Learn this year's top trends to inform your Expo West 2023 game planLearn this year's top trends to inform your Expo West 2023 game plan

As the premier trade show for this industry, Natural Products Expo West offers an unmatched experience. The event is jampacked with educational sessions, expert panels, and significant networking and business opportunities for its estimated 60,000-plus attendees and exhibitors.

Truth be told, with so much to see, do and experience at Expo West, the show can become a bit overwhelming. That’s why it pays to map out a solid plan of action before touching down in Anaheim, California. Analysts from New Hope Network and SPINS will help attendees do exactly that in a virtual education session at 8 a.m. PT on Wednesday, Feb. 22. Top Trends at Expo West is a one-hour crash course on the products, innovations, categories and market trends anticipated to appeal most to consumers in the coming year.

“This session is designed for retailers who are updating their categories and want to make sure they’re stocking products that represent trends with momentum in the marketplace and that will reach the evolving consumer,” says session co-presenter Amanda Hartt, lead market analyst for New Hope’s NEXT Data and Insights team. “We see a lot of granular innovation in the marketplace at the product level, and it can be a bit chaotic. We need to pause and ask why. What trends are driving this innovation?”

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Hartt will present findings from an intensive research project completed in late 2022 that surveyed consumers about 35 different trends in the marketplace. From this data, she identified three macro cultural forces driving purchases in the natural products industry:

Top Trends at Expo West will also explore manifestations of these cultural drivers. For example, solutions to help navigate modern life include supplements that support cognitive health, mood, digestive regularity, optimal immune function and a healthy microbiome. As for eco- and social impact, shoppers are seeking out brands that are advancing the organic movement, as well as those promoting responsible meat and dairy production, regenerative agriculture, renewable energy, food waste reduction and upcycling.

Additionally, New Hope and SPINS analysts will touch on trends within specific categories, including functional beverages, coffees and teas, frozen foods, savory and sweet snacks, condiments, pantry items, supplements and personal care.

“This session will provide up-to-date, data-informed insights behind the top categories and trends that retailers should be aware of as they connect with new brands,” Hartt says. “Our goal is to provide animation behind many of the buzzwords tossed around in the industry. [We will] help retailers translate that information and use it as a lens when they go to Expo and meet individual vendors.”

Top Trends at Expo West: A Buyer's Guide to the Show Floor begins at 8 a.m. PT on Wednesday, Feb. 22, on the New Hope Network Events page. To learn more about this program and others, as well as exhibiting brands, visit ExpoWest.com. To see registration options, including those for virtual access, click here.