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Melamine Rising

The growth of casual dining, including outdoor entertaining, and the improved quality of heavyweight melamine, giving it the appearance of ceramics, has given rise to the rapid growth of the melamine category. TableWare International analyzed this segment and looked at the major players.

As consumer lifestyles continue to become increasingly casual, with formal dining shifting to a more relaxed take on entertaining, and as outdoor dining becomes more popular, the material of melamine is in increasing demand.

Not only has the pioneer of superior quality melamine tableware for retail, Q Squared, experienced great international business growth over the past few years, but many renowned ceramic tableware brands — Lenox, Gibson, Portmeirion — are expanding their melamine programs.

Shannon McAlpine, VP of sales at luxury melamine brand Q Squared, says it’s fantastic to see ceramic brands introducing melamine.

“We’ve had a number of ceramic brands come to us for guidance prior to releasing a melamine program,” says Shannon, pointing out that it is both a reaction to current customer trends and Q Squared’s influence.

“We were one of the first to release melamine boasting the appearance of porcelain and ceramic and this started to change the perception of melamine. People began to realize that melamine can look sophisticated,” says Shannon, further explaining how wonderful it is to see what was originally thought to be a niche product now in mass demand.

For more on the rise of melamine, read page 52-53 in the digital issue of TableWare International here. 

 

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