Having a successful Natural Products Expo West can be determined by many factors. Whether you are an exhibitor or attendee you will appreciate some of the changes we have made this year to help each and every person at Expo West enjoy their time in Anaheim. We have also come up with some tips to “Travel Smart”, an initiative we hope will help you mitigate some costs as you travel to and from Expo West this year.

Traveling smart begins with your mode. If you are flying, take advantage of low fares to the Santa Ana/Orange County airport. Try to travel in groups, or if you know someone else flying to Orange County, try to coordinate your arrival times so you can make your cab or shuttle ride cheaper-click here for the Super Shuttle discount. Also, some hotels have their own complimentary shuttles, call ahead and see if yours does.

Most airlines are charging baggage fees, so take advantage of deals like Frontier Airlines offers to package your fare with your baggage costs. Maybe your travel partner has elevated status with a certain airline and gets to check bags for free-ask them if you can use one of their allotted “freebies” for your bag. Don’t forget to travel light! It’s California in the spring, it’s typically very pleasant and heavy jackets are not required.

Besides flying, if you are driving, as many of you do, please carpool! Once in Anaheim we encourage you to drive directly to the Angels’ baseball stadium. Missing out on the busier traffic on Harbor Blvd, Katella and Convention Way, you can park your car for FREE at the baseball stadium, pick up your badge (or register on the spot) and step onto one of our comfortable shuttle buses. Take the stress out of your Expo experience and avoid the traffic.

Before you take off, make sure you pre-register online and also plan out your evening activities. The City of Anaheim has also done a fantastic job of updating their website so you can locate great restaurants easily. Also be sure to take advantage of the many free and low cost official expo events that take place in the evening. This is a great way to continue your networking, but in a more relaxed environment.

What are your plans this year for Expo West? Have you logged into your Personal Planner to see which exhibits you will visit? Hotel set? Meetings arranged? Flip flops packed?

Sloppy Joe and Chris Farley dancing together? That’s my first thought when I hear the term “Lunch Lady”. This year at Natural Products Expo West we are bringing the “Renegade Lunch Lady”, Ann Cooper.

Ann Cooper focuses on bringing healthy and sustainable options to lunch trays throughout the country. She is renowned for her work with the Berkeley, CA school district and locally here in Boulder, she has been working with the Boulder Valley School District Food Project to improve menus.

Thursday at 4:30 p.m. she will be part of the Healthy Children, Healthy Futures panel and Friday at 11 a.m. she will be walking the floor with Southern California school officials (and members of the press) who are looking to improve their menus.

Speaking of healthy and sustainable, Dr. Andrew Weil has been promoting healthy eating, lifestyles and supplements for decades. This year at Natural Products Expo West he will be a featured speaker at 1:30 on Friday, addressing The Role of Food and Supplements in Healthcare of the Future. Dr. Weil’s philosophy of disease prevention by living and eating healthy can give retailers great insight on how to market to consumers during a struggling economy and healthcare system.

Offering further insight on how to grow your business is Joel Makower, a featured speaker on Thursday at 1:00 pm this year at Natural Products Expo West. Joel is the founder of greenbiz.com and will educate attendees on how to partner your business with green trends for success.

Success at Expo West starts with great education! Be sure to come Thursday to take advantages of great education a day before the show floor opens.

Just two weeks from tomorrow, Natural Products Expo West begins, what knowledge and education session will benefit your business? Start planning your itinerary today.

I remember turning 29 (okay, it wasn’t too long ago) and seeing 30 as a huge turning point in life. At the time I had just gotten married and was settling into year two of my job at the time and my wife and I just purchased our house.

2009 marks the 29th occurrence of Natural Products Expo West, and like any 29 year old, it is still extremely youthful and strong. Expo West has an undeniable energy that brings out the best in our industry and also brings the best together.

Whether enjoying G.Love and Special Sauce, perusing the big white tent of Fresh Ideas Organic Marketplace for new organic products, or joining the Organic Farm Tour or Retail Store Tour, this 29 year old has much to offer in addition to the bustling and exciting trade show floor.

Besides the official first day of education, Thursday, March 5 offers two unique opportunities for attendees, the Fresh Ideas Organic Marketplace and the Retail Store Tour. The store tour starts at 8 a.m. in the Hilton loading zone and returns at 1 p.m. Lunch is included and you will be able to visit some of the best natural products retailers that are so abundant in Southern California. After the tour, walk across from the Hilton to the Big White Tent in the Marriott parking lot for Fresh Ideas Organic Marketplace. Preview the best in organic products before the show floor opens on Friday and network with organic thought leaders.

