Publisher/Advertising
David Spencer
dspencer@gourmetbusiness.com
877-438-4932 ext. 1
Executive Editor
Michelle Moran
mmoran@gourmetbusiness.com
239-992-2404
Contributing Editor
James Mellgren
jmellgren@gourmetbusiness.com
510-517-9569
Creative Director
Penelope Korff
penny@korffdesign.com
Director of Custom Media
Jack Wrigley
jwrigley@gourmetbusiness.com
214-783-2525
Copy Editor
Alka Ahuja
Subscriber Services
info@gourmetbusiness.com
Vice President of Sales
Brad Simon
bsimon@gourmetbusiness.com
800-765-9797
Director of Business Development
Ed Loeb
eloeb@gourmetbusiness.com
877-438-4932 ext. 7
Advertising Sales – Midwest
Arnie Bennett
abennett@gourmetbusiness.com
847-590-1332
Advertising Sales – West Coast
Frank Prokos
fprokos@gourmetbusiness.com
312-343-3253
Gourmet Business LLC is a division of
HousewaresDirect, Inc.
Corporate Offices:
Gourmet Business &
HousewaresDirect, Inc.
PO Box 700, Weston, MA 02493
Gourmet Business is a digital publication serving the gourmet gift
retailer. Gourmet Business relies on product information submitted by
the manufacturer, distributor or other representative in the featured
editorial content. Gourmet Business is not responsible for any errors in
the descriptions or prices appearing in the magazine. Gourmet Business
is distributed free of charge to qualified professionals in the gift and
housewares industries.
We just returned from Ambi-
ente in Germany, where we
were able to see housewares
products from all over the
world. While some of the prod-
ucts we saw there may not be
destined for the U.S. market,
it helps us to identify trends
in design and manufacturing
that often shape trends in our
market in the years to come.
We also look forward to this
show because it allows us to
spend quality time with our
present and future partners
who are not quite as busy as
they would be at a show on their home turf. I often wonder
as I walk the aisles why more of the products we see don’t
have a presence in our market. The answer, I assume, is that
the companies are not willing to make the large investment
to create the brand awareness necessary to be successful in
our competitive market. Occasionally, we see manufacturers
dabble and test the waters, but they quickly learn that brand
is everything.
I was intrigued to hear more than one story from well-known
suppliers of branded product that they had made some bold
moves to protect the integrity of their brand with retailers who
were not honoring company pricing policies. In some cases,
they were pulling in the reins of some of their e-commerce
trading partners who were exploiting their cost advantage to
undercut the MAP standards and devalue the brand. There
were also instances of major retailers offering occasional uniform sales pricing that enabled items to be purchased below
the accepted standard. I was pleasantly surprised that these
suppliers were willing to turn their backs on a substantial
amount of business because it was having a negative impact
on the rest of their channel partners. The companies that are
willing to take a short-term sales hit for the benefit of long-term growth truly understand the power of a consistent brand
strategy and identity. In order for suppliers to continue to
make these difficult financial decisions, I
sincerely hope that their current channel
partners reward them with greater
commitment to the brand.
I know that e-commerce sales have
grown substantially over the years, and
have become an important outlet for
specialty brands. The explosive growth
has also made it difficult for companies
to monitor what is happening with their
brand. Fortunately, many strong e-commerce retailers have emerged that
do respect the sensitive nature of price.
We look forward to honoring one such
successful Internet merchant, Cutlery
and More, this month with the first gia
award for a pure Internet retailer. This
company is an outstanding e-tailer that
proves that online retailing can provide
value to its customers without discounting price.
In this issue, we continue to promote
the health story, by reminding you of
the purest play of all … juicing. There
are endless studies to suggest that pure
juice has many health benefits in addition to being an important element of a
healthy diet. The current generation of
juicers is better than ever at extracting
the maximum amount of juice from fruit
and vegetable pulp. If you don’t currently feature one of the new-generation
machines, I encourage you to consider
these products to add to your healthy
assortment.
David Spencer
Publisher, Gourmet Business
President, HousewaresDirect, Inc.
