Oser Communications Group

GENERAL NEWS KITCHENWARE NEWS & HOUSEWARES REVIEW n JULY 2017 n www.kitchenwarenews.com 12 BY GREG GONZALES Filament Brands, the parent company of Rabbit, Chef 'n, Taylor, Salter and Springfield, launched a new hydration brand, d.stil. The new brand is focused on combining function with style. Designed and engineered by the team behind Chef 'n, a Seattle-based company with more than 30 years of product design excellence, d.stil offers a collection designed with a unique combination of colors, materials and finishes. d.stil is purpose-driven and empowers consumers to look good and give back with every sip through a partnership with Water.org. The brand has been three years in the making, and Brand Manager Brighid Brady has been working on it for two. "I've been with Chef 'n for two years as brand manager. Before my time, the brand had developed a concept of bottles that would meet different use occasions and leverage things we saw missing in the marketplace," said Brady. "The marketplace is getting crowded, and becoming more crowded, but we noticed there was a gap in satisfying the needs of a specific consumer — the consumer that purchases the most of these bottles, which is this woman, 20 to 50 years old, who's active, on the go — and based on our research, using these bottles not just for exercise, but taking it with them for errands, work. These bottles should become a fashion accessory." The idea, she said, to make personalized fashion statements out of hydration vessels. Together with Water.org, an international non-profit organization founded by Gary White and Matt Damon, d.stil strives to empower people by providing access to water and sanitation solutions. d.stil is on a mission to spark change, having already donated to help 400 people with access to safe water since launching the partnership. Each purchase f rom the d.stil brand supports Water.org's important mission to provide people around the world with access to safe water and sanitation. Today, over 663 million people do not have access to safe water and together, with Water.org, the team at d.stil hopes to help end the global water crisis. The group assists people around the world, in the most hard-pressed areas for water and sanitation, aligning resources to provide a water source, but also to build infrastructure, and to help communities build and maintain their own sources and sanitation. From the micro level, Water.org helps communities in the long term. Brady added that d.stil is looking at ways to get even more involved with Water.org in the future. "Water.org is thankful for the support of d.stil. Donations f rom d.stil will help empower families around the world with access to safe water and sanitation," said Gary White, Co-Founder and CEO of Water.org, "We are honored to have such great supporters taking action to change lives with safe water." Initially, the product offering launching at Target stores nationwide includes three collections. They include the Pinch & Carry Water Bottle, the Straw Top Bottle, and the Pop Top Tumbler. The Pinch & Carry comes in stainless steel for $19.99 and Tritan for $14.99, holds 28 oz and includes a convenient carrying strap, along with a large mouth for citrus infusion. The Straw Top Bottle features a distinct and innovative pop-up lid, foldaway straw and silicone grip, for $17.99–$24.99. The Pop-Top Tumbler includes a spill-proof locking lid and double-walled thermal body suitable for hot and cold drinks, at $17.99– $24.99. "We built in some attributes that make the bottles easy to carry; we have a silicone strap on the sports bottle that allows users to slip it onto their wrists, and keep the lid with the bottle, so now losing the lid when it's set aside, or risk spilling when you're in yoga class," Brady said. She added that the bottles were designed with end use in mind, so they are fully recyclable at the end of their life cycles. "Many consumers are steering away from plastics," she said. "The Tritan expresses high quality, BPA-f ree plastic." She also said stainless steel is an important part of the line, "one we're looking to expand into some new ideas in the first part of 2018." The launch is in line with current consumer preferences for brands that show they care. "On increasing numbers of purchases we make, personally, we're choosing brands that make a difference," said Brady. "We, as a company, wanted also to have the opportunity to stand behind something, and the launch of this brand gave us the opportunity to research and align with an organization that we felt could make a difference. For us, it's smart business but it's also where we want to be in terms of our corporate values." "People are using these bottles in more ways than just backpacking and exercise; they've become core accessories and things people carry around everywhere," Brady said. "Particularly, the awareness of staying hydrated and not using disposable bottles has grown." There's something in the name, too. "Coming up with a brand name was no easy feat because, again, it's such a crowded marketplace," said Brady. "The words we relate to water and ref reshing were all trademarked, so we really thought to find a word that expressed this idea of the on-the- go person who's running around, running errands, going to exercise, who needs moment of stillness. Although d.stil has water connotations, it grew out of the idea that we wanted to express stillness. Take a breath. Be