Highlights Gallery from Grocery & Specialty Food West 2015

More than 2,000 attendees to Grocery & Specialty Food West (GSF) in Vancouver had an opportunity to check out the latest innovations and take in expert business sessions and workshops.

The two-day event took place April 13-14, 2015 at the Vancouver Convention Centre East, and brought together more than 280 booths, and over 160 exhibitors, on the 65,000-sq.-ft. trade floor.

Kicking the event off, retailers networked at the Steamworks Brew Pub on the Sunday night where exhibitors got a chance to speak with leaders in grocery from Quality Foods to Overwaitea and Longo’s.

Marketing guru Tony Chapman inspired the group at the Monday morning conference with his take on the move in the marketplace from mass to my. He highlighted how independent grocers can compete against larger chains by focusing on what they do best instead of competing on price. Chapman pointed to what’s important to the “My” consumer: relationships, stories, authenticity, design, experience and my community—all areas that independents in particular excel.

Next was the retail panel of health and wellness and fresh experts. Moderated by Tom Barlow, CEO of the Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers (CFIG), the trade show organizers, leaders from Longo’s, Pete’s and Pomme Natural Markets shared their best practices. All agreed that staying on top of trends in fresh is a must, as well as staff training as they are on the frontlines reflecting the company’s philosophy and strengths. Joe Longo, chair of CFIG and chief development officer at Longo’s, a 28-store chain in Toronto, told the audience that adding convenience in fresh has been key in growing sales for his company. He pointed to cut up packaged salads complete with dressing as an example.

Trends and innovations expert Max Valiquette on Tuesday showcased how the internet of things will transform every aspect of our life, from 3D printed chocolate to milk bottle that can detect when the contents are expired. Valiquette said that for millennials convenience is the single massive driver for them.

Today’s consumer also want “asset light” versus “asset heavy,” in all sectors, said Valiquette, pointing to “ditching everything and living in the cloud.” He added all organizations need to think about this in how we live play and work from stocking a fridge with soda to owning Soda Stream, to a grocery centre aisle to Unverpackt, a zero packaging Berlin supermarket.

New this year was concurrent business workshops for retailers. From HMR best practices with Maple Leaf Foods, to financial benchmarking with FMS Solutions, attendees were able to garner great ideas to take back to their respective business.

On the trade floor, the demos at the Raised by a Chicken Farmer Insights and Innovations Stage were packed with retailers looking to take back category specific learnings on bakery, cheese, meat and produce.

For example, the Chicken Farmers of Canada provided tips on how to educated consumers at POS through recipes, sampling in their informative “50 Shades of Rotisserie Chicken” session, while Dairy Farmers of Canada showcased how to drive sales in deli cheese through cross merchandising, sampling.

On the floor, there was plenty of buzz with several new pavilions highlighting key trends in the sector. Local products were showcased in the local processors pavilion, while the specialty pavilion featured global flavours and artisan goods. Key trends from this year included snacking with an ethnic twist, upmarket food finds,and local purveyors are hot. Otimo Brazilian Cheese puffs, a line of naturally gluten-free frozen product based on a traditional recipe from Brazil called “pão de queijo” (cheese bread or cheese rolls), and Spolumbo’s gluten-free sausages made from all natural ingredients with no chemical preservatives, were just a few of the finds from the show.

Grocery & Specialty Food West by the numbers

*more than 2,000 attendees this year; more than half were retailers, wholesalers and distributors

*exhibitors were up this year a solid 18% over 2014

*Media coverage of the show and products from the floor were at an all-time high:

Global BC

Vancouver Sun

CTV Vancouver

Canadian Grocer

Marketing Magazine

Business in Vancouver

Good Life Vancouver

Vancouver Courier

Here’s what exhibitors had to say at this year’s show that featured NEW! Trade Show Specials on the floor, top-to-top meetings, and dedicated pavilions to key growth areas in grocery:

“We’ve been coming here for the past six years, offering commercial business insurance. Between the Western show and Toronto show, it’s been great for our business. This year’s at Grocery & Specialty Food West has the main decision makers are here.” –Mauro DiTullio, Federated Insurance

“We’re able to reach the decision makers we need to at this show. Everyone we’ve spoken with have been decision makers in their business, which I can’t say for other shows we participate in. I can reach thousands of people in two days. ”—Dwayne Botchar, Rational-Canada

“This show has been very successful for us. I met so many new buyers, retailers and companies I never had an opportunity to meet. My line features natural, vegan, and gluten free and this show was an excellent way to showcase my products.” —Maureen Simon, Maureen’s Natural Foods

“Being a first time exhibitor at this show, show organizers (Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers) really took care of us; they went above and beyond to make sure it was a success. We are excited to work with independent retailers who are excited to work with smaller companies like ours.”—Nima Safdari, Royal Nuts

SAVE THE DATE: Grocery & Specialty Food West, April 4-5, 2016 at the Vancouver Convention Centre.

DON’T MISS:  Grocery Innovations Canada at the Toronto Congress Centre, September 28-29, 2015. What’s NEW? Trade show specials, more innovations, and more specialty food products!

For exhibiting information, contact: Rolster Taylor, Sales Manager, rtaylor@cfig.ca; 1-800-661-2344

Visit: www.cfig.ca