LIFETIME BRANDS, INC

ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS

To be held on June 18, 2026

INTRODUCTION

This Proxy Statement is furnished in connection with the solicitation of proxies by the Board of Directors (the “Board”) of Lifetime Brands, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company,” “us” or “we”), for use at our Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the “Annual Meeting”) to be held on June 18, 2026 at 10:30 a.m. Eastern Time online via live webcast at meetnow.global/MSMSCDF. Stockholders of record at the close of business on April 21, 2026 (the “Record Date”) are entitled to notice of and to vote at the Annual Meeting.

On or about April 24, 2026, we will first release the Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials (the “Notice”) to our stockholders informing them that this Proxy Statement, the 2025 Annual Report and voting instructions for the Annual Meeting can be accessed over the Internet at www.envisionreports.com/LCUT. You may then access these proxy materials over the Internet, or you may request that a printed copy of the materials be sent to you. If you would like to receive a paper ore-mail copy of these proxy materials, you must request one over the Internet at www.envisionreports.com/LCUT, by calling 1-866-641-4276 toll free, or by sending ane-mail to investorvote@computershare.com with “Proxy Materials Lifetime Brands, Inc.” in the subject line. There is no charge to you for requesting a copy.

THE ANNUAL MEETING

On April 21, 2026, there were 22,855,008 shares of the Company’s common stock, $0.01 par value, issued and outstanding. Each share of the Company’s common stock entitles the holder of such share to one vote on each matter submitted to a vote of stockholders at the Annual Meeting.

All shares of common stock represented by properly executed proxies or voting instruction forms will be voted at the Annual Meeting in accordance with the directions marked on the proxies or voting instruction forms, unless such proxies or voting instruction forms have previously been revoked. If no directions are indicated on such proxies or voting instruction forms, they will be voted FOR Proposal 1 – the election of each nominee named under Election of Directors, FOR Proposal 2 – the ratification of the appointment of Ernst & Young LLP as the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2026, FOR Proposal 3 – the approval, on anon-binding advisory basis, of the 2025 compensation of the Company’s named executive officers, and FOR Proposal 4 – the approval of an amendment and restatement of the Amended and Restated 2000 Long-Term Incentive Plan. If any other matters are properly presented at the Annual Meeting for action, the proxy holders will vote the proxies (which confer discretionary authority upon such holders to vote on such matters) in accordance with their best judgment, subject to compliance with Rule 14a-4(c) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). Each proxy executed and returned by a stockholder by any of the methods indicated below may be revoked at any time before it is voted by timely submission of a written notice of revocation or by submission of a duly executed proxy bearing a later date (in either case directed to the Corporate Secretary of the Company), or, if a stockholder participates online in the Annual Meeting, such stockholder may revoke the proxy and vote the shares during the Annual Meeting.

VOTE REQUIRED FOR APPROVAL

A majority of our outstanding shares of common stock present at the Annual Meeting, by virtual participation or by proxy, and entitled to vote shall constitute a quorum. Abstentions and brokernon-votes will be counted for purposes of determining the presence or absence of a quorum. In addition, shares that vote “withhold” will be counted as present for purposes of determining whether a quorum exists.

Our Bylaws provide for a plurality voting standard for uncontested director elections. Under a plurality voting standard, nominees receiving the most “FOR” votes will be elected. With respect to Proposal 1, you may vote for all nominees, withhold your vote as to all nominees, or vote for all nominees except those specific nominees from whom you withhold your vote. Properly executed proxies marked “WITHHOLD” with respect to the election of one or more directors will not be voted with respect to the director or directors indicated. Under a plurality voting standard, withheld votes have no impact on the voting outcome. However, as discussed in greater detail under “Majority Voting Governance Principle” below, if any director is not elected by an affirmative vote of a majority of the votes cast at the Annual Meeting, such elected director shall submit his or her resignation to our Board.

Proxies may not be voted for more than nine directors and stockholders may not cumulate votes for the election of any directors.

The affirmative vote of a majority of the shares present at the Annual Meeting, by virtual participation or by proxy, and entitled to vote thereon is necessary to approve Proposals 2, 3 and 4. You may vote for or against, or abstain from voting on any of these proposals.

If a stockholder, present by virtual participation or by proxy, abstains on a matter, such stockholder’s shares of common stock, although included in the quorum, will not be voted on such matter. Thus, an abstention from voting on Proposals 2, 3 and 4 has the same effect as a vote “against” the matter.

Brokers, banks or other nominees who hold shares of our common stock for a beneficial owner have the discretion to vote on routine proposals when they have not received voting instructions from the beneficial owner. Applicable rules prohibit brokers from voting on Proposals 1, 3 and 4 without receiving instructions from the beneficial owner of the shares. Brokers may vote on Proposal 2 absent instructions from the beneficial owner.

Brokers who have record ownership of shares that they hold in “street name” for their clients who are the beneficial owners of the shares normally have discretion to vote such shares on routine matters, such as the ratification of an independent registered public accounting firm (Proposal 2), but do not have such discretion to vote onnon-routine matters. All proposals (other than Proposal 2) arenon-routine matters and brokers are not permitted to vote your shares without instruction. In determining whether a proposal has received the requisite number of votes, brokernon-votes will have no effect on the outcome of the vote on a proposal that requires a plurality of votes cast and will have no effect on the outcome of the vote on a proposal that requires the affirmative vote of a majority of the shares present at the Annual Meeting, by virtual participation or by proxy, and entitled to vote thereon.

HOW TO VOTE

You may vote your shares by one of the following methods:

INTERNET: To vote your shares by Internet, please visit the website listed on your proxy card or voting instruction form and follow theon-screen instructions. If you vote by Internet, you do not need to mail your proxy card or voting instruction form.