Friday is a full day at Expo West. Start your day with the Better Breakfast, sponsored by Silk, Cascadian Farm and Horizon. You’ll be ready to walk the show floor after a nutritious, healthy meal. After your first full day of walking the show floor, you will be ready to relax and enjoy yourself in a laid back atmosphere. If you are not familiar with G.Love and Special Sauce (is that organic sauce?), they play bluesy, upbeat music that is perfect for the natural products industry vibe. Be sure to save some energy for the dance floor and catch up with other industry members in a casual atmosphere. The music gets started at 9 p.m. in the Anaheim Marriott Marquis Ballroom.

Saturday morning at Expo West, after you’ve been up late dancing to G.Love, hit the convention center for the keynote session hosted by Peter Sagal, walk the show floor and then join the Organic Farm Tour. The Organic Farm Tour picks up in the Hilton loading zone at 12 p.m. and lunch is provided. The bus ride this year will be a quick trip to the organic farm and distribution center of Veg-Land Inc and JBJ Distributing in Fullerton. Sign up now for this event as it fills up quickly! Take advantage of this opportunity to connect with an organic farmer and other retailers.

29 and going on 30, Natural Products Expo West offers a mix of education, events and an exciting show floor that all contribute to your expo experience. What story, event or experience will define your Natural Products Expo West 2009? What plans are you making now to have the best expo in March?

The education and events of Natural Products Expo West begin just four weeks from this Thursday! So soon, yes, but there is still time to register and to plan out which education you will experience, which exhibitors with new products you will visit, and which fun events you will attend.

This year we have changed the keynote speaker format to be a panel of industry experts. Hosted by Peter Sagal, the host of NPR’s “Wait, wait, don’t tell me” we are pleased to have a panel representing different roles in the supply chain to test their “Natural Knowledge”.

Also new this year is our paperless press room. We debuted this eco-friendly and waste-reducing concept successfully at Expo East this past year, and we are thrilled to bring this concept to Expo West…this is also sponsored by a brand new exhibitor, Safeway’s O Organics line. Exhibitors can still upload their press kits at www.expowest.com. We continue to look at all of the production of Natural Product Expos to see how we can reduce waste and to improve the experience of both exhibitors and attendees.

This year that experience is more important than ever, as I am sure everyone has the economy on their minds. The good news is that our industry as a whole continues to grow, and Natural Products Expo West attendance is up over this time last year, and we have over two hundred new exhibiting companies with exciting, innovative products.

So come join us in Anaheim, it’s California in the (almost) spring, network with acquaintances old and new, see new products, see great music, hear great speakers, and experience the best in natural and organic, what could be better?

Seven weeks!!! Count them, seven weeks until Natural Products Expo East. Well, if you are anything like me you are slowly watching summer fade into the past and looking forward to fall. Your customers have shifted their buying patterns from picnic supplies to healthy school lunches and tailgating necessities (Go Buffs!). I think that fall is my favorite season. Did you know that in Boston in October it is ‘Leaf Peeping Season’? Ah, look at that, yet another reason to come to Boston this fall!! (As if holiday order fulfillment isn’t enough.) Anyway, here in Boulder, our team is getting ready for our last and final site visit before the event to make sure everything is perfect for you. If you are an exhibitor, there are a lot of deadlines coming up to assure you have a successful event (look out for those emails that our myriad of wonderful vendors and exhibitor service people will be sending) and, no matter who you are, if you haven’t bought your ticket yet check out Jet Blue’s latest airfare sale- the Jet Out of Town Sale- and get to Boston in a timely and cost-effective manner (just don’t get too intrigued by those cheap fares to the Bahamas). It only lasts a few more days.

But, foregoing the Bahamas…Carolee Colter has graciously volunteered to guest blog a bit about her Human Resources session as a part of the Wednesday Retailer Workshop. Don’t just take it from me- this will be a session not to miss. So without further adieu…here’s Carolee:



As a consultant, I have the good fortune to travel around North America working with the retailers who are the heart and soul of the natural products industry. Independently owned local businesses and community-owned food co-ops have kept alive the passion and commitment to organics, health and sustainable agriculture that drew me to this industry way back in the ‘70’s.

One of the things I love about our industry is how much we promote people from within into management positions and give them a chance to grow on the job. But how can you learn to manage people if you’ve never been a manager before? And as your company grows and your job grows, how can you increase your skill set to rise to the increasing demands?

