What's next?
As people have heard the news that I'm retiring, the question of what are you going to do now keeps rearing its persistent head. I don't know. I've never not worked from high school days selling cheap women's clothes to covering elections to teaching folks how to be better editors and publishers to now: The coolest job in the industry has been mine for seven years and I've loved every moment of...
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Relishing the luxe consumer
Everyone, including us, seems to have discovered and embraced the luxury consumer. She's the current hot topic of conversation among retailers and vendors and she is the reason you are getting a copy of the second issue of Relish with this month's Home Accents Today. After all, she's a dream come true — money to spend and the inclination to spend it.
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Speak up about knock-offs
Oprah, we're not. As tempting as it would be to have the power Oprah wields on any topic, we have to resort to more ordinary methods of getting people's attention. However, we're taking designer Rick Janecek's advice to heart and asking our readers what they think about our industry's continuing copying of the design of others.
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Resolving to improve
Like nearly everyone else when a new year rolls around, we're making a couple of changes here at Home Accents Today — improvements, we believe. Now, we're not talking about New Year's resolutions — they hardly last until month-end. At least for me. We're talking about making our magazine more informative and helpful to you.
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A big universe
Maybe it's because I've been immersed in numbers for a couple of months, which is not a place most editors like to find themselves, but the onslaught of post-Thanksgiving stories about shopping is simply too much. Numbers of shoppers are down, sales are up. Consumers plan to spend more, no I meant less.
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Creative retailers offer multiple channels to reach consumers
In a year when American consumers faced grim news of a prolonged war in Iraq, escalating conflicts with Iran and North Korea, soaring gas prices, a slowed housing market and a surprising mid-term election, the economy is managing to do very well, thank you. What should have been felling blows to the economy seem to have glanced off the side.
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Looking forward to 2007
Gazing into a crystal ball may be great fun, but the accuracy of the information is up for debate. Heading toward 2007, the crystal ball becomes even cloudier as questions arise about the changing landscape. Most immediate is the January changing of the guard in Washington as both houses of Congress hand the majority title to the Democrats after more than a decade of Republican power.
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911 to retailers
You know how it is with an idea — it works pretty well and then you decide to embellish it a bit more so it will be a better idea. That's the way it is here at Home Accents Today, where we're always trying to improve content for readers. To that end, we have made a few changes in a regular feature we call Business Update.
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Winterthur magazine to highlight licensees
A new magazine is debuting. targeting Winterthur fans and supportive of its extensive list of furniture and accessory licensees. Winterthur is the historic home of Henry Francis du Pont near Wilmington, Del. The quarterly magazine is being published by Pace Communications Inc., a North Carolina-based company that publishes a variety of consumer magazines.
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New design floor to open in Chicago
Market Square, long a familiar name at the High Point Market, will travel north in 2007 to take on a new image in the Chicago market. Targeted to the design trade and lifestyle and specialty retailers, Market Square at the Merchandise Mart: A New Collection for Home + Living will debut in July 2007. Some 40,000 square feet of showroom space will be converted to the concept initially with an add...
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New design floor to open in Chicago
Market Square, long a familiar name at this market, will travel north in 2007 to take on a new image in the Chicago market.
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New Winterthur magazine to highlight licensees
Licensees and staff of Winterthur gathered in Greensboro, N.C., Sunday evening to celebrate a new Winterthur magazine targeted to Winterthur fans and supportive of its extensive list of furniture and accessory licensees.
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Looking really good
Markets are exciting for all kinds of reasons: new products, new companies, who's not here any longer, crowd size, face lifts (corporate and personal) — you can make your own list. There is even more buzz about this market, now officially the High Point Market, as attendees figure out the new schedule.
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The magic of Maison is neutral
The message from France at last month's Maison & Objet show was loud, clear and neutral. Not to be mistaken for boring, the color spectrum that dominated the show was neutral. Rich and imaginative shades of taupe, café au lait, sand and lots of gray sometimes underlined with lavender, were the shades of choice.
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Pondering the crowds
Walking up to an exhibitor at a recent show, I asked the usual almost rhetorical question: So, how's the market for you? The answer I loved: How are you measuring — the old market standard or the new one? There is no doubt markets are changing. We still stand around at any of them (and there are plenty of them) and comment on the size of the crowds.
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Vegas Building B set for January opening
The management of the World Market Center exercised their bragging rights on completion of the newest building in the Las Vegas complex during the July show. "Anyone who didn't take us seriously before, will now," said Dave Palmer, general manager of WMC. "This January we will have more than 500 permanent showrooms" in addition to temps at Cashman Center and the Pavilions.
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Building B set for January opening
From the 16th floor panoramic view of Las Vegas to the more than 300 exhibitors already signed, the management of the World Market Center exercised their bragging rights on completion of the newest building of the complex.
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Italian tabletop stars at Europe's Finest
Entertaining and all that word suggests are connected in most people's minds to the Italian lifestyle - good food, wine and beautiful tables set to evoke the romance of the country. At this show, those images are coming to life with a major display in the Europe's Finest section (MM, first floor), which opens today.
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