The Inspired Home Show Reunites the Home + Housewares Industry

The Inspired Home Show 2022 wrapped up on March 7 at McCormick Place in Chicago after three highly successful days. It was the first time that the event, formerly known as the International Home + Housewares Show, has taken place since 2019. Twenty thousand attendees and more than 1,000 exhibiting companies signed-up to discover new products, reconnect with colleagues and advance the home + housewares industry.

The Show featured multiple new and returning attractions, including products, retailers and students honored at the gia Global Innovation Awards; four keynote presentations on consumer trends, retail thought leadership and industry statistics; three days of educational sessions in the Innovation Theater; multiple networking events including a social media influencer meet & greet and New Exhibitor and Trending Today Previews; and a full slate of celebrity chef demonstrations in the Cooking Theater, headlined by Martha Stewart. Most importantly, though, was strong support for the Show demonstrated by the industry, through the presence of 1,016 exhibitors from 40 countries and retailers from 49 of 50 U.S. states and 84 countries.

Strong Domestic and International Retailer Attendance

Attendees confirmed at the Show included not only a strong showing from gift, specialty and independent retailers, but also from senior-level executives, DMMs, GMMs and buyers from major retailers and distributors including representatives from:

Rave Reviews from Exhibitors

“Not only are all the major retailers here, but they are spending more quality time than ever. Often during trade shows, the buyers are rushing from one meeting to the next. This year, we had executives spending thirty, sixty, ninety minutes with us. Those are the exchanges that truly build relationships.” – Tobias Gerfin, CEO, Kuhn Rikon

“There is a lot of retail leadership here this year. It’s the buyers, but it’s also their boss and their boss’s boss. We’ve had incredibly productive meetings with current customers and also with major prospective customers.” – David Nicklin, vice president, marketing, Gibson

“We’ve met with people from all over South and Central America, Asia, Europe; it feels like there are even more international people here than normal. We have written more orders at this show than we’ve written at any other show, and we don’t come here to write orders. We are seriously blown away.” – Will Symonds, president, Oggi

“I came in with pretty high expectations, and the Show exceeded them. We’ve had meetings scheduled with buyers from start to finish—all the way through late Monday afternoon.” – Bill Endres, CEO, Select Brands

“The Show was a fantastic success. It may have been our best Show ever. We saw all our regular buyers plus more. From specialty stores to our large online retailers to international buyers from around the world, it was fantastic.” – Yvette Laugier, managing director, Peugeot Saveurs

“We were busy from start to finish. We saw a lot of our top buyers here and we checked the box on just about every key larger retailer so we’re very happy.” – Lee Riddle, vice president, sales, Lodge Manufacturing

“The Inspired Home Show was a great show for us. We had productive conversations with all of our key accounts, showcasing our newest products. We were able to plan future visits to continue our sales momentum. We also had engaging interactions with top consumer media sharing new product innovations and trends.” – David Shull, executive vice president, marketing & communications, Jura Inc.

“This has been one of the best shows we’ve ever had. We’ve been coming for 12 years, and we had people all day Saturday and Sunday.” – Mark Greenwood, vice president, new product development, YouCopia

“We are so glad that we came to The Inspired Home Show as an exhibitor this year. We have supported IHA for many, many years and we are happy that the show was so successful this year.” – Kevin Chandrarajan, marketing manager, Salton

“Fantastic buyers. We saw everywhere from, of course, our independent customers and we saw great regional chains. We had some opportunities to meet with the largest mass buyers out there. We saw Walmart, we saw Ace, we saw Hy-Vee. We saw everyone we wanted to see. It was amazing.” – James McHenry, director, national accounts, Widgeteer

“This is our first year being at the Show and being an exhibitor, and overall the experience has been nothing short of incredible. This is something we will continue to do year after year.” – Megan Cunningham, brand manager, Ardent Life Inc.

Social Media Success Stories and Excitement

“It’s been an amazing show! Great connections and awesome new opportunities for 2022! We can’t wait to show you all the phenomenal things we have planned this year!” @theinspiredhomeshow #TIHS22″– @cangshancutlery (via Instagram)

“Happy to report that The Inspired Home Show was a big success for Nuni. Not only did I reconnect with some old colleagues in person, but I grew my network exponentially this year. Where else will my company get the opportunity to meet with the major brands within the toaster space? – Elliot Benitez, Nuni Tortilla Toasters (via LinkedIn)

“Our team had a fantastic time chatting with our incredible new and existing customers & consumers. So many great introductions, meetings and conversations were had.” – Honey-Can-Do International, LLC (via LinkedIn)

“That’s a wrap! Our first tradeshow in the United States has come to a fantastic close. Thank you to The Inspired Home #TIHS22 for an incredible experience! We look forward to keeping in touch with all the wonderful new customers and friends we’ve made.” – @Use BOP (via Facebook)

The Inspired Home Show 2023 will take place March 4-7 at McCormick Place in Chicago. Exhibit space applications will be accepted beginning in May.