Las Vegas, NV – The 2022 NGA Show, the premier tradeshow for the independent supermarket industry, opened Day 2 today, with an excitement and enthusiastic look to the future of retailing. Over the course of three days at the new Caesars Forum Convention Center, the event will feature more than 50 educational sessions and over 100 speakers discussing the most relevant topics facing food retailers.
With this year’s theme, “Where Retailers Look to the Future,” retailers and wholesalers kicked off their NGA Show experience Sunday with exclusive new programming: “The Shopping Experience of the Future – Evolving from Today to Tomorrow … Powered by the Consumer Heartbeat of Demand.”
“Retailers are operating in a marketplace where the shopping experience is evolving quickly based on the impact of society, technology, economics, environment and policy. This new content challenged retailers to look at how innovation can help them continually improve for today and build new capabilities they will need tomorrow,” said Greg Ferrara, NGA president and CEO.
David Henry of exhibitor Card Isle remarked, “It is important to take time away from your business to focus on your business, and The NGA Show is the perfect platform for that – from education to peer networking to product sourcing.”
Thom Blischok, chairman and CEO of the Dialogic Group, kicked off the day with a breakfast session on “Navigating the New Norm of Retail: What Does 2022 Hold for Independent Grocers?”
Monday’s education session topics included inflation, data analytics, workforce development, e-commerce, demand forecasting, category trends and Hispanic marketing. General session speakers included Stuckey’s Corp. CEO Stephanie Stuckey and IGA President and CEO John Ross.
With more than 200 exhibitors and sponsors, retailers and wholesalers discovered products on the expo floor covering the entire spectrum from store design to innovative food products, and everything in between.
This year’s event also featured the World of Latino Cuisine pavilion, which today ran a full schedule of culinary demonstrations on the show floor presented by world renowned chefs. Retailers were given a front-row seat to the latest products and information on how to successfully sell to Hispanic customers, 60 million consumers and growing.
“The NGA Show has helped Card Isle confirm that our product is a fit for the needs of the independent grocer. The conversations we are having with retailers have been very productive and we are excited to continue developing the relationships that got their start on this tradeshow floor.”
The 2022 NGA Show continues with Exhibits and Education tomorrow, concluding on Tuesday, March 1.
About The NGA Show
For 40 years, The NGA Show has been the place where independent grocers gather, connecting supermarket retailers and wholesalers, food manufacturers and service providers from around the world to share innovative solutions and best practices that support and strengthen the independent supermarket channel. The NGA Show is produced and managed by Clarion Events as part of the Food & Beverage Group, in partnership with the National Grocers Association (NGA). For more information, visit www.theNGAshow.com.
About NGA
The National Grocers Association (NGA) is the national trade association representing the retail and wholesale community grocers that comprise the independent sector of the food distribution industry. An independent retailer is a privately owned or controlled food retail company operating a variety of formats. The independent grocery sector is accountable for about 1.2 percent of the nation’s overall economy and is responsible for generating more than $250 billion in sales, 1.1 million jobs, $39 billion in wages and $36 billion in taxes. NGA members include retail and wholesale grocers located in every congressional district across the country, as well as state grocers’ associations, manufacturers and service suppliers. For more information about NGA, visit www.nationalgrocers.org.
About Clarion Events
Clarion Events (US.ClarionEvents.com) produces 37 events across 13 sectors of both trade and consumer events. Clarion Events, which is the U.S. division of Clarion Events UK and backed by The Blackstone Group, has become one of the fastest-growing event companies in the U.S. with aggressive growth through both acquisition and launch. Clarion acquired PennWell in early 2018, bringing four Tradeshow 200 events into the U.S. portfolio and supercharging the already rapid growth. Clarion Events has offices in Shelton, Conn.; Kennesaw, Ga.; Boca Raton, Fla.; Tacoma, Wash.; and Fairlawn, N.J.
