Spotlight: Crate & Barrel

Meet the Segals, Gordon and wife Carole, who returned from a whirlwind romantic honeymoon in Europe in the '60s to their home in Chicago and realized that housewares in America were incomparable to those of their travels.

Throughout their sightseeing, they noticed the affordable and modern designs from shop to shop and table to table. So they set out to create an outlet for the American shopper who has European taste.

Off they went, setting up a Chicago warehouse, leaving it in the hands of one employee, and heading back across the pond. They scoured the markets in major Europe cities, scooping up dinnerware, glassware, pots, pans — the works. Back in the States, they ran out of money for displays and simply filled the overseas barrel with fun and whimsical merchandise — and that's how the name came Crate & Barrel came about.

With a warehouse style and goods sold out of a barrel, Crate & Barrel's products were imported directly from Europe and well-made. Well, at the beginning at least.

Since then, the brand has soared, with more than 100 locations in North America. Celebrating its 50th year in December 2012, Crate & Barrel has come to be an outlet for the modern shopper who needs a selection of basic, simple pieces paired with items that have an eclectic, bold flair — the perfect mix..