I was excited to learn that this year Expo is offering an opportunity to learn management skills and meet peers at the all-day workshop. The Wednesday Retailer Workshop has something for everyone on a store management team. There will be breakout sessions on sales, merchandising, marketing, operations—and one on human resources that I’ll be teaching. Specifically, this session will feature how to recruit workers and retain them.

For recruiting we’ll share innovative techniques that have worked for participants and other retailers for reaching potential workers, and we’ll focus on how to vigorously promote what makes your store special as a place to work. We’ll also discuss getting clear on what you’re looking for and detecting whether an applicant has it.

Once you’ve hired them, how can you keep them? Retailers are grappling with record levels of turnover, often among their newest employees. We’re encountering new workers with entirely different attitudes toward work. Did you ever think you’d be muttering what they used to say about us? — “Kids today have no respect!”

Study after study has shown that the most valued workplace benefit today, especially among younger workers, is opportunity for education and advancement. In this workshop we’ll focus on how to motivate employees through ongoing education, mentoring and the sense that they are part of an industry with career potential. But we’ll also look at other factors that make a difference in keeping your staff, no matter what generation they come from:

• Identifying high performers and expressing appreciation

• Asking for input and listening with respect

• Rewarding contributions to the business.

Yesterday I was at the dentist and as the hygienist poked about prodded around my mouth; she started to ask me about what I do for a living. I managed to spit out (literally, spit out…but why hygienists ask you questions when they are prodding around your mouth is a topic for someone else’s blog) that I worked in B-to-B media on a tradeshow team representing the Natural and Organic Products Industry. Recognizing that I couldn’t manage much more of an explanation than that, she replied “WOW!!! You must be busy!” And, yes, I could agree, our team has been very busy over the last couple weeks. 11 weeks to show open!! Here are a couple of the things that we are really excited about this week:

Pamela McCary, our team’s Conference and Event Coordinator just booked a really fun band for the Organic Harvest Festival- Buzz Universe. I have been streaming them online from myspace all morning. They have a cool, eclectic sound. The event is going to be really amazing this year (the location is beautiful) across from the BCEC, in the Seaport World Trade Center with the tabletops, food, drinks, music, dancing and Spirit of Organic Awards ceremony all housed in the Headhouse Concourse, right on the water. I am no salesperson, but this is really a great reason to make sure you get to Boston on Wednesday. It is quite literally, one of the most fun events at Expo East.

This year we are introducing an advanced retailer track to the Wednesday Retailer Workshops and last week we confirmed Chief Operating Officer for Sunflower Markets to speak on Store Expansion. This spring the first Sunflower Market opened here in Boulder, so I think we are all really excited about this particular retailer- there is a sense of familiarity that closely ties with the topic and the representation- the Sunflower here in Boulder is literally housed in an old movie theater! Sort of strange, but a real interesting use of space in a town with stringent building and space regulations, coupled with real demand for natural and organic food (supermarket) choices. I appreciate daily the real-life thought put into the program though, on what might best be relevant and crucial to the retailers attending these sessions. Chris Sherrell has played an integral part in the development of Sunflower’s fundamental strategic systems, including operations, procurement, information technology, merchandising and marketing. Currently, Chris is responsible for leading the rapid growth of Sunflower Markets, with plans to expand (beyond even Boulder) to more than 50 stores within the next three years. As the industry grows and thrives, start-ups are expanding and opening new locations, so it has to be insightful to hear from experts that have been a part of these business plans for years.

That being said, what have you been up to over the past couple weeks? How are you preparing for the show and your trip to Boston in the fall? I would love to hear your thoughts, travel tips, tradeshow tricks or any good stories about Expo experiences you would like to share…

