The Bronx culinary collective Ghetto Gastro has partnered with kitchenware company Crux on a new CruxGG kitchenware collection, available at Target, that includes a griddle, grill, waffle maker, toasters, coffee maker and air fryer. A group of nonprofits dedicated to fighting food insecurity will receive 5% of the profits.

The Cuisinart 3-in-1 Cook Central multicooker rates as the best slow cooker in this roundup, which gives luxury props to All-Clad's 6.5-quart slow cooker. Reviewer Jennifer Yellin says the best budget-minded option is Hamilton Beach's portable, 6-quart, "Set & Forget" programmable digital slow cooker.

The Specialty Coffee Association has bestowed its seal of approval on a 30th product for home cooks: the Ratio Six coffee maker. Originally a Kickstarter feature, the coffee maker features "showerhead water dispersal" and several brewing settings that allow for a consistent temperature at around the 200-degree perfection point.

TikTok celebrities are usually people or pets, but now a red crab crafted of silicone is taking the limelight. The spoon rest from Ototo is designed to perch on the side of a pot or grill to serve as a utensil holder, steam releaser or, as some have suggested, a "soup guardian" -- although at least one reviewer says the crab makes a perfect Christmas tree topper.

Target will open a small-format store in Midtown Detroit, marking the retailer's return to a city it left with the closure of its Eight Mile store in August 2003. The new 32,000-square-foot location will be part of a mixed-use apartment and hotel project called City Club Apartments.

Retailers including Walmart, Macy's and Best Buy have begun rolling out Black Friday promotions early to give shoppers more time to buy. Amazon began offering "Epic Deals" early this month, Macy's will roll out Black Friday sales on Nov. 3, Sephora will follow on Nov. 5 and Best Buy and Sam's Club will debut their sales on Nov. 19 and Nov. 25, respectively.

Incisiv's third annual Digital Benchmark Study, which examines the omnichannel capabilities of 117 companies and tracks their digital growth, lists 10 US grocers among its 13 global e-commerce "Leaders." The top companies identified by the survey were BJ's Wholesale Club, Costco, Hy-Vee, Jewel-Osco, Kroger, Giant Co., Publix, Target, Walmart and Wegmans, all of which "have a strong foundation of table-stakes capabilities along with leadership in the adoption of differentiating capabilities," the report said.

August saw a 19.8% year-over-year gain in home prices -- the same figure as the prior month, according to the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices. "August data also suggest that the growth in housing prices, while still very strong, may be beginning to decelerate," said Craig Lazzara of S&P DJI. Year-over-year increases were highest in Phoenix, San Diego, and Tampa, Fla.

IHA is accepting topic proposals for education sessions during The Inspired Home Show 2022. With a view on developing successful post-pandemic strategies, retailers, trend forecasters and marketers, intellectual property attorneys and designers, along with experts in branding, packaging and smart home and other crucial business topics, are invited to submit proposals for presentations in the Innovation Theater and Inventors Revue at the 2022 Show. Deadline for submissions is Dec. 15. Learn more.

If you missed any of the educational sessions or product demonstrations during last week's Connect FALL virtual event, recaps are posted on IHA's blog. Session topics included retail branding post-Covid, an update and outlook on the industry by The NPD Group, shifting consumer values, brand marketing. Product demonstrations covered home environment, cleaning, organization and storage, personal care and kitchen electrics. Read the blog.