still in the middle." KN Filament Brands Introduces Stylish Hydration Brand With Purpose Mirroring the industry's overall interest in handmade products, Las Vegas Market has announced an increase in handmade gift and home décor resources, craft-focused programming and artisan industry partnerships for the Summer 2017 Las Vegas Market, July 30 through August 3. "Las Vegas has experienced substantial and steady increases in handcrafted exhibitors, with a record 320 artisan resources confirmed for the Summer Market. At the same time, we have noted a double-digit gain in buyers identifying handmade as a category of product interest, so there is a commensurate level of increased buying activity," said Dorothy Belshaw, President of Gift Leasing and Chief Marketing Officer, International Market Centers. "As the leading furniture, home decor and gift destination in the western United States, Las Vegas Market is uniquely positioned as the premiere portal to western distribution for global craft resources." A record 320 handmade gift and home décor resources — from across the United States and around the world and representing all media and product categories — will be featured at the Summer 2017 Las Vegas Market in both permanent showrooms and in temporary exhibits in The Pavilions at Las Vegas Market. A concentration of 75 artisans will be presented in the HANDMADE category in Pavilion 1, including first time Las Vegas Market exhibitors Abrazo Style; Amano Trading; Applepear Handcrafted Jewelry; Aroara Industries; Broken Top Candle Company; EllaJude; Grandmother's Buttons; Korbata; LUA Company; Lumily; and World Treasure Trading. The Market also welcomes back former exhibitors Blue Hill by Hand, KOZAKH and Lumia Designs. Artisan collectives also will be featured in other campus locations. An Artisanal LA (ALA) pop-up showcase, in Pavilion 1, will highlight more than 35 Los Angeles-based makers and crafters. The American Made Collective (a showroom on C11) will feature 19 American artisan exhibitors in a 3,636-square- foot showroom. Participants include Carole's Candles; Cynthia Webb Designs; Designer Stone Inc.; Dock 6 Pottery; Erin Smith Art; Heart the Moment; Jacob's Musical Chimes; Juniper Tree Supplies; Michal Golan Jewelry; Michael Michaud Designs; Prairie Dance; Printed Canvas; Samantha Grace Designs; Sabbath-Day Woods; Sea Stones; Spooner Creek & Macone Clay; Sue Rosengard Jewelry Design; TreeStump WoodCrafts; and WATCHCRAFT. Beyond these groupings, there are hundreds of other handmade and artisan resources presented across the Las Vegas Market campus, f rom American-made furniture and hand-tufted rugs from around the world in Buildings A and B to handmade vintage jewelry and accessories in Pavilion 2. A full listing of domestic and international handcrafted resources is available through the online Exhibitor Directory at www.lasvegasmarket.com/ handmade. In an expansion of its partnership with CRAF T (Craft Retailers & Artists for Tomorrow), Las Vegas Market will present two artisan-focused seminars this Summer. "America Gets Crafty!" will address how American Craft Week can help boost in- store traffic and generate sales of American- made products. Speakers include: Diane Sulg of CRAF T; Alexis Moyer f rom Mendocino Celebrates American Craft Week; Rani Richardson, owner of Random Acts of Art in Naples, FL; Greg Worden, owner of Vermont Artisan Designs in Brattleboro, VT; and artisan Mavis Stevens of Miss Mavis' Fun House in Buford, GA. The session is scheduled for Sunday, January 30, 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. "Meet the Makers," scheduled for Sunday, July 31, will feature a panel of distinguished makers and curators of artisanal products who will explore the path from concept to creation, while staying true to an original vision. Participants, including Diane Sulg of CRAFT and Shawna Dawson of Artisanal LA, will discuss the maker movement, and how artisans are now able to enter the marketplace on a larger scale, the challenges and successes of being a creative, trends in artisanal products, and today's buying trends. A new partnership has been forged between Aid to Artisans (ATA), a leading global business mentoring organization for artisan enterprises, and Las Vegas Market. Representatives from ATA will attend the Summer 2017 Market to begin planning a special presentation of Central American artisans, debuting at the Winter 2018 Market. Las Vegas Market also has an ongoing partnership with the Sustainable Furnishings Council (SFC) to create One Good World, a guide to sustainable furniture and home décor products that connects legitimate suppliers and retailers in this new era of sustainability and accountability. The effort includes a sustainable products locator program, showcasing relevant at-Market resources, expanded educational offerings addressing issues and opportunities connected with sustainability. Las Vegas Market is the nation's fastest growing gift and home décor market and the leading furniture marketplace in the western U.S., presenting more than 4,000 gift, home décor and furniture resources in an unrivaled market destination. Las Vegas Market features thousands of gift, furniture and home décor lines, allowing for cross-category commerce among these industries. The Summer 2017 Las Vegas Market runs July 30–August 3, 2017. For more information, visit www.lasvegasmarket.com. KN Handmade Category Expands at Las Vegas Market

• Cover