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Retailers Drive Black Friday/Small Biz Saturday Sales Socially
Independent retailer members of Gourmet Catalog & Buying Group participating in a brand-new social-selling platform offered by QWIQQ are gearing up for new ways to drive sales this holiday season, beginning Black Friday and Small Business Saturday. QWIQQ is connecting participating Gourmet Catalog store members with its specialty app designed to sell merchandise directly to consumers in their communities across some of the most important and influential social media platforms – Facebook, Twitter and Foursquare. Mobile shopping will account for nearly 20 percent of this year’s anticipated $61.8 billion in holiday sales, according to QWIQQ co-founder, Jack Wrigley. Dallas-based QWIQQ ... |
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EveryWare Plans Factory Expansion, New Canning Line
EveryWare Global Inc., a leader in the consumer tabletop and foodservice markets based in Lancaster, Ohio, is investing $1.8 million to expand factory capacity at its Monaca, Pa., facility and produce a new line of made-in-America glass Mainstays Canning Jars for Wal-Mart. The investment supports Wal-Mart’s commitment to buy an additional $50billion in U.S.-made products over the next 10 years. “Investing in U.S. manufacturing is critical to the long-term success of our business,” said John Sheppard, EveryWare CEO. “We have had a strong relationship with Wal-Mart for almost 25 years and have witnessed firsthand their commitment to customers, to better ... |
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Sous-Vide Developers Turn to Kickstarter for Business Boost
In an effort to bring an attainably priced and complete sous-vide cooking package to home cooks everywhere, a group of friends and self-proclaimed “foodies” in the San Diego area launched a Kickstarter campaign for the AquaChef Clarity, a cooking appliance that transforms everyday food into gourmet-quality meals. The AquaChef Clarity makes it simple for home cooks of all skill levels to prepare meats, fish and other items. Sous vide is French for “under vacuum.” Using AquaChef Clarity, ingredients are placed in a vacuum-sealed bag and submerged in the water-filled oven, which is preset to the final and most desirable consumption ... |
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Gourmet Catalog Anticipates High Attendance at Member Event
Gourmet Catalog & Buying Group, the leading and original buying group in the housewares industry, will begin 2014 with its largest Start the Year Member Event to date. The 11th annual member conference taking place Jan. 8 and 9, 2014, at AmericasMart Atlanta will feature the popular full-day private trade show and two industry keynotes. The two-day members-only conference offers store and vendor members a chance to network, introduce and review new products, and participate in sales demonstrations and learning opportunities. Highlights include small-group discussions, guest speakers, a networking lunch, a buffet supper and the vendor showcase. Guest keynote speakers on ... |
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Entrepreneur Buys, Revamps Healthy Solutions Spice Blends
In March, Shelly Wolcott purchased the assets of Healthy Solutions Spice Blends, a maker of 16 spice blends that are recipe-ready and made to cook with fish, beef, pork and poultry. Since making the purchase, Wolcott has reviewed all of the ingredients inherited in the existing spice blends, reformulated each of the blends to eliminate any unnecessary ingredients and artificial colors, and redesigned Healthy Solutions Spice Blends’ existing retail packaging. Now, six months later, Healthy Solutions Spice Blends are made with no MSG, are low in carbohydrates, have no additives or preservatives, and the bulk of the line is made ... |
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Bob’s Red Mill Expands With New World Distribution Center
Bob’s Red Mill Natural Foods, the employee-owned provider of whole-grain and gluten-free foods, plans a major expansion of its production and distribution facilities to continue to meet growing demand for its gluten-free ingredients.The Milwaukie, Ore.-based company expects to open its new world distribution center in January 2014 in Clackamas County two miles from the company’s headquarters just outside of Portland, Ore. The company has secured a 125,000-square-foot facility, with options for additional adjoining space, and will move all storage and distribution to the new building, freeing up additional production space at its headquarters. The move was driven by a need ... |
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Customer Service Drives Holiday Season Loyalty
More than two-thirds of consumers plan to shop at the same retailers they did last year, with 70 percent saying they plan to do so to remain loyal to certain retailers because of good customer service.PriceGrabber’s Winter Holiday Shopping Survey reveals that online retailers and discount stores continue to remain the most popular destinations for holiday shopping. When asked to select all the types of stores where consumers plan to shop for gifts, 75 percent chose online retailers, and 68 percent said they would visit discount stores. Shoppers are also looking for convenience when deciding where to shop. Free shipping ... |
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Tesco’s Fresh & Easy Stores Go to Auction
Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market Inc., which filed for Chapter 11 protection Sept. 30, has received approval from the courts to auction its stores on Nov. 19, with Yucaipa Cos. emerging as the leading bidder to date.The proposed auction is expected to save approximately 4,000 jobs and was approved by U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin J. Carey, who also approved guidelines for the sale.By Nov. 15, all interested buyers must submit offers. Tesco plc, the U.K. parent company of Fresh & Easy, will hold an auction only if it receives a competing qualified bid, according to reports. On Nov. 21, a ... |
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Pastry Chef Chris Hanmer Headlines Dallas Housewares & Gourmet Market
Chris Hanmer, a rising star in the pastry industry and winner of Bravo’s “Top Chef Just Desserts,” will present a cooking demonstration on Jan. 18, 2014, on The Culinary Stage during the Dallas Total Housewares & Gourmet Market.Chris Hanmer’s culinary career has steadily progressed from peeling potatoes at a country club at the age of 15 to claiming a gold medal as the youngest-ever American chef to win a World Pastry Team Championship. In 2006, he became the executive pastry chef for the Ritz-Carlton Lake Las Vegas, and in 2010, opened The School of Pastry Design in Las Vegas. In ... |
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Authentic, Premium-Quality Chorizo Comes to America
Pata Negra LLC, a group of Spanish entrepreneurs with more than 25 years of experience in the European food industry, now bring truly authentic, dry-cured chorizo to American consumers through the launch of the Imperial brand.These artisan-cured sausages, authentic to the standard set in the Extremadura region of Spain, are now available in five varieties – Imperial Chorizo, Imperial Salchicon, Imperial Fuet, Imperial Sarta, and Imperialitos.According to Pata Negra, Steven Jenkins, described as “New York’s highest-profile grocer” (New York Magazine) and “the enfant terrible of the fancy food business” (The New York Times), rates Imperial chorizo “the most delicious example ... |
