The sustainable industry came together for the 27th edition of Natural & Organic Products Europe. The event held at ExCeL London on 16-17 April, provided a vibrant meeting place for retailers across the globe to expand their offering and provide customers with the best, most environmentally friendly, health-conscious products.
More than 7305 attendees flooded the aisles across the two days. They had the opportunity to explore thousands of innovative brands from exhibitors, ranging from organic foods and beverages, natural health to sustainable skincare, and plant-based products to eco-friendly household products.
Visitors included big name buyers from Tesco, Holland & Barrett, Boots UK, Whole Foods Market UK, Planet Organic, Waitrose, Infinity Foods, John Lewis, plus, important Independents from across the UK and Ireland and 1,105 oversea visitors from 74 countries. The show featured its biggest ever Hosted Buyer Programme with 67 buyers from 19 countries.
Event Director of the show, Carol Dunning comments “We are thrilled with the success of this year’s show. Our goal is to provide an exciting platform for our exhibitors to showcase their products to interested retailers and connect with buyers who are committed to promoting healthier and more sustainable lifestyles. It was fantastic to see so many key players in the industry coming together to achieve that goal.”
“Sense of community & shared purpose”
Visitors echoed the enthusiasm, noting that the show offered an excellent opportunity to learn about the latest products, network and gain inspiration for their retail business. Kerry Murray, Head of Category Development – Health & Wellness at Boots UK comments: “It was another fantastic, valuable day at the Natural & Organic Products Europe, getting to connect with so many new passionate, innovative brands in the health and wellness space, as well as catch up with many of our current partners. The show always has a positive energy to it, and this year was no exception – looking forward to the next one!”
Phil Haughton, Founder of Better Food says: “I’ve been coming a long time to Natural & Organic Products Europe, it’s the annual gathering where you can do great networking and have conversations that you probably needed to have ages ago. The show has provided a vavavoom of energy for the industry, which has been great!”
Jade Hoai, Director of Purchasing and Operations at Whole Foods Market says: “Natural & Organic Products Europe has been fantastic. It’s amazing to make connections with people that we’ve known for a long time, but to also build new relationships with new players, markets, and participants in the industry. Events like this help create a real sense of community and shared purpose. At Whole Foods Market, our purpose is to nourish people in the planet, and so NOPEX helps us connect with likeminded individuals who are also on a mission to educate consumers and to make the world a better place.”
Independent Day
The NEW Independent Day initiative – celebrating independent health and food stores – had hundreds of participants from across the UK and Ireland. They received a number of benefits and networking opportunities during their visit including discounted travel, successful retailing talks and networking opportunities.
Debbie from Elixir Health Foods in Wadebridge, Cornwall says: “I was new to the industry four years ago, so coming here on an initiative like this where I feel part of a bigger community is something special. It means that I can get involved with what’s going on in the industry. We got some great products from NOPEX last year, that are now best sellers in our store, so I’m really looking forward to seeing what new things we can stock. Also, there’s some great talks going on, so I can’t wait to listen in on some of those, especially the ones dedicated to retailers.”
Reports, panels and pitches
The show provided an opportunity for visitors to meet with and learn from experts in the natural and organic industry, as well as to take part in informative seminars, on topics such as sustainable agriculture, retailing, sustainable and natural beauty, skincare, marketing, trends and more. Exclusive results from various industry reports were revealed – including the Soil Association Annual Organic Market Report, Viridians Health Store report and Natural Products News Health Check Survey.
The exciting Pitch to the Buyer Live with Holland & Barrett had a standing room only audience for pitches with Caprea Beauty, REFIX – Seawater Hydration, ATTITUDE, Harniman’s, Orange County CBD, and AirSnax. The buying team were thoroughly impressed by the innovation and agreed to have further talks with Harniman’s who presented their range of ‘Feel Good Sprays’.
Rachel Chatterton, Head of Product Development – Food and Beverage, Holland & Barrett comments: “I think it’s just such a lovely event that brings together small and big suppliers and we’re definitely in a growth period, particularly on food right now. So, it’s brilliant to start talking to suppliers at that infancy stage, so we can hopefully learn from them, grow with them, hopefully maybe gain them their first mass listing on the UK high street. This show is the centre of excellence for suppliers in this space. So, it’s a brilliant two days for us.”
50% rebook
As well as visitors, praise was shared by participating brands. So much so, that 50% of the exhibitors rebooked by end of play on Monday (closing day) for next year and enquiries for stands next year are coming in fast and furious which shows NOPEX is a ‘must exhibit’ show for anyone in our industry who wants to build their business.
Commenting on his exhibiting experience, Carlo Buckley, Managing Director of CBDfx says: “I think if you’re in the natural products industry, whether it’s on the foods or the supplementation side or the personal care, it’s a show that covers all bases. So, you definitely get exposed to international business if you want to expand overseas and you meet some really great distributors in other countries too. And for the UK, you meet everyone from your independent retailer to your Holland and Barrett’s and everything in between. They come here just because they are purely focused on natural products. If there’s one show to increase your B2B footprint, it’s definitely this one.”
“We had So many positive upbeat conversations from buyer and suppliers alike at Natural & Organic Products Europe. In a world of worry, the vibe and engagement at the show proves things are changing. There’s so much interest in coaching and mentoring from stores and suppliers,” says Dave Christie, founder of Take on Goliath.
And the winner is…
The Natural & Organic Innovation Award results took place at the end of the first day at the Fox Pub, ExCeL London and presented by Event Director Carol Dunning and Publisher of Natural Products News, Dominic Roberjot. Shortlisted products were voted by visitors, and winners were decided by a range of industry experts including David Morrin (Wholefoods Wholesaler), Rosie Greenaway (Natural Products News), Len Glenville (Co-Chair of Health Stores UK Association), Oliver McCabe (Author & Wholefood Chef), Shona Wilkinson (Nutritionist), Cillian Cook (Wholefoods Market UK), and Paige Tracey (Soil Assocation).
Suma Wholefoods, Rheal, Helen Browning’s Organic, Blooming Blends, AllMatters – among others won accolades on the night – and a tree will be planted on their behalf instead of trophies to reflect the show’s eco ethos. An Outstanding Achievement Award went to Christopher Dawson, founder of Clearspring – for his work helping to grow a substantial and inspirational brand. The Outstanding Contribution Award went to Graham Keen (previous Executive Director at the Health Food Manufacturers Association) for his outstanding work and support for health stores within the industry. For more information, and to see the full results, please visit www.naturalproducts.co.uk/2023/04/18/natural-organic-innovation-awards-2023-the-results.
Hosted by Georgina Baker, Sales Manager, Natural Beauty & Spa Show and Author Janey Lee Grace, the Natural Beauty Retail Awards and the Natural & Organic Innovation Awards celebrates the businesses, people and innovative products that are championing sustainable beauty and driving the industry forward.
The Lifetime Achievement Award was awarded to Charlotte Vøhtz, Founder of Green People for her outstanding work with the Green People brand and the industry as a whole. The award winners can be found online at www.naturalproducts.co.uk/2023/04/19/natural-organic-beauty-innovation-awards-beauty-retail-awards-the-results.
Natural & Organic Products Europe 2024
The show was a resounding success, and plans are already underway for next year’s event. Natural & Organic Products Europe will return to ExCeL London on 14-15 April 2024. To keep up-to date with the event, book a stand or register your interest in attending, please visit www.naturalproducts.co.uk.
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