Issue link: http://osercommunicationsgroup.uberflip.com/i/502158
H a r d w a r e & H o u s e w a r e s R e v i e w T h u r s d a y, M a y 7 , 2 0 1 5 6 6 GT: We offer the opportunity for retailers to carry organic, sustainable products that yield year-round profits in a catego- ry that has traditionally been limited to seasonal sales. The teams at Hydrofarm are dedicated to manufacturing and sourcing products that bring innovative technology and ease of use to indoor and outdoor gardeners. This includes first- time gardeners as well as professionals. HHR: What emerging trends does Hydrofarm believe retailers should capi- talize on? GT: There is an increasing interest in planting and growing year-round indoors, including urban growing in containers, among all age groups. A large part of this is the rapidly growing enthusiasm among "foodies" and organics devotees for greater self-suf- ficiency in food supply, sustainable products, organic nutrients, LED light- ing, next-generation fluorescent fix- tures, and HID sodium and halide Hydrofarm (Cont'd. from p. 1) lighting. Customers are beginning to look for – and increasingly expect to see – these products in hardware and garden center stores. The bottom line is: make it easy for your customers to be successful in indoor gardening, and you will see growth and increased profits. HHR: What can Hydrofarm offer hard- ware retailers to help them grow into emerging markets? GT: We offer everything they need! We can provide the products, information and expertise that will help them add extra profits and feed the passions of consumers who want to grow indoors during fall and winter. We also offer training related to specific products, Plan-O-Grams to fit retailers' needs, Point Of Sale displays and other forms of support. For more information, go to www.hydro farmgc.com, call 800.634.9990, email info@hydrofarm.com or stop by booth #14051. alternators and control systems. Today, Kipor has a strong research and development team, a high energy management team and a state of the art production facility. Kipor produces more than 400 different models in four major product groups. Most have achieved internationally recognized safety and environmental certifications, including CE, EPA, UL, CSA, CARB and CETL. Part of Kipor's success is due to the fact that it is always looking for the next great technological innovation. It con- tinuously searches for new materials, techniques and systems that will help to build better products and offer cus- tomers even higher levels of perform- ance and service. The North American market is very important to Kipor. In 2011, Kipor opened its North American support divi- sion, Kipor Power Equipment, Inc. (KPE), with the headquarters located in Clackamas, Ore. KPE is responsible for Kipor (Cont'd. from p. 1) complete sales, service, warranty and parts support for all of the North American market. Since their establishment, KPE has maintained continued sales increases and has expanded its market penetration into outdoor power equip- ment, RV, rental, industrial and hard- ware markets. KPE supports a strong and growing distributor and dealer base in the U.S.A. and Canada. KPE currently focuses on portable genera- tors and small industrial and construc- tion equipment. KPE is cognizant of identifying opportunities for new prod- ucts and is very dedicated to support, expansion and growth. Stop by Kipor booth #44095 and see what plans Kipor has in store for the upcoming months. It will be displaying many of its products, ranging from the KGFC Transporter, KLE series LED Light Towers, KLA Balloon Light Towers and Digital Inverter Generators. Visit Kipor at booth #44095. Strip and Mini Power Squid. Our most popular ones are our 7 and 10 outlet Smart Strips and our Mini Squid with USB ports. The Smart Strip has energy saving technology that automatically detects when a device has been powered on or off, so the strip can supply or remove power to the device. HHR: What do you plan to talk about at the show? RB: BITS Limited is announcing the development of our new Super Smart Strip. This item will be available August 2015. The Super Smart Strip saves five times more energy than our standard Smart Strip, which will be confirmed by the Cal Plug study of California in late June. The Super Smart Strip works with your TV (Entertainment Center). It senses if you are watching your TV. If you have not touched your remote in an hour, the Super Smart Strip IR sensor starts to flash, asking you if you are still there. If you have fallen asleep BITS Limited (Cont'd. from p. 1) in front of your TV or your kids have run out the door to play, leaving the TV on, then the Super Smart Strip shuts off your TV and all the products around your TV, stopping phantom current from flowing to those items and saving you energy. If you touch any remote, then the Super Smart Strip resets for another hour. HHR: Tell our readers about the Mini Squid. RB: The Mini Squid is a surge protec- tor designed for travel. It only weighs about five ounces, it's mountable and has four outlets, each on a flexible cord. The