TELEPHONE: To vote your shares by telephone, please follow the instructions on your proxy card or voting instruction form. If you vote by telephone, you do not need to mail your proxy card or voting instruction form.

MAIL: To vote your shares by mail, please follow the instructions on your proxy card or voting instruction form. Please be sure to sign and date your completed proxy card or voting instruction form before mailing. If you do not sign your proxy card or voting instruction form, your votes cannot be counted. Please mail your proxy card or voting instruction form in thepre-addressed, postage-paid envelope.

VOTE ONLINE DURING THE MEETING: You may vote online during the Annual Meeting by visiting the link meetnow.global/MSMSCDF. If you are the registered holder of your shares, meaning that you hold your shares through

Computershare Investor Services (“Computershare”), our transfer agent, you do not need to register in advance for the Annual Meeting. The 15-digit control number provided on your Notice, proxy card or voting instruction form is necessary to access this site. If you hold your shares in “street name,” meaning that you hold your shares through a broker, bank or other nominee, please follow the directions below to register in advance for the Annual Meeting. Guests may virtually attend the Annual Meeting but will not be able to vote during the Annual Meeting.

PARTICIPATING IN THE ANNUAL MEETING

You are entitled to participate in the Annual Meeting only if you were a stockholder of record or a beneficial owner of shares of our common stock as of the close of business on the Record Date, April 21, 2026, or you hold a valid proxy for the Annual Meeting. Our Annual Meeting will be a completely virtual meeting. There will be no physical meeting location. The meeting will be conducted only via live webcast. Guests may virtually attend the meeting but will not be able to vote or ask questions.

You will be able to virtually attend the Annual Meeting, examine our shareholder list, and submit your questions during the meeting by visiting meetnow.global/MSMSCDF. You also will be able to vote your shares online by participating in the Annual Meeting.

To participate in the Annual Meeting, visit meetnow.global/MSMSCDF and enter the 15-digit control number included on your Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials, on your proxy card or on the instructions that accompanied your proxy materials. If you hold your shares in “street name,” please contact the broker, bank, or other nominee that holds your shares to receive proof of your beneficial ownership (legal proxy) and submit such proof, along with your name and email information, to Computershare in advance of the Annual Meeting no later than 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on June 5, 2026. Requests for registration must be labeled as “Legal Proxy,” and may be submitted (i) via email to legalproxy@computershare.com by forwarding the email from your broker regarding your beneficial ownership or sending an image of your legal proxy, or (ii) by sending proof of your beneficial ownership via mail to the following address: Computershare, Lifetime Brands, Inc. Legal Proxy, P.O. Box 43001, Providence, Rhode Island 02940-3001. Upon receipt of such proof of beneficial ownership, Computershare will then register you for virtual attendance at the Annual Meeting and provide you with an email confirming your registration.

The Annual Meeting will begin promptly at 10:30 a.m. Eastern Time on June 18, 2026. Participants should also give themselves plenty of time to log in and ensure that they can hear streaming audio prior to the start of the Annual Meeting. Help and technical support for accessing and participating in the virtual meeting will be available by following the instructions on the virtual meeting website.

If you are a stockholder and wish to submit questions prior to or during the Annual Meeting, log into the virtual meeting platform at meetnow.global/MSMSCDF. Questions pertinent to meeting matters will be answered during the Annual Meeting, subject to time constraints. To ensure the Annual Meeting is conducted in a manner that is fair to all stockholders, the chair of the Annual Meeting may exercise broad discretion in recognizing stockholders who wish to participate, the order in which questions are asked, and the amount of time devoted to any one question. We reserve the right to edit or reject questions we deem inappropriate. By virtually attending the Annual Meeting, stockholders agree to abide by the agenda and procedures for the Annual Meeting.

MAJORITY VOTING GOVERNANCE PRINCIPLE

Although our Bylaws provide for a plurality voting standard for the election of directors, our Board has adopted, as a governance principle, a majority voting standard for uncontested director elections and a plurality voting standard for contested director elections. For this purpose, a “majority of votes cast” means that the number of votes cast “for” a nominee’s election must exceed the number of votes cast “against” that nominee’s election. Accordingly, subsequent to the election of directors at the Annual Meeting, any elected director who is not elected by an affirmative vote of a majority of the votes cast at the Annual Meeting shall submit his or her resignation to our Board, to be effective upon the Board’s determination of whether to accept or reject the resignation. Upon receipt by our Board of such resignation, our Board shall, in its sole judgment and discretion, within 90 days from the submission of such director’s resignation as a director of the Company, determine whether to accept or reject such director’s resignation. If our Board rejects such director’s resignation as a director of the Company, then we shall prepare and file a Current Report on Form 8-K to explain our Board’s rationale for its rejection of such director’s resignation.

PROXY SOLICITATION

We will bear the cost of preparing, printing, assembling and mailing the Notice, form of proxy, this Proxy Statement, the 2025 Annual Report and other materials that may be sent to stockholders in connection with this solicitation. We have retained Georgeson, a proxy solicitation firm, at an anticipated cost of $10,500 plus reimbursement of expenses, to assist in soliciting proxies from brokers, banks, nominees, and institutional holders. Georgeson may solicit votes personally or by telephone, mail or electronic means. In addition, Georgeson and certain related persons will be indemnified against certain liabilities arising out of or in connection with the engagement.

It is contemplated that brokerage houses will forward the proxy materials to beneficial holders at our request. In addition to the solicitation of proxies by the use of mail, our officers and other employees may solicit proxies personally, by telephone or by electronic means without being paid any additional compensation. We will reimburse such persons for their reasonableout-of-pocket expenses.