Five industry veterans have been elected to the board of directors of the International Housewares Association (IHA).
The new directors are (pcitured l-r): Alexander Gransbury, founder and ceo, Dreamfarm; Lauren Greenwood, president, YouCopia Products; Henry Liu, president & ceo, Cangshan Cutlery; Pamela Stafford, managing director, Hestan Culinary; and Kelly Walsh, vice president, KitchenSupply. Their three-year terms begin on 1 October, 2024 and end 30 September, 2027.
Also elected were new board officers:
Chairman – Paul Cosaro, ceo, Picnic Time Family of Brands
Vice chairman/chairman elect – Michael Otterman, president & ceo, Lodge Cast Iron
Treasurer – Tom McMahon, president, JURA
All officers serve one-year terms from 1 October, 2024 to 30 September, 2025.
Retiring from the board are Steve Greenspon, ceo, Honey-Can-Do International; Yvette Laugier; Lisa Knierim, chief development officer, Creative Tops; Rob Michelson, president & cco, Bradshaw Home; Keith Mirchandani, founder and ceo, Trend Makers; and Luke Peters, president and ceo, NewAir.
Re-appointed for a second three-year term was Glenn DeStefano, president, Storebound.
Alexander Gransbury has served as president of Dreamfarm since creating the company in 2003. An award-winning Australian design company, Dreamfarm was established with the design philosophy that all of its products must solve a problem, must be original and must work the best. The company has grown into an industry-leading brand with a reputation for best-in-class innovation and uniquely useful design. Products are distributed in more than 30 countries.
Lauren Greenwood has served as president of YouCopia Products since 2009. The storage and organisation company creates unique, practical organisation solutions to fit different items throughout the home. With customisable options and almost effortless set-up, anyone can transform space into a happy place. Lauren has been active in IHA serving on the Young Professionals Advisory Council from 2014-2019 and as a public relations consultant on IHA’s Show public relations team from 2007-2009.
Henry Liu, president and ceo of Cangshan Cutlery, established the company in 2015. Created from a passion for innovation, Cangshan’s focus is on high-end kitchen knives. Henry also developed and serves as president of New Star Foodservice, an independent sister company to Cangshan, which focuses on commercial kitchenware and equipment.
Pamela Stafford joined Hestan Culinary in 2016 as director and was promoted to managing director in 2021. As co-founder of this award-winning premium cookware brand, she partnered with Stanley Cheng, the founder and ceo of Meyer Corporation and Hestan. Under her leadership, Hestan has pioneered new culinary frontiers with its meticulous design and relentless passion, earning 14 patents to date. Before joining Hestan, Stafford served as president of Brady Marketing Company from 2007 to 2016, where she was instrumental in building several premium housewares brands.
Kelly Walsh, vice president of KitchenSupply, joined the company as a sales manager in 2011 when it was known as Escali. He served as national sales manager from 2013-2018 and was named vice president and partner in 2018. The kitchenware company provides a family of brands including Escali kitchen scales and thermometers, The London Sip premium coffee making tools, Joyce Chen Asian Kitchenware and Old Stone Pizza Kitchen.
Paul Cosaro joined Picnic Time in 2011. As ceo/captain picnic, Paul says his number one responsibility is to ‘relentlessly strive to achieve our mission of giving people the opportunity to make lasting memories by spending time with loved ones’. The company, which started in 1982 offering European-styled picnic baskets, has evolved to design and develop an array of picnic, outdoor leisure, indoor entertaining and barware concepts under the brands ONIVA, LEGACY, TOSCANA and PICNIC TIME.
Michael Otterman joined Lodge Cast Iron, the 128-year-old US-based manufacturer of cast iron cookware and cooking accessories, in 2016 as SVP, sales and marketing. He was named as the first non-family ceo in January 2019. Having more than 25 years of experience in the housewares industry, Otterman has worked for several supplier companies beginning with Applica Consumer Products’ Black & Decker Corporation from 1997-2004.
Tom McMahon was named president of JURA in 2020. He joined the Swiss-owned manufacturer of fully automatic coffee machines in 2011 as midwest director of sales and was named vice president of sales in 2013. Before joining JURA, McMahon, who has more than 30 years’ experience in the housewares industry, served as regional sales manager at De’Longhi America from 2008-2011.
