David Phillips, a figure that had a huge impact on the move towards kitchenware as an aspirational “fashion item”, passed away on Thursday (August 12) after declining health for some years. David is survived by his wife of 55 years, Liz. The couple co-founded Steamer Trading Cookshop, which first opened in 1985 in a cottage once housed by the Steamer pub in Alfriston.
David’s contribution to the housewares industry was recognised in 2009, when he received the Honorary Achievement Award at The Excellence in Housewares Awards.
In the 1950s, David moved from running a china and glassware store off London’s Haymarket to Woollands department store, near Harvey Nichols. “Woollands was the first shop to treat kitchenware as a fashion item, and not just something you bought from a hardware store,” David told Progressive Housewares magazine in an interview in January 2021.
During his time at the store, Liz, then home editor for The Sunday Times came to interview him about the ground-breaking housewares displays at Woollands: “wonderful stage sets of kitchenware,” using dressers and stoves for lifestyle presentation.
When Woodlands closed in the 1960s, David become “the first proper buyer” at Terence Conran’s newly formed Habitat. David recalled: “They were really exciting years. Things were beginning to bubble and fizz, and people were beginning to look at things like kitchenware, china and glass in a totally new light because it was presented in a different way.” He recognised the “enormous impact” that Habitat had on homewares retailing, combining visually attractive display with plentiful stock on shelves, ensuring that consumers did not feel intimidated when handling products.
From the mid 70s, David and Liz ran Alfriston’s village store and post office for ten years before founding Steamer Trading. However, they continued to recognise the importance of serving local communities and providing the highest standards of customer care. The latter was, in David’s opinion, “the most important thing a shop can offer.”
Soon after opening the second branch of Steamer Trading Cookshop – initially within Lewes’ Riverside development and then in an elegant Victorian building – David and Liz won the Independent Retailer of the Year Award at the inaugural Excellence in Housewares Awards 2000 (organised by Progressive Housewares in conjunction with the CHA). Championing a unique and inspirational shopping experience, David and Liz created the blueprint for the Steamer Trading Cookshop chain, in David’s words: “serious cookshops with style.”
David said he would “treasure” the “great honour” of the Honorary Achievement Award 2009, presented in the year that he and Liz stepped down from their day-to-day activity in the business. No doubt, the vision of David and Liz Phillips continues across all manner of contemporary retailers who recognise that visual merchandising, product knowledge and customer care are cornerstones for an outstanding in-store shopping experience.
