News

The International Housewares Association (IHA) announced that its annual home + housewares gathering, The Inspired Home Show, will be held in-person August 7-10, 2021 at McCormick Place Convention Center in Chicago. The event had previously been scheduled for Mar. 13-16, 2021.

“As the pandemic continued into the summer, we had multiple conversations with our Board of Directors, exhibiting members and retail buyers, all of whom were experiencing apprehension about the ability to safely convene the industry as soon as March of 2021,” said Derek Miller, president for IHA. “While the Show continues to be a critical part of their businesses, the health and safety of our industry is our first priority and moving the event to later in the year allows more time for authorities to successfully manage this crisis.”

“On behalf of the IHA Board of Directors, all of whom are exhibitors at The Inspired Home Show, I’m extremely pleased that we were able to find alternate dates for The Inspired Home Show 2021,” said Howard “Chip” Steidle Jr., CEO of John Ritzenthaler Company and 2020 IHA chair. “Given the current trajectory of the pandemic and the ongoing nature of treatment and vaccine development, I can confidently say that this is the best option for our industry right now.”

The decision to postpone the Show until August of 2021 has been met with universal support from the home + housewares retailer community. “We spoke to a number of key retailers, both domestic and international,” said Miller. “All of them have been very vocal about their desire to have a face-to-face Show in 2021 and are enthusiastic about holding the Show later in the year.”

Regarding the 2022 Show, Miller said IHA will survey exhibitors and buyers in the coming weeks to collect current and relevant buying pattern data to determine appropriate timing for future Shows.

For more information on IHA, visit www.housewares.org.