eShipping Marketing Team 1/27/20 eShipping Marketing Team 1/27/20

3 Things Pet Food Manufacturers Forget While Attending Global Pet Expo 2020

Global Pet Expo 2020, the “pet industry’s largest annual trade show,” is February 26-28 at Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, FL (source: GlobalPetExpo.org).

It can be easy to forget why this event is so popular. From the new product showcases and “Petworking” Receptions to the energizing like-minded atmosphere and opportunities to pet so many animals, the Global Pet Expo is one event pet lovers and manufacturers enjoy attending and find value in.

As you and your team plan your trip to the ‘Sunshine State’ for the first, second, or even tenth or more time, we’d like to remind you of a couple of things that are easy to forget while exhibiting at the show.

Global Pet Expo 2020, the “pet industry’s largest annual trade show,” is February 26-28 at Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, FL (source: GlobalPetExpo.org).

From the new product showcases and “Petworking” Receptions to the energizing, like-minded atmosphere and opportunities to pet so many animals, the Global Pet Expo is one event pet lovers and manufacturers love to attend each year for the incredible value gained.

As you and your team plan your trip to the ‘Sunshine State’ for the first, second, or even tenth time, we’d like to remind you of a couple of things that are easy to forget while exhibiting at the show.

The Show is in Beautiful, Sunny, Warm, Orlando, Florida

What better place to host a trade show in winter than Orlando? Could you ask for a better place to attend for a business trip?

The Orange County Convention Center is in the heart of the area’s tourism district: there’s shopping, dining, and entertainment options for miles.

Are you into luxury shopping or delicious food? After the show, take a quick Uber to Mall at Millenia, just five miles from the convention center. With over 150 high-end stores including Apple, Lacoste, Banana Republic, and Burberry, it will be hard not to find what you’re looking for. The mall is also home to many popular dining choices, featuring the Cheesecake Factory, Brio Tuscan Grille, and other delicious options.

If you have your furry friend with you, a must-see in Orlando is Bark Avenue Bakery. This bakery has plenty of sweet treats to share with your pet, from homemade baked goods, to rawhides, clothing, and more. If you didn’t bring your pet with you, you can always pick up a surprise present to take home!

“Petworking” Receptions Are Awesome

If you’ve been to Global Pet Expo before, you’ll know they call their networking events “Petworking” Receptions. There, you can meet other industry leaders at the show. It’s the “time and place to rub elbows with people you might never have another opportunity to meet” (source: Global Pet Expo). They also have free drink and some eats for you to munch on.

Note: No registration is required but they ask that you wear your badge to the event.

YOu Can Learn From 81 Different Countries

It’s easy to forget, but you have opportunities to meet so many fascinating and amazing business professionals who originate from countries across the world. The Petworking Reception is a great place to meet these types of people, but even walking around visiting other booths is a fantastic way to engage with like-minded individuals.

Get this: Within the 1,174 exhibitors at the Global Pet Expo, there are 81 countries represented, from China, Taiwan, and more. That’s impressive! Take this opportunity to network and learn about new cultures, products, and business processes.

Challenges Pet Food Manufacturers Face

If you’re a manufacturer, distributor, supplier, or wholesaler in the animal health and pet food industry, you face a couple of supply chain challenges:

eCommerce pressures: meeting standards, customer needs, and fulfillment goals
Being agile and adapting to industry changes quickly: 2-day shipping, capacity at warehouses, and delivering freight on-time
Retail compliance: meeting vendor guidelines, reducing chargebacks, and gaining visibility to transportation costs

These supply chain challenges often stand in your way of meeting business growth goals. However, the problem is not if these challenges can be solutioned, it’s how they are solutioned and executed on. There are proper and improper ways of maximizing value within your supply chain.

Today, you have real-time access to new layers of freight data that can be funneled to a single source, which provides you with full visibility and performance across modes, locations, and brands. Real-time access to things like landed costs, freight spending, carrier usages, SKU level costs and projections, estimated shipment delivery times and notifications, and more. Having technology and a system like this empowers you and your team to do so much more with your time, reduce costs, and operate more efficiently.

If you want to learn how your business can implement a proven and sustainable plan across your supply chain, we’d love to talk with you and understand how you operate.