fourth cord has two USB outlets, making it easy to charge any product. We started distributing this product in January and it has been a huge success. Visit BITS Limited at booth 4310. For more information, call or write BITS Limited VP of Sales, Scott Wilson, at 831.419.1627 or scott.wilson@bitsltd.net. Hardware Show to introduce RapidFix UV to our current customers and find new distribution opportunities. RapidFix UV is an amazing ultraviolet cured liq- uid plastic adhesive that only sets when it's exposed to UV light. This allows the user to take as much time as needed to position pieces properly. Then when they shine the special LED flashlight that's included with RapidFix UV on the adhe- sive, it hardens in about 10 seconds and dries clear. HHR: How can people use RapidFix UV? LK: It's great for making emergency repairs on plastics, glass, metal and fiber- glass. At home, it'll bond ceramics and jewelry. You can even use it to repair a gap in a wood floor. You can sand it light- ly and spray polyurethane or paint, and you won't see it – it's like it's just not there anymore. You can use it in chil- dren's toys or to glue together the pieces of a model airplane. You can apply it to cracks in windshields to stop the cracks from spreading or cracks in headlights and taillights. It can also be an insulator with low voltage electricity and you can even repair circuit boards. Really, the uses are just endless. And at a retail price of $25.95 for both the adhesive and the special LED UV flashlight, it's very affordable, too. HHR: With its UV curing process, this is clearly different from the RapidFix prod- RapidFix USA (Cont'd. from p. 1) uct we already know. Can you tell our readers more about the differences? LK: The RapidFix Dual Adhesive System incorporates an instant adhesive and a welding powder, a combination that can be used to repair almost any- thing. You can repair copper pipe, PVC, jewelry, glass, ceramics – so many things. Glass, rubber, metals, fiberglass. It can be used by professional trades per- sons, DIY, model-making, and to repair sports equipment. The RapidFix product combines an instant adhesive and a welding powder. The adhesive can be used on its own to instantly bond most materials, includ- ing rubber, glass, copper, aluminum, steel and most plastics. The RapidFix Welding Powder is used in conjunction with the adhesive to instantly fill all types of holes, cracks or gaps, and it'll produce a strong weld seam that sup- ports the repair, just like you see with a soldered or welded joint. You know how when you break a ceramic or glass item, you often get those shards or sliv- ers that are too small to work with? RapidFix Welding Powder can fill that gap when you glue the pieces back together. Then you can sand it or file it smooth and repaint it to have a perfect repair. RapidFix saves time, saves money and is just amazing. Best of all, it will not dry out in the bottle, we guar- antee it for 12 months. For more information, visit booth #6818, email lenkelsey@aol.com, call 231.793.3600 or go to www.rapidfix.com. BOOST SALES WITH SUN GRO'S RESILIENCE ENHANCED MIXES Sun Gro Horticulture ® is proud to introduce Resilience™, mixes enhanced with silicon. Available in select Black Gold ® , Fafard ® , Sunshine ® and Sunshine Advanced ® premi- um potting soils. Resilience is Sun Gro's brand name for growing mixes enriched with beneficial silicon, a patented technolo- gy developed by the company's own research horticulturists. These enhanced potting mixes offer IGC retailers, growers and consumers big benefits! In numerous trials, plants grown in Resilience mixes show increased stem diameter, improved root growth, increased drought tolerance and even earlier flowering, saving retailers and growers time, money and worry while providing consumers with a better product. Plants even recover better from less-than-perfect watering, which gives them a longer shelf life. "This is a major horticultural break- through," says Chris Bednar, Sun Gro's COO. "Growers can now deliver stronger, more vigorous, longer-lasting plants – from the greenhouse to retail to con- sumer gardens. This will increase sales and reduce plant losses for our growers and garden retailers." What are the Benefits of Resilience-Enhanced Mixes? Time and time again, research at universities, in commercial grower trials and at the Sun Gro Discovery Center, supports significant and dramatic positive results. Trials have shown that plants grown in silicon-enriched mixes have the following advantages: 40 per- cent better root growth for increased nutrient uptake and support; 12 percent increased stem diameter for stronger plants and reduced breakage; 77 percent longer time before wilt for increased shelf life; and 13 percent earli- er flowering for more attractive plants, faster. Where Can I Find Resilience? Resilience patented technology is offered exclusively by Sun Gro Horticulture. For technical and horticultural information about this product, talk with your Sun Gro sales representative or check out www.sungro.com. For more information, go to www .sungro.com.