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Leatrice Eiseman Reveals Color Trends, 2008 Palettes at International
Home & Housewares Show

CHICAGO (March 12, 2007)—Color is a vital element of style, and consumers expect style in every product and at every price point, especially with housewares, Leatrice (Lee) Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute, director of the Eiseman Center for Color Information and Training, and author of several books on color, told an audience today at the 2007 International Home & Housewares Show. 

In her presentation, “Future Color/Design Trends: Fulfilling Consumers’ Needs,” Eiseman shed light on the most important influences in design and color trends that entice customers and drive sales, including the importance of style.

“Today’s empowered consumer gets the meaning of style and expects it at every product and in every price point. And color is a vital element of style,” she said.

Owned and operated by the International Housewares Association (www.housewares.org), the Show is being held March 11-13 at McCormick Place, and features nearly 2,100 exhibitors from around the world, including almost 500 companies introducing thousands of new products.
Housewares are front and center of every magazine and television show and are winning accolades in the media, Eiseman explained. Television shows that focus on interior decorating and design are a huge draw, and they enable people to become more comfortable with design and with color in their homes.

In addition, today’s consumers are more experimental than ever; they desire the look and feel that they see in magazines, in catalogs, and at retail. This new sensibility to put color in every area and at every price point means that the housewares industry needs to work harder and smarter than ever to satisfy consumers’ cravings and needs.

Eiseman revealed color trends for 2008, which include the colors brown and tan continuing to be used, partly due to the interest in what she calls “critter movies” that are geared for children. The color yellow/green will continue in 2008 as well, with an additional “Shrek” movie scheduled to hit the box offices this year. The color green, she said, will continue to be symbolic of eco-consciousness and will only increase in usage in 2008. Because of the “green movement” she said, “the life of the color green will be prolonged—green is good.”

With the color blue in 2008, she said, “you cannot go wrong. The whole environmental aspect is associated with the preservation of water, and to not present blue in your product line is divorcing a certain segment of the population,” she said. “Blue emits clean and clear all around the world. Use it in your products.”

Variations on the color orange will continue, she predicted, while grey, black, and white, particularly with textures, will remain steadfast classics.

Eiseman also revealed her eight color palettes forecast for 2008:

• ReCollections: It provides a link to the past and yet recreates it a bit to look to the collectibles of the future, she said. It includes tapestry blues, muted blue greens, elegant champagne and warm peachy tones. “The palette speaks to the past with new dimensions in texture that help to reinvent what is traditional,” she noted.

• High Profile: The palette’s hues are inspired by the stylish icons that have survived the fads of the past, and includes colors such as pristine white, ebony black, rich browns and silvery grays accented with fuchsia, royal purple, and gold and silver. “Designers often incorporate the word ‘icon’ into their designs when using this palette,” she said.

• Ethnic Chic: “This palette reaches a new level of sophistication,” Eiseman noted. It contains rich hues of deep purple paired with misted yellow and stone grays, and burnt orange juxtaposed with vibrant blue and brunette browns.

• Chinoiserie: The palette is a blend of graceful shapes and charming motifs. “This speaks to China’s history and past that has been preserved in porcelain and in breathtaking textiles,” she said. “The colors are artistically designed with mauve tones and yellow/green, which is a historic Chinese color.”

• Agrestic: “The feeling is rustic, but not country,” she said. It is appealingly contemporized country, a rustic re-do of texturized and smooth surfaces with color combinations such as bruschetta browns, tender greens, golden yellow and a vibrant pink. “It will capture the eye in visual merchandising,” she predicted.

• Wellspring: “You cannot go wrong with this palette, because a certain segment of the population will resonate to it,” she noted. The palette contains blues and aquas that have cooling and soothing qualities, highlighted with an undersea green, violet, and indigo.

• Savories: “This palette is all about fun,” Eiseman said. “We need one palette that speaks to this because there is always room for it.” The palette includes tasty blends of decadent chocolate and daiquiri green, with dollops of appetizing brights embellishing the mix.

• Nuances: In the world of home furnishings, she said, there is always a need for neutrals—the classic, nature inspired hues that can always be depended upon as background or foreground. Thus, this palette pays tribute to those neutrals but uses a bright color to draw the eye in. It includes rose paired with earthy browns or reddish plums with a green-tinged bronze tone.

The International Housewares Association is the 69-year-old voice of the housewares industry, which accounted for (US) $303 billion at retail worldwide in 2005. The not-for-profit, full-service association sponsors the world’s premier exposition of products for the home, the International Home & Housewares Show, and offers its 1,700 member companies a wide range of services, including industry and government advocacy, export assistance, State-of-the-Industry reports, point-of-sale and consumer panel data through Housewares MarketWatch, executive management peer groups, a unique community at www.housewares.org, and group buying discounts on business services.