Visit us at booth #3642 any time during the Global Pet Expo and we’d love to answer your eCommerce, warehousing and fulfillment, freight data, and retail compliance questions.

Meet With an Expert

Let us guide and empower you toward supply chain success. Request time to meet with a team member at GPE 2020.

eShipping Marketing Team 7/25/19 eShipping Marketing Team 7/25/19

The 3 Most Anticipated Events at SuperZoo 2019

As one of the leading tradeshows in the pet food and animal health space, SuperZoo hosts major dealers and suppliers in the industry who come together to network and share new ideas, inspirations, and innovations.

SuperZoo 2019 dates are August 20-22 at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada. Attendee registration opened January 2019 and will continue to stay open until the start of the event. If you haven’t gotten your tickets, you can do so by clicking here.

If you’ve already purchased your tickets and/or are exhibiting at this year’s event, here are three notable events you should plan to attend. Don’t miss out!

As one of the leading trade shows in the pet food and animal health space, SuperZoo hosts major dealers and suppliers in the industry who come together to network and share new ideas, inspirations, and innovations.

If you’ve already purchased your tickets and/or are exhibiting at this year’s event, here are three notable events you should plan to attend. Don’t miss out!

Retail Educational Sessions

Each day at the expo there are “retail educational sessions” hosted by various expert speakers in the retail space and pet industry. These sessions are meant to give you creative ideas, industry tips & tricks, and advise you on best practices so that your business can grow and meet customer needs.

Two notable sessions we would plan on attending are (1) “Solving Generational Challenges – 4 Essential Steps to Build Your Multi-Generational Staff” with Tammy Bond and (2) “How Customers Shop Today Online is a Way of Life – Not Just a Way to Shop” with Lynn Switanowski.

Finding and developing the right team to carry out day-to-day operations can be challenging, especially with the generation gap facing most teams today. In this session, Tammy will teach you 4 essential steps and strategies leaders of organizations can use to develop a proactive team and increase productivity. For more about this session, visit SuperZoo’s events page.

With the growing trend of online sales, how customers shop online is not only a topic for retailers, but for manufacturers, distributors, and anyone who has product they sell to their end consumer. Lynn’s session will walk you through why consumers believe a great customer experience is having the convenience of shopping online, how to create engaging programs that make your customers want to engaged via online, video, and in-store, and how to “rethink” retail to meet today’s modern consumer where they want to shop (Source: SuperZoo). For more about this session, visit SuperZoo’s events page.

Free Networking Reception

Networking sessions are not new by any means, and if they’re not hosted and planned correctly, can seem a little forced. However, SuperZoo’s free networking event is just the opposite. With the mass amount of industry leaders, professionals, and creative thinkers attending, you’ll be surprised who you’ll meet and what relationships you will personally make, not to mention the ones that could benefit your business down the road. For more on the free networking event, visit SuperZoo’s events page.

Live Concert

During your stay in Las Vegas, it’s important to not only work hard and do business, but to relax and enjoy your stay. While there are plenty of things to do in Vegas on a weekday night, you might want to consider staying within the vicinity of your hotel.

SuperZoo 2019 attendees have an exclusive live event they are invited to Wednesday, August 21 at 6:15 PM. Who’s the headlining band? REO Speedwagon, famous for multiple classics including “Take it On the Run” and “Keep on Loving You.” For more on the live concert, visit SuperZoo’s events page.

BONUS: Where to Eat

We couldn’t end without sending you some recommendations for the top places to eat. While there are plenty of top-rated restaurants in Vegas, here are some that we recommend trying out if you have time.

Kabuto: If you’re into sushi, you’ll need to visit this place. They make fantastic omakase style sushi, the nigiri are prepared right in front of you, and their service is best-in-class.

Vic & Anthony’s Steakhouse: These guys feature an elegant atmosphere with a high attention to detail. Pork chops, filet mignon, classic steaks, you name it – it’s all good.

Steak ‘n Shake: This is no ordinary Steak ‘n Shake - it’s a Vegas Steak ‘n Shake. With its affordability, chocolate chip pancakes, baked beans, and friendly hosts, a visit to this location won’t disappoint.