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News
Impulse Sales Heat Up for Cool Treat Kitchen Appliances
Dollar sales of small kitchen appliances often used to create cool foods and beverages grew 41 percent in the 12 months ended May 2013, according to The NPD Group Inc., a global information company based in Port Washington, N.Y. Unplanned purchases of these products accounted for more than a quarter of total sales for the same period. “Consumers shopping on a hot day will find products that can help them beat the heat very appealing, whether those items were the reason for their shopping visit or not,” said Debra Mednick, executive director and home industry analyst. The strong performance of ... |
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Specialty Food Supplier Acquires Gift Store in Texas
Connoisseur Management Inc., which sells premium condiments and frozen gourmet meals, has purchased Tea-Licious restaurant outside of Austin, Texas.Connoisseur Management owners, Trace and Liz Catlin, succumbed to the charms of the small town of Burnet after a train ride from Austin included a visit to its historic square dating back to the 1880s. It was happenstance they came upon Tea-Licious and immediately appreciated the atmosphere of its eclectic mix of tearoom and homey general gift store, which included the owner’s unique pickle line. Opened in 1996, Tea-Licious owner Sam McLeod placed his restaurant on the market in 2010 after experiencing ... |
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Quench eMagazine App Now Available on Android
Gourmet Business is featuring its third free app on the Android marketplace for its newly launched Quench e-magazine, furthering its leadership in digital media publishing.Gourmet Business and Fine Cheese & Charcuterie (Cheese Biz 2) e-magazines are also available on the Android marketplace to make it easy for subscribers to access content wherever they are.“We are proud to announce the release of Quench, our third publication with a dedicated app, furthering our leadership in providing knowledge, education and discovery about the gourmet industry in digital media,” said David Spencer, founder and publisher of Gourmet Business. “Our audience already appreciates the portability ... |
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Smith’s Consumer Products CEO Stands Behind Edgeware Brand
After three years of litigation, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office ruled in favor of EdgeCraft Corp. in a trademark case against Smith’s Consumer Products and its use of the Edgeware trademark. Smith’s Consumer Products CEO Dan Glidden said he is not only disappointed in the ruling but “we have worked diligently to build a strong brand and we are fully committed to continue providing our retail partners with innovative, quality knife sharpeners and kitchen tools for the home cook.”The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB), a panel of federal judges, found Smith’s Consumer Products’ Edgeware trademark was confusingly similar ... |
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Two NY NOW Programs Highlight Eco-Friendly Products
NY NOW, the Market for Home & Lifestyle, has two new developments associated with its “green” initiatives to recognize exemplary eco-friendly and socially responsible products. Six products in the summer 2013 SustainAbility: design for a better world exhibit have achieved NY NOW’s highest “Degrees of SustainAbility” status. Additionally, online balloting, with 30 products vying for top honors in three categories, opened on July 15 for the semiannual Eco Choice Awards.“These programs support the main goal of NY NOW’s overall SustainAbility initiative, which is to promote and build awareness of sustainable, earth-friendly home and lifestyle resources,” said Christian Falkenberg, NY NOW ... |
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Study: Consumers Plan to Spend Smarter and Look for Back-to-School Sales
Sixty-eight percent of consumers plan to spend up to $500 this back-to-school shopping season, compared to 63 percent in 2012 and 48 percent in 2011, according to PriceGrabber’s first Back-to-School shopping survey. Additionally, 17 percent of respondents plan to spend between $500 and $1,000, while 15 percent of shoppers said they have no back-to-school shopping budget this year. “The outlook for the back-to-school shopping season remains positive. With the unemployment rate dropping from 8.2 percent in June of 2012 to its current rate of 7.6 percent, shoppers are more inclined to spend than they were in the last couple of ... |
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Gourmet Catalog Retail Summer School Enhances Product Knowledge, Networking
More than 200 top retailers and manufacturers in the gourmet kitchenware industry gathered in Atlanta for the fourth annual Gourmet Catalog Retail Summer School, which provides in-depth training and education on today’s top kitchenware products during the International Gift & Home Furnishings Show. Gourmet Catalog’s Retail Summer School offered an additional half-day of vendor presentations for store members to learn, network and experience educational training. Store members listened to group presentations from vendors including EdgeCraft/Chef’sChoice, Smith’s Consumer Products, Full Circle, Magefesa, OXO, soireéhome, tag, William Bounds, Zojirushi and Wüsthof. Following the presentations, vendors demonstrated and discussed merchandise referenced during the ... |
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EdgeCraft Prevails in Trademark Case Against Smith’s Consumer Products
After three years of litigation, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office ruled in favor of EdgeCraft Corp. in a trademark case against Smith’s Consumer Products and its use of the Edgeware trademark. The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB), a panel of federal judges, found Smith’s Consumer Products’ Edgeware trademark was confusingly similar to the EdgeCraft trademark owned by EdgeCraft Corp. and therefore “likely to cause confusion, mistake, or deception.” As a result, they ordered cancellation of the three Edgeware trademark registrations. EdgeCraft, in an effort to protect its brands, filed the trademark registration cancellation action against Smith’s Consumer Products ... |
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Zoku Wins Korean Trademark Office Ruling Over International Intellectual Property Rights
Zoku has won a ruling by the Korean Trademark Office that enforces the company’s intellectual property rights for its award-winning and patented Quick Pop Maker. The Korean Trademark Office refused the registration of an imitative mark, stating it did not qualify for registration under Article 7(1)(12) of the Korean Trademark Act. “We are satisfied with the outcome of this ruling,” said Ken Zorovich, president of Hoboken, N.J.-based Zoku. “Protecting our patents and trademarks has always been an imperative part of our strategy, and we will continue to vigorously enforce our intellectual property rights to protect our products, brand, and reputation.” ... |
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Nespresso, Fairtrade International Join Forces to Support Colombian Co-ops
Fairtrade International and Nespresso have teamed up on a long-reaching partnership under which Nespresso has committed to source a growing proportion of its coffee from Fairtrade-certified cooperatives. This partnership is designed to provide thousands of smallholder coffee farmers with even greater income security, as well as better support the development of strong, representative farmer organizations. The partnership unites Fairtrade with Nespresso’s AAA Sustainable Quality Program, which has had a proven impact in helping farmers improve quality, sustainability and productivity, as well as contributing wider social and economic benefits. The announcement comes as Nespresso celebrates 10 years of its AAA Program. ... |
