We’ve made the point before: Specialty hearth retailers were hit hardest, and for the longest time, by a downturn that began almost six years ago.
Nancy Reader and her daughters bring a much-needed sense of color and style to the hearth industry.
It began with a phone call. On the line was a retailer, clearly upset with the lack of service and care he had been receiving from manufacturers’ reps.
These tough, talented women have carved out a place in the top echelon of the male-dominated barbecue world.
Sales of gas fireplaces, the most important category in the hearth industry, rebounded a bit in 2012, and even more in 2013.
Sales of woven products are still on a roll; innovation in design could keep them there.
Interest in kamados remains high, as accessories proliferate and Big Box stores enter the field.
Built by Murray Howell and Duncan Syme in 1979, the Vermont Castings foundry has been managed and cared for all of those 35 years by Bob Wright.
Are mosquitoes taking a bite out of outdoor living sales?
In early January, Hearth & Home faxed a survey to 2,133 specialty retailers of hearth, barbecue and patio products, asking them to compare December 2013 sales to December 2012. The accompanying charts and selected comments are from the 192 useable returns.