The ‘East Team’ had just wrapped up the production of the Organic Summit (check out these hot blog and radio spots for some perspective on that event: The NBJ Blog, Gristmill Blog, DeliciousLiving Magazine: Blog and public radio) and before I knew it I was on a plane to New York City for the Fancy Food Show. For the past couple of years, our sales team has hosted an East Coast client appreciation reception on the second evening of the show at Candle 79. There are, at the very least, three great things about this event and our participation in the show. The first, of course, is the wonderful food and hospitality served up at what is a fantastic organic, vegetarian and sometimes vegan, restaurant. The seitan chimichurri’s were to die for, even for the non-vegan types, like me. The proprietors Bart Botenza and Joy Pierson are long-time industry spokespeople and well respected nutritionists, respectively and have infused the Upper East Side dining scene with healthful and palate pleasing vegetarian cuisine. The second is the ability to connect with some of our East Coast clients and hear their thoughts about what is going on in our industry (I probably should have exchanged the second for the first but come on, admit it, when you go to a party, you generally make sure your tummy is happy before diving deep into conversation). With the addition to our team a couple years ago, of Mary Beth Catapano, as your East Coast Retail Account Manager—translating, roughly to “the woman with her hand on the pulse of the East Coast Natural and Organic Products Retail Scene—we had the pleasure of hosting several retailers, distributors and brokers at the event as well. So, it’s an eclectic mix of passionate people packed into this charming restaurant in the middle of New York City. What was on their minds? Besides the good food and libations, not surprisingly, the cost of travel into Boston was the number one topic of discussion. Always prepared, I was armed with our latest and greatest retail travel promotion. This clever scheme (if I can give my team a pat on the back here) not only supports the environment, by encouraging local retailers to utilize public transport into the City of Boston, but also provides a little fiscal relief for the retail buyer that you are or that you so want to see visiting your booth in October. What’s the catch? There is no catch….check it out-

Travel Green and Save Green! Qualified buyers, brokers and distributors can ride a regional bus or train to the show and Natural Products Expo East will reimburse you up to $100—just visit the Transportation Desk with your receipt and badge.

Spend up to $50 and Receive a $50 cash card

Spend $50.01 - $74.99 and Receive a $75 cash card

Spend more than $75 and Receive a $100 cash card

AND, I learned something myself from one savvy New Yorker. The BoltBus, is being launched by Greyhound next month. This service will run between Boston and New York City, with fares starting at $1, wireless internet access, and curbside drop-offs in New York. No excuses retailers!!

Still reading? Want to know the third great thing about the Fancy Food Show? Being in the Big Apple! It was the second year our marketing and retail team had staffed a booth- this year we made it into the natural and organic pavilion, a more appropriate placement than our location in the Bulgarian pavilion last year (we really can empathize with sometimes precarious booth placements). There are so many mainstream and gourmet retailers with a growing interest in natural and organic at this event. It’s fun to have the opportunity to encourage them to attend your tradeshow, to talk about the potential to educate themselves and to grow their businesses with natural and organic, and observe the look of surprised satisfaction on their faces when you answer the question, “You mean, Natural Products Expo East is a whole show of products like we see in this little pavilion?” with a resounding, “Yes.”

Natural Products Expo Blog!! Another blog? Really? What’s in it for me? Why should I read it? What is the Natural Products Expo Blog meant to accomplish?

As industry and business (ours in the natural and organic markets) evolve and advance technologically, we thought- it is more important to be able to have an open dialogue with ALL of our customers- retailer, manufacturer, industry newcomers and veterans, vendors, supporters and proponents alike.

Have you ever been interested in the behind the scenes goings-ons of your tradeshow? Want to know what new greening efforts or products you might see at the next show? Interested in how an Expo East or West keynote might change your way of thinking or influence the way you eat, think, live or do business? Maybe so, maybe not, but undoubtedly, you are reading this because you are information hungry. Reading to keep close tabs on the source for the latest trends trying to figure out how you can help your business, how to make your life easier.

Two weekends ago, there was an article in the Denver Post See Boston the way insiders do. At least three people cut it out and brought it to me- like when a good friend is helping you prepare for a move or a life-changing event. Well, I guess in a way, the Natural Products Expo East move to Boston is a life-changing event- for the life of the show and the respective business done there.

For your Natural Products Expo show team and I- known as the ‘East Team’, moving East, is like moving our home(stead). Where will we eat? Where will we shop? Is there a good local market? Do they carry organic? What will my new friends be like? Can I take the bus or train to work? Will it be hard to get around? Are there eco-friendly options? Is the water good so I don’t have to drink from plastic bottles but can fill my SIGG wherever/whenever I need to? We, like you, are excited about the opportunities a new move brings, the doors it opens. We are excited to build our house and establish our life in Boston and then invite you, our guests into our “home” and make sure you are as comfortable as we are and able to conduct business with ease. These are the things I think about all day long, every day in preparation for when we build our city in the fall.

This blog entry will be the first of many to communicate timely, relevant information on a weekly basis and let you know what we are doing on a day-to-day basis to make the transition to Boston easy and exciting for everyone that is involved. Post your ideas, questions and answers, fears and successes and let’s start this dialogue.