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Centre Lane Completes Purchase of Instant Brands Appliances

Peter Giannetti — Thu, 09 Nov 2023 16:28:10 +0000

Instant Brands announced it has completed the sale of its appliance business, including the Instant Pot brand, to an affiliate of Centre Lane Partners.

Instant Brands, which filed for Chapter 11 protection in June of 2023, reported in early October the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas approved the company pursuing the sale of its housewares and appliance businesses in separate transactions to affiliates of Centre Lane.

Private equity firm Centre Lane owns Lenox Corporation, which includes such brands as Lenox, Reed & Barton, Oneida, Hampton Forge, Cambridge and Kate Spade New York.

Instant Brands continues to market such housewares brands as Corelle, Pyrex, Snapware, CorningWare, Visions and Chicago Cutlery.

“We are pleased to complete the sale of our appliance business to Centre Lane, who we believe is a great home for our appliance business as well as the employees that support it,” said Ben Gadbois, president and CEO of Instant Brands. “We strongly believe that with an adequate capital structure, Instant Brands will be in a much stronger position to support its products and continue to launch new innovative products globally. Finally, we want to thank all of our retail partners and suppliers that have continued to support us during this process.”

Instant Brands reported it is continuing to work on the ownership transition of its housewares business and will provide an update in the coming weeks.

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Conimar Acquires Thirstystone Serveware, Tableware

Peter Giannetti — Thu, 25 Aug 2022 17:54:30 +0000

Conimar Group, LLC has acquired tabletop and serveware producer Thirstystone Resources, formerly a division of Cambridge Silversmiths Ltd.

Thirstystone, known for its water-absorbing sandstone coasters, had expanded its selection in recent years to include a wide range of decorative serving and tableware products.

“We are excited to welcome Thirstystone into the Conimar family of brands. Thirstystone is an ideal complement to the Conimar product lines,” said Terry Crawford, CEO of Conimar. “For more than three decades, Thirstystone has been a premier manufacturer of decorative coasters, a core category for Conimar. The addition of the Thirstystone brand provides a significant opportunity for growth of our existing product offerings while expanding into new tabletop and serveware categories.”

The Thirstystone brand, founded in 1989 and acquired by Cambridge in 2013, was not included in the July 2022 acquisition of Cambridge by Lenox Corp.

Conimar Group is a family-owned company founded in 1976, manufacturing tabletop, housewares, giftware and home decor products at its headquarters in Ocala, FL, in Springfield, TN, and at Thirstystone’s Gainesville, TX, facility. Conimar products are marketed worldwide under Highland Home, CounterArt, Cala Home and Chop Chop brands.

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Lenox Extends Tabletop Offering With Cambridge Acquisition

Peter Giannetti — Tue, 12 Jul 2022 14:15:27 +0000

Lenox Corporation has widened its tableware portfolio by acquiring Cambridge Silversmiths, Ltd., Inc.

The deal includes existing Cambridge-branded tabletop products, including flatware and drinkware, but it does not include the Thirstystone brand, according to Lenox.

The Cambridge acquisition follows Lenox’s 2021 acquisitions of Hampton Forge and Oneida Consumer to further extend the Lenox offering of tableware and housewares. Lenox also markets its products under the Lenox and Reed & Barton brands, as well as the Kate Spade New York tabletop license.

“The addition of the Cambridge business affords us the opportunity to further connect consumers to our house of brands,” said Bob Burbank, CEO of Lenox Corporation. “As one family, our products are sold to thousands of retailers including specialty and department stores, mass merchants, warehouse clubs, and grocery stores across the U.S., Canada, and international markets worldwide. This new combination of brands and array of products will create unprecedented growth opportunities within our existing customer base, and it opens new distribution worldwide.”

“We are happy to be joining the Lenox Corporation, an industry leader with such an impressive portfolio of brands,” said Harold Freeman, executive vice president, Cambridge Silversmiths, Ltd., Inc. “Both of us value strong customer relationships by providing retailers with best-in-class products.”

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Macy’s Spotlights Pride Month Collection

Peter Giannetti — Thu, 03 Jun 2021 17:57:34 +0000

Macy’s has kicked off its National Pride Month celebration in support of its LGBTQ colleagues, customers and communities with product initiatives as part of its annual national Pride + Joy campaign.

Special initiatives include a customer-centric give-back program to raise funds and awareness for The Trevor Project and exclusive merchandise available at select stores, on macys.com and its app.

Among the exclusive Pride + Joy shop products available are Thirstystone by Cambridge Wine Tumblers, as well as other drinkware and apparel items.

Macy’s stores nationwide and macys.com will offer a celebratory assortment of Pride-inspired merchandise within dedicated Macy’s Pride + Joy shops and via displays across the store, the company stated. Rainbow patterns and bold colors abound in exclusive and curated merchandise across apparel, shoes, accessories, beauty, home and tech. Macy’s will offer Pride-inspired product from its brands including Adidas, Betsey Johnson, Calvin Klein, COACH, Epic Threads, Havaianas, I.N.C. International Concepts, Jean Paul Gaultier, Levi’s, Martha Stewart Collection, MICHAEL Michael Kors, Steve Madden, Nautica, Original Penguin, The Phluid Project, Polo Ralph Lauren, Puma, Thirstystone and Under Armour.

Also, STORY at Macy’s, the retailer’s all-occasion gift destination, will feature Pride-inspired products from small and LGBTQ-owned businesses, including Ash & Chess, The Phluid Project, A Tribe Called Queer and Stuzo.

The Macy’s Pride + Joy celebration will launch a nationwide give-back campaign to benefit The Trevor Project, the retailer noted, the world’s largest suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for LGBTQ people. From June 1 and continuing to June 30, shoppers at Macy’s stores nationwide and through its digital platforms, can give to The Trevor Project at checkout by rounding up their in-store purchases to the nearest dollar and donating their change, or they can donate online.

“At Macy’s, we believe in love, respect and inclusion, values that help us better reflect and honor the contributions and lives of our LGBTQ colleagues, customers and the communities we serve. Through focused initiatives, we continue to make meaningful change that positively impacts the lives of the LGBTQ community,” said Shawn Outler, Macy’s chief diversity officer.

The National Pride Month celebration comes on the heels of Macy’s return to profitability in its recent quarter.

Macy’s on May 18 posted net income of $103 million, or 32 cents per diluted share, versus a net low of $3.58 billion, or 11.53 per diluted share, in the coronavirus-hit period a year before. Adjusted earnings per share were $126 million, or 39 cents per diluted share, versus an adjusted net loss of $630 million, or $2.03 per diluted share, in the year-previous period.

Net sales were $4.71 billion versus $3.02 billion in the quarter a year earlier. Operating income was $215 million versus an operating loss of $4.12 billion in the fiscal year prior.

Macy’s adjusted earnings of 39 cents per share beat a Zacks Investment Research consensus estimate of a 41 cent loss.

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