A One-Day, Brand-Led Conference & Networking Event, 9th October 2018, One America Square, Central London
08.30 Registration, Coffee & Informal Networking
09.00 GIC Welcome, Interactive Voting Introduction & Co-Chairs’ Opening Remarks
Alex Aves
Head of Innovation, Brand & Business Insight
Brown-Forman
Steve Love
Principal Research Chef
McCormick
TRENDS & INNOVATIONS
09.20 Insights Into Unpicking The Latest Trends To Sort The Lasting Movements From The Fads & Deliver Winning NPD With Long-Term Success
- How can we stay ahead of the trends to differentiate new food and drink products in an increasingly competitive market?
- From seasonal events to new ingredients to growing markets, where should we be looking for new inspiration to bring food and drink NPD to life?
Rachel Chatterton
Senior Innovation Manager EMEA
Starbucks
CONCEPT TO LAUNCH
09.40 From Concept To Launch; The ‘How’ Behind The Success Of Profitable, Cutting-Edge Food & Drink NPD Innovations
- Finding the magic spark to make a product successful: from concept inspiration to the innovation process to a speedy, successful launch, what makes an NPD idea a blockbuster hit?
Stephen Marsh
Founder
Pinkster Gin
TRENDS DEEP DIVE
10.00 Interactive NPD Trends Breakout Discussions
Join one of our interactive breakout discussion groups, with a short informal introduction focused on your chosen relevant trend, followed by facilitated group discussion and networking. Don’t worry if you can’t decide – our group facilitators will feed back the key insights and discussion points to kickstart the upcoming ‘hot trends’ panel and highlight the key challenges for the thought-leaders to address.
A) NATURAL
Karthikeyan Harith
Head of Category - Frozen, Infant & Oriental
Kraft Heinz
B) VEG-CENTRIC
Ann Dunne
Head of Product Development & Quality
Harrods
C) FREE FROM
Chris Hook
Free From Business Director
Warburtons
D) PROTEIN
David Towse
Founder & CEO
GET NOURISHED
D) NATURAL & WHOLESOME SNACKING
Rob Bugler
Head of Insight, Innovation & Whitworths Shots
Whitworths SNACKING
F) SNACKING
Harry Mayhew
Brother + Co-Founder
Ember Snacks
Jack Mayhew
Brother + Co-Founder
Ember Snack
G) INGREDIENTS
10.30 Morning Refreshment Break With Informal, Facilitated Networking & Chef Demos
HOT TRENDS UNCOVERED - WHAT'S THE NEXT BIG THING?
11.00 What’s New, What’s Next & What’s Happening Globally? Explore Likely Future Trends & Worldwide Growth Opportunities To Maximise Profitability
- What’s the next big thing?! Exploring the latest trends in new, sustainable ingredients and flavours to find the next ‘wow’ factor to stand out and excite consumers
- Seeking inspiration from trend-setting countries around the globe: what’s hot in the USA, Asia and Australia and how can we update our strategies before these new trends hit the UK?
- Everything starts out as a fad, but which new trends are likely to stick in the long term?
Adrian Boswell
Buyer - Cheese, Deli & Food-To-Go Concessions
Selfridges
Chris Hook
Free From Business Director
Warburtons
Matt Pomeroy
Global Director of Education, Advocacy & New Liquid Creation
Belvedere Vodka
John Stewart
Commercial Director - Europe, Middle East and Africa
Tate & Lyle PLC
Anisa Jamal
Head of Product Development
SimplyCook
Valia Christidou
Regional Head of R&D
pladis UK & Europe
Jaco Pieper
Owner
Koupe
11.30 Bonus Session; Reserved For Exclusive Conference Partner. Can you help drive food and drink NPD innovation? For more information on how to get involved, please call +44 (0) 20 3479 2299 or email partner@npdfoodconference.com
PACKAGING INNOVATIONS
12.00 Designing & Developing Advanced, Sustainable & Functional Packaging To Effectively Respond To Consumer Expectations & Plastic Reduction Demands
- The ideal is plastic-free – but how does this work in practice?
- Exploring viable, cost-effective recyclable or compostable materials to replace plastic and design innovative, sustainable packaging which maintains product quality and shelf life
- Best-practice advice on educating consumers, communicating effectively and getting product labelling right to ensure clarity around nutritional information and packaging recyclability
Samuel Dