text: This year's Spring Fair 4-8 February 2018 – the largest showcase of gift and homeware products in the UK – will feature a series of exciting, live houseware demonstrations and celebrity chef masterclasses that will help retailers inspire their customers.
  According to Mintel, the kitchen has become a "hub for entertaining, eating and family leisure time at home", while consumers' fondness for home cooking and baking is "adding to a love of gadgets and small kitchen appliances". This is encouraging households to splash out for greater style and has made kitchen, dining and houseware products attractive gifts all year round.
  The popular Housewares LIVE demonstration area – sponsored by Magimix – is back, located in Hall 9 within the Kitchen, Dining & Housewares sector, with an exciting schedule of not-to-be-missed product showcases and tasting experiences. Kicking it all off will be actor, director, producer and writer Ryan Philpott, who will be hosting the events at Housewares LIVE, making sure that the audience gets involved as much as possible throughout the course of the four days. Kitchen hardware expert Malcolm Harradine will be joined by celebrity chefs Jeremy Pang and Ken Hom to showcase a selection of the best products and innovations to use in the kitchen, while The Wine Show's Joe Fattorini will also explain how retailers can introduce memorable wine tasting experiences to their stores, getting them to try out a unique tasting for themselves.
  More than 150 leading industry brands from around the world will be present in the sector, including Horwood Homewares, Kitchen Craft, Bos Kaasgereedschappen, Meyer Group, Portmeirion and Creative Tops. A vast range of innovative merchandise will be on display, including the latest small electricals, tableware, food preparation products, utensils and waste management units. And with open-plan living a key theme in today's homes, innovative storage solutions will also be very much in the spotlight.
  Zoe Bonser, Head of Sales at Spring Fair, commented: "The interactive element of this year's show will provide cookshops and houseware stores with all the tools needed to create engaging in store experiences for customers. Equally, the Kitchen, Dining & Housewares sector provides an invaluable experience to gift buyers, helping them find products that will allow them to capitalise on the growing popularity of home cooking and baking."
  Zoe added: "In a recent survey, Bira Cookshop & Housewares members highlighted that cookshops need to diversify and reinvent themselves in order to attract new customers to their stores and increase spend. The beauty of Spring Fair is that it presents buyers and store owners with the best opportunity to source their traditional ranges, but also a unique chance to identify new suppliers that can broaden their existing offering."
  Spring Fair 2017 boasted over 58,000 visitors, covering the entire retail industry and all the major players – from large multiples to smaller independent stores.
  Spring Fair 2018 will take place at Birmingham's NEC from 4-8 February 2018, with Volume opening a day earlier. For more information please visit www.springfair.com