International Housewares Association President and CEO Derek Miller issued a letter to the home and housewares industry providing an update on The Inspired Home Show 2026 set for March 10-12 at Chicago’s McCormick Place.
In the letter, Miller responds to industry inquiries about the status of preparations for The Inspired Home Show after a challenging business year marked by tariff developments and other economic factors.
“Given the challenging time for the industry, planning for The Inspired Home Show 2026 is going quite well,” Miller said in the letter. “We now have more than 1,000 exhibitors scheduled to participate and have an increase in the number of U.S. Key Retailer registrations YTD.
“The Show may be smaller than in 2025, a result that is to be expected given the ongoing economic situation,” Miller continued. “Smaller isn’t necessarily worse, though —far from it. I recall meeting with both exhibitors and retailers after the 2022 Show, the first after Covid, and the reaction was extremely positive — a smaller Show gave all who participated increased opportunities.”
Miller also noted positive industry and retailer reactions to the new Tuesday-Thursday timing for the 2026 show.
Here is the complete letter by Miller:
The number-one question that I receive at the Association this time of year is, “How is the Show going?” It’s impossible to accurately answer that question for The Inspired Home Show 2026 without first looking at the year we’ve recently closed out.
Last year was a challenge for our industry, to say the least. We’ve all lived through tariffs before, first during President Trump’s first term with Sections 232 and 301 and then through President Biden’s four years, during which the relief we were hoping for never materialized.
Fast forward to Q1 of 2025, when the administration seemingly doubled down on the effort initiated earlier by announcing higher tariffs on more products from more countries than ever before. The announcements and the associated uncertainty created confusion for most and panic for many – how would they manage production for the coming 18 months, let alone land containers already on the water?
In early April, Adrienne Tiritilli (IHA’s Senior Vice President, Trade Show) and I were meeting with members, and I distinctly remember visiting a small IHA member with a successful product. She needed to find a way to pay for the tariffs on a container that was about to land – where could she come up with the tens of thousands of dollars needed to clear customs? We left that meeting and went to a large company and learned the same thing – although the scale was different, the challenge remained: how to find the money needed to pay the tariffs to import products?
Those meetings, along with countless others, made it clear that 2025 would not be an ordinary year and that the industry needed assistance during this time. Although we had already created several tariff resources to help educate the industry, we knew we had to do more. We added resources, including additional webinars and provided community through our CORE groups to facilitate discussion and counseling.
The International Housewares Association is a not-for-profit organization with the goal of helping the industry. The IHA Board of Directors responded and made it clear that the IHA reserve fund, which had fortunately been completely rebuilt since COVID, should be used to help the industry in this time of need. An approximate 17% discount and extended payment plans were offered on space rates for the 2026 Show as a part of a “Tariff Relief Program.” Although this didn’t solve every issue, the industry responded and was thankful that the Association was listening and helping however possible.
So, back to the original question, “How is the Show going?” – given the challenging time for the industry, planning for The Inspired Home Show 2026 is going quite well. We now have more than 1,000 exhibitors scheduled to participate and have an increase in the number of U.S. Key Retailer registrations YTD. The Show may be smaller than in 2025, a result that is to be expected given the ongoing economic situation. Smaller isn’t necessarily worse, though – far from it. I recall meeting with both exhibitors and retailers after the 2022 Show, the first after Covid, and the reaction was extremely positive – a smaller Show gave all who participated increased opportunities. It increased opportunities for exhibitors to meet with buyers, and increased opportunities for buyers to meet with exhibitors, many of which they discovered at the Show for the very first time. So, who’s coming? There is a detailed article in HomePage News from last week that provides a nice overview.
We’re very excited to debut the new Tuesday / Wednesday / Thursday pattern, marking the first time the Show is not taking place over a weekend. The ability to fly in on Monday and home on Friday without sacrificing a weekend has been received positively by most, if not all.
The industry needs to come together for the face-to-face interaction that is so desperately needed in this digital age. The industry will gather once again in Chicago, with opportunity and benefits being bestowed on those who participate. It’s time to get off the sidelines and into the game, and the game kicks off in Chicago on March 10 – we hope you join us and support our cause to move the industry forward. We have a strong and dynamic Show planned!
Sincerely,
Derek Miller
President & CEO
International Housewares Association
