UNITY MARKETING STUDY SEEKS INSIGHTS FROM CONSUMERS.(tabletop categories)(Brief Article)

HFN: The Weekly Newspaper for the Home Furnishing Network, July, 2005

NEW YORK-A pair of consumer studies being undertaken by Unity Marketing promises to reveal more fully how people shop for tabletop and gifts.

The marketing research company, based in Stevens, Pa., plans to conduct a consumer insight survey into the "new tabletop" business. The study, which will focus on consumers who recently purchased items in one of the key tabletop categories, is set to examine why people buy these products, what psychological and emotional needs they fulfill, and how they use tabletop in their everyday lives.

Pamela Danziger, president of Unity Marketing, often speaks about consumer spending and has said that consumers now seek "experiential" items to purchase. For tabletop, that means dinnerware, flatware and glassware that can...