Montpelier, Vt. – Natalie King, Chief of Sales & Marketing at Stonewall Kitchen and leaders of the (national) Specialty Food Association will speak during the Vermont Specialty Food Association Fall Annual Meeting on October 7th from 1:00pm to 3:30pm. This dynamic meeting will also feature regulatory updates that will impact Vermont producers from Cassandra LaRae-Perez of Gravel & Shea. Prospective members are encouraged to attend to learn more about VSFA, what the association does, and the exciting innovative programs in development for 2021. Learn more about this event and register here: https://vtspecialtyfoods.org/events
VSFA’s Fall Annual Meeting is FREE to members of VSFA and Vermont Retail & Grocers Association. Non-members can participate for $10. Registration in advance is required for all VSFA events. Register here: bit.ly/vsfafallmeeting
VSFA is excited to welcome the following guest speakers and sessions:
KEYNOTE SPEAKER: Natalie King, Chief of Sales & Marketing, Stonewall Kitchen
From Farmers Market to an International Family of Brands – During this presentation Natalie will share Stonewall’s journey from farmers market to international brand including transitioning from a “family” run business to a mid-sized corporation with 500+ employees. Natalie will share insights into Stonewall’s marketing and growth efforts that have helped shape the brand today.
INDUSTRY SESSION: Ron Tanner, Vice President, Education, Government & Industry Relations, Specialty Food Association
Specialty Food Trends Post-COVID – The specialty food industry was booming before COVID. Now, many makers struggle while others are enjoying stellar sales. Learn where the industry is in the light of the pandemic, what are the top-selling and fastest growing categories today and which categories will slow down and ramp up by 2024.
VSFA is thankful for the following Event Sponsors whose support helps the association offer educational programming to its members: ImageTek Labels, Merritt & Merritt, PLEX, and Vanguard Renewables
Typically held in-person, VSFA’s Fall Annual Meeting will be held virtually this year. In response to COVID-19 VSFA has adapted to the needs of their members by moving their two in-person conferences to virtual events, and developing impactful and reactive real-time educational webinars for specialty food producers, retailers, and the small business community. VSFA has been working closely with their partner association Vermont Retail & Grocers Association (VRGA) to develop valuable webinars, programs, and resources for their members during this unprecedented time. Since March, VSFA and VRGA have offered 15 webinars. In the spirit of collaboration during these hard times, these Webinars are FREE for all. Past webinars may be found here: https://vtspecialtyfoods.org/webinars/
To learn more about the work VSFA does, visit the association’s website at www.vtspecialtyfoods.org, follow them on Facebook & Instagram, or call their office at (802) 839-1930.
About the Vermont Specialty Food Association:
The Vermont Specialty Food Association is the leading information resource for all specialty food and beverage producers, service providers, and industry professionals. VSFA seeks to grow specialty food businesses and the Vermont industry through education, promotion, and statewide and national collaboration. It is the nation’s oldest and most highly regarded specialty food association, celebrating over 30 years of service to the industry.
