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Plan Your Show Before You Go – Special Events and Notable Exhibits
Prominent Chefs, Cooking Shows, Gourmet Food, Housewares Inventors, Hot New Products
ROSEMONT, ILL. (January 2010) – Of course, the International Home + Housewares Show has thousands of products on display in three exhibit halls that buzz with activity. Adding extra value and pizzazz for attendees are events and exhibits that focus on everything from celebrity chef demonstrations to new inventions to philanthropy in the industry.
These events and exhibits include the Cooking Theater in the Gourmet Food + Products District (GOHO), the Inventors Revue and Inventors Corner, New Product Showcases, Sunday Night Reception, International Reception and Housewares Charity Foundation gala.
A Who’s Who of Celebrity Chefs and Fine Foods
The Gourmet Food + Products District (GOHO), located in the South Building, features suppliers of gourmet foods and products plus the hot destination, the Cooking Theater with continuous, live demonstrations from the food world’s biggest celebrity chefs.
The Cooking Theater’s three-day lineup includes five stars of the Food Network’s Iron Chef America – Mario Batali, Cat Cora, Masaharu Morimoto, Michael Symon and Jose Garces, the newest “Iron Chef” – along with Paula Deen, Todd English, Ellie Krieger, Suvir Saran and Ming Tsai. Also included are national celebrity chefs who call Chicago home, including Top Chef Master Rick Bayless, Gale Gand, Rick Tramonto and The Hearty Boys. TV chefs born from Top Chef fame, Stephanie Izard, Dale Levitski and Tre Wilcox, will also give demonstrations along with local chefs Martial Noguier and Suzanne Imaz of the Sofitel Chicago Water Tower Place.
For a full list of Cooking Theater chefs, dates and times visit: www.housewares.org/show/exhibit/gohocalendar.aspx.
Returning to GOHO this year is Chicago’s Restaurant Row, where you’ll find representatives from some of Chicago’s most illustrious establishments with information on their signature specialties, and they’ll even make reservations for you. Restaurants include: Berghoff Catering & Restaurant Group, Bistro 110, BOKA Restaurant Group (BOKA/Perennial/Landmark), Brasserie JO, Buca Di Beppo, Carnivale.
Restaurant, Ditka’s Restaurant, Fogo de Chao, Fulton’s On The River, Hard Rock Café Chicago, India House Restaurant, Lawry’s The Prime Rib, Le Colonial, The LGN Group (The Cedar Hotel/Manor/RiNo), Macy’s Chicago, Martini Park, Mercat a la Planxa, Morton’s The Steakhouse, N9NE Steakhouse, Phil Stefani Signature Group, Rockit Bar & Grill River North, Roy’s Hawaiian Fusion Restaurant, Shula’s Steakhouse, Sofitel Chicago Water Tower, Spiaggia, Sunda New Asian and Wildfire.
A third element of GOHO, the Specialty Food Marketplace sponsored by the National Association of the Specialty Food Trade, presents a wider look at what’s new in gourmet specialty foods, including many award-winning products. Get information on their development and taste many of the creative new offerings.
Inventors Corner
Like the most famous inventor of all, Thomas Edison, the homegoods and housewares inventors in the Inventors Corner have spent many years of their lives dreaming, tinkering, planning and marketing. This annual lineup in the Dine + Design Expo in the South Building is full of true characters and fascinating stories of creative fancy and determination. Some of the products have gone on to the marketplace; others have gone back to the drawing board. Each inventor is on hand throughout the Show to answer questions, offer information and tell their stories, many of which are inspirational. Despite setbacks, cash flow problems and a lot of “No’s,” inventors believe in their ideas and remain hardworking and persistent.
A ready-made destination for companies looking for new and novel products, the Inventors Corner brings together the housewares industry and the mom-and-pops of the world who are looking for a chance.
A related exhibit, the Inventors Revue, works like a reality TV show. A fast-paced and pithy give-and-take between inventors and a panel of product and marketing experts, the Revue will have some laughing and some crying. Inventors never know how the panel will react, but they will all know exactly what the reviewers think before it’s all over.
On Sunday, two panels of “As Seen on TV” marketing experts will provide insight and tips for approaching the TV marketing industry. On Tuesday, two panels of “Pitch to the Pros” experts, including professionals from manufacturers, corporations and mail order specialists, such as SkyMall, will judge inventions and award a prize to their favorite new product idea. The Inventors Revue will take place from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 12:45 to 2:45 p.m. both days.
Along with the judging, two special programs will take place at the Inventors Revue. On Sunday at 9 a.m., Louis Foreman, executive producer of PBS’ Everyday Edisons, will present “You Have a Great Idea—What’s Next?” He will shed light on how to examine an idea before investing a dime and what five questions to ask before taking an
idea to the next level. At 9 a.m. on Monday, Warren Tuttle, president of Monashee Marketing and president of the United Inventors Association, will provide an overview of the DRTV industry and current trends, and offer advice on how to professionally approach manufacturers at the Show.
New Product Showcases
To save busy buyers valuable time and shoe leather, the Show provides New Product Showcases in the Buyer’s Clubs in each building. The Showcases, also open to credentialed news media, offer a quick glance at dozens of new products at once and a good idea of what’s hot at the 2010 Show. Many of the products displayed won’t hit the market for months, so Show attendees will be among the first to see them.
“The Showcases provide a highly concentrated blast of innovation that exemplifies the incredible range and diversity of creative products on hand at the Show,” says Phil Brandl, president of the International Housewares Association, which owns and manages the Show. “In one fell-swoop, a visitor can take stock of one Expo and be inspired to head out and find other products of interest in certain categories.”
Official Sunday Night Reception
The Show honors the hardworking buyers in attendance with a networking reception on Sunday evening from 5:30 - 6:30 p.m. in the North Building, Grand Concourse Lobby. All Show attendees are invited to stop by and enjoy free refreshments and libations while catching up with old friends and comparing notes.
International Reception
The Housewares Export Council (HECNA) invites all international Show attendees to a reception in their honor, an event that has grown each year as attendance by international buyers and sellers has increased. Interested in what buyers and sellers from around the world see as the current trends in housewares? Grab a cocktail and start talking! Monday, 5:30 – 7:30 p.m., South Building, Level 4, Room S406a, Vista Ballroom.
Housewares Charity Foundation Gala Reaches New Heights at Elegant Hilton Chicago
In a collaborative effort among industry manufacturers, retailers and allied industry partners, the non-profit Housewares Charity Foundation (HCF) hosts this annual event to raise funds for critical causes, unite the housewares industry and honor its leaders.
Honorees are selected for their humanitarian efforts and exceptional leadership. Since the first gala in 1998, HCF has raised more than $17 million and has contributed more than $8 million to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF). In 2009, amidst the most challenging of economic times, HCF raised a record amount of more than $2.2 million last year at its 12th Annual Gala during the International Home + Housewares Show.
Mike George, president and CEO of QVC Inc., one of the world’s largest multimedia retailers, will receive HCF’s Lifetime Humanitarian Award during the 13th Annual Housewares Charity Foundation Gala on Monday evening, March 15, at the Hilton Chicago.
George joined QVC in November 2005 and is responsible for its live television broadcast (reaching more than 180 million homes worldwide), website (QVC.com) and internationals in the United Kingdom, Germany, Japan and, launching later this year, Italy. He came to QVC from Dell, Inc., where he was the chief marketing officer and general manager of its $8 billion U.S. consumer business. Prior to Dell, George was a senior partner at McKinsey & Co., Inc. He is a passionate fundraiser and a strong supporter of BCRF, HCF’s legacy charity. A portion of the proceeds this year will also benefit the HCF Haiti Relief Fund.
The gala again offers a unique dining concept featuring James Beard award-winning chefs serving signature dishes. This year they include: Paul Bartolotta, BARTOLOTTA, Ristorante di Mare and The Bartolotta Restaurants; David Burke, David Burke’s Primehouse; Carrie Nahabedian, NAHA Restaurant; Art Smith, TLC Comfort Food, allen Brothers, Art and Soul, DC; Charlie Trotter, Charlie Trotter’s and Ming Tsai, Blue Ginger.
Co-chairs for the 2010 event are Phil Brandl, IHA president, and Mary Campbell, QVC’s senior vice president of merchandising. For more information about the HCF, its honorees and its charities, please visit www.housewarescharity.org.
