entering the work force. The Gen X group is aged 34-43 and typically is raising a family, so the kitchen is a family communications hub for them. Baby Boomers are aged 44-63 and are either entering the empty-nester phase or are experiencing children and/or parents moving back in with them. The panelists said the group is going to need to work longer than planned, but are still the highest group of discretionary income for housewares. Prime Timers (age 64+) are concerned with safe aging-in-place. They want to grow old where they are, they are inventing themselves, and their focus is on ergonomics and intuitive design. Product weight and visibility are key considerations for this group.
“With all of these groups, you need to have a recession-proof strategy,” Mirabile said. “It is important to have a plan of attack and address each generation’s touch points.”
Living in Our Kitchens
The second trend, the panelists said, is the Live-In Kitchen. “The average American spends three to four hours in the kitchen each day,” Mirabile said. “With respect to the recession, you need to think about the entire kitchen experience and how this impacts the way you segment and cross-sell your merchandise, such as special zones for food prep, an area for gaming and crafting, and areas for entertaining, for example.”
“There’s no room in the marketplace for all things and all people, so you need to figure out how to be something to somebody,” Bailey added. “Narrow your audience and be unique, whether it’s gender or geography, you need to embrace out of the ordinary.”
Living Within Our Means
The third trend, living within our means, the panelists said, was created solely by the recession. “The recession is changing the way we view cash versus credit,” Mirabile said. “Durability is now more important, in addition to redefining leisure-time activities. That is a huge opportunity for our industry. Yet, at the same time, you are fighting for a smaller piece of the discretionary income. Household expenses that did not exist 20 years ago like Internet service are now considered nonexpendable, which reduces the money left for housewares and home products.” He added that products like pressure cookers, slow cookers, airtight storage products and canning products are gaining in popularity, and are helping people to live within their means.
“Make sure that you are speaking to this new mindset,” Mirabile said. “Find ways to help people cook at home versus eating out. And overall, send a message of quality and durability with your products.”
“Consumers are increasingly saying, ‘Figure it out and don’t charge me more for it. Make me want to buy because I don’t have extra money to spend right now,’” added Yashinsky.
The Green Kitchen
The Green Kitchen, the panelists noted, is one trend that is gaining momentum with each day. “Being green is becoming a key factor in the way consumers view companies and each other,” Mirabile said. “Even consumers who aren’t green are getting pressure from their children, parents and peers at work … green is a huge power.”
Yet, Bailey stressed the need for a housewares company to be legitimate with its green claims. “Consumers are asking for green, but the reality is that there is a lot of misinformation. Do your homework and be authentic. There is a well-connected group of consumers who will call you out on false claims.”
The Wellness Kitchen & Cooking for Fun
The Wellness Kitchen trend is relatively new, the panelists noted, and is affected by the state of the economy. It’s about nutrition, plans to live longer and an overall commitment to well-being, and it is driven by maximized nutrition, purified air and water, stress management, effective rejuvenation, and beneficial exercise.
“With this trend, you should focus on helping consumers save money and offer options that help them make more healthful decisions like home food prep easier and retain nutritional value,” Ruckman said.
The final trend, Cooking for Fun, involves creating shared experiences and enjoying life’s simpler pleasures. It involves the Food Channel, kids as a new generation of cooking enthusiasts, celebrity chefs and “gastrosexuals,” a breed of men who consider cooking cool and use it to impress friends and prospective partners.
“Whether you are a retailer or manufacturer, you have to show that you understand the cooking enthusiast,” Mirabile stressed. “You have to create marketing tactics that provide inspiration and education, like Try Me’s, POP displays, in-store demos and newsletters. The cooking enthusiast also understands the value of an upgrade, and that is an opportunity for you, because this trend is here to stay.”
The International Home + Housewares Show featured thousands of housewares and homegoods products for every room in the house, apartment or condo — and outdoor living, too. From high-end international design to trend-setting basics, products ranged from kitchen electrics and small appliances to gourmet specialty foods and cookware, from bakeware and kitchen tools to home decor, space organizers and storage systems, home health care and home-office to pet supplies, and lawn and garden decor. For more information, visit www.housewares.org.