Oser Communications Group

GENERAL NEWS KITCHENWARE NEWS & HOUSEWARES REVIEW n AUGUST 2017 n www.kitchenwarenews.com 6 SharkNinja, creator of the Shark® and Ninja® brands, announced its global corporate headquarters move to Needham, Massachusetts. The move signifies SharkNinja's rapid company expansion in the household appliances markets, and will bring the company's 400 headquarter-based team members to work under one roof, with room for growth. The company's new space is located within the highly-anticipated Newton-Needham N2 Innovation District at 89 A Street, Needham. Designed by Boston-based architectural firm Sasaki, the 175,000- square-foot, open concept space was strategically built with a key focus on encouraging cross-functionality and collaboration among teams. With splashes of wood tones and Feng Shui energy, the office is designed to provide a modern and warm environment. "Our new worldwide headquarters reflects our core company values and fosters innovation, creativity and success for our team members," said Mark Barrocas, President of SharkNinja. "We're finally in an all-inclusive space that feels authentic to SharkNinja's identity and spirit, while further enhancing our ability to deliver products that delight our consumers. We are excited to remain a part of the Needham community and to be a part of the Newton-Needham N2 Innovation District moving forward." All functions will be located within the new space including product development, marketing, engineering, sales and more. The building will house product R&D labs and testing facilities, as well as an in-home replica to enable authentic product engagement and consumer insights. KN SharkNinja's New Home in Needham, Massachusetts B+B Household Cleaning Products, located in Akron, Ohio, was founded in 2015 by Claudia Crea and her husband because they were f rustrated by the lack of cleaning products available that truly "got the job done well." Crea found that keeping stone counters, stainless steel appliances and glass cleaned to her personal criteria was challenging. From fingerprints to splashes f rom the f rying pan, she realized she didn't have the products available to complete these tasks satisfactorily. Crea tapped into her background as a chemist; her husband used his knowledge of his family's stone business and together they originated, right in their own home, a line of products that could clean and restore kitchen surfaces and appliances while leaving a pristine finish. Crea's knowledge of chemical processes allowed her to create safe products for family and pets. In fact, they named the company B+B in honor of their two dogs, Balthazar and Brisco, and a portion from the sale of every bottle is donated to local humane societies in honor of Zar and Brisco. The company's four products, all made in the USA, are: TrueVeue Glass Cleaner, a lavender-scented cleaner that quickly removes dirt and grease and produces a streak-f ree finish. TrueVeue is recommended for use on glass surfaces; DailyStohn Granite Cleaner, which comes in two scents, Meyer lemon or sweet mint, for cleaning, restoring and protecting natural surfaces in the home while providing a non-greasy, streak-f ree finish on granite, marble and other hard surfaces; and PureStiel Stainless Steel Cleaner, created for stainless steel appliances, removes dirt and grease and provides a streak-f ree finish. B+B also provides a subscription service called CleanFreaks, which allows customers to schedule regular deliveries of B+B products at a discounted price with no set commitment necessary. Customers receive a reminder prior to the order being shipped. This way, orders can be changed or temporarily canceled, then re- scheduled as needed. Prior to each delivery, the company sends a reminder email showing the item price and any applicable discount. The price of the item may decrease or increase from delivery to delivery, depending on the price of the item at the time the order is processed. In this way, CleanFreak subscription reduces the need for a long-term commitment while allowing customers to always have that reminder available. Customers can replace products using discretionary timing rather than with a rigid time schedule. Crea says the company is most proud of the fact that its cleaning products are always safe for the home environment, for family and for pets too. They have come to the International Home and Housewares show to spread the word about B+B Household Cleaning Products and to meet prospective buyers. Crea added that the company 's target customers are socially conscious and eco- f riendly consumers who may be beginning or proficient cleaners looking for premium products in an attractive design. B+B believes that different surfaces have different cleaning needs, hence the separation of types of cleaning solutions. As Crea notes, "Better products with better results allows you to spend more time with your loved ones." For more information, visit www.bandbcleaners.com or call 844.43.bandb (844.432.2632). KN Premium Household Cleaners for Every Surface in the Home jars at this show were dedicated to Mission Lazarus, a Christian organization working in Honduras and Haiti to provide spiritual, educational, medical and agricultural services as well as to establish churches. The particular Mission Lazarus project funded in part by the KeHE donation is El Refugio Orphan Village in Honduras, a facility of eight 2,000-square-foot homes caring for children placed there by the Honduran government. Currently 48 children benefit from a home environment, with a focus on individual attention and nurturing, at the village. Safe Nepal; Warrior's Circle; Sunshine Approach, a nonprofit foundation operated by The Sunshine Nut Company that funds projects to improve the lives of the poor and orphaned in Mozambique; and Godwork Foundation are the others eligible for shares of the funding designated by the jars. Safe Nepal's mission is to provide prayerful and financial support for those who have been trafficked in Nepal. The organization provides trafficked girls and women with a safe refuge while giving them hope, direction, new careers and freedom from their past lives. Warrior's Circle is a Christian ministry based in Sisseton, South Dakota, and led by Native American men that offers healing and leadership training for other Native American men with the goal of helping them break a longtime cycle of addiction, abuse and neglect. Godwork Foundation is a purpose-driven organization that combines good works, technology and entrepreneurship education as a means to cultivate a generation of young people with skills to make a concrete difference in the world. Even though the money that 's contributed comes f rom KeHE, it 's the distributorship's retailer customers that make the donations possible, Shaw said. "If you're not buying from us, then we don't have the five bucks to give," he noted. "It just works." Before an organization is selected to receive a donation, a KeHE employee has to be actively involved as one of its volunteers. Over the years, the KeHE employee involvement has aided volunteer organizations assisting communities around the globe, according to the markers on a map posted near the donation jars at the show. "Every one of them is doing great work serving people," Shaw said. "We know that because we go there." A marker at Prune, India, for instance, represents involvement by Jay, a salesman who'd been volunteering time to load trucks with supplies going to a safe house there for trafficked girls, Shaw said. After Shaw learned of Jay's involvement with the U.S.-based organization serving the safe house, he asked Jay if he'd be willing to go to India and check out the safe house for himself. "Unless we see what they're doing for ourselves, we're limited in what we can do," he said. Shaw and Jay went to Prune to see the safe house's operation and came back convinced that the safe house was serving a real need, which made it eligible for greater assistance from KeHE Cares. Another marker denoting a site in Kenya represents involvement by Laura, a KeHE category manager who was buying coffee f rom Growers Alliance Coffee, which supplies gourmet, fair trade coffee f rom four countries. The company donates 10 percent of the proceeds from its coffee sales to help impoverished growers in the countries f rom which it sources beans. Growers Alliance was supporting a small dialysis center when Laura went to Kenya to see the organization's work. "We met with farmers who were barely eking out a living, and they went from living in a hut where they're now keeping their goats to a real home," Shaw said. After Laura returned home, she urged KeHE to support Growers Alliance Coffee and their dialysis center project, inaugurating the idea for KeHE CAREtrade, an initiative in which KeHE is identifying and promoting businesses that advance a higher purpose. " We built a dialysis center there," Shaw said. "In Kenya, 14-year-olds are dying because they have no access to dialysis." KN KeHE Lives Its Values by Serving Communities (cont. from Page 1)

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