Millennials Can't Get Enough of This Tableware Brand

The tableware industry is enormous and old — a $7 billion space dominated by high-end legacy brands and low-cost plates from the likes ofIKEA. Is there room for more? Kathryn Duryea once worked inbrand managementatTiffany & Co., where she was part of that old guard, but then she saw a new opening: "We're in a moment of women embracingleadershipand entrepreneurship, but there's still a desire to build community at home through entertaining," she says. That led her to createYear & Day、现代、简约的餐具品牌raised $3.5 million infundingand attracted a celebrity clientele, and is growing revenue 40 percent every quarter. Here's how she created a new place at a very crowded table.

1.Spot the opportunity.

Duryea had inherited her mom's beloved dinnerware, but it all shattered during a move. That's when she decided to build her own collection. "It felt like a right-hand-ring moment: I was a woman of a certain professional stature, and I wanted to treat myself," she says. But themarketplacewasn't serving her need. Everything felt outdated, generic, and suited to a lifestyle she couldn't relate to. She — and other women her age — didn't want boring everyday dishesandfancy dishes for special occasions only. She wanted tableware for every day and every occasion, and she wanted it to feel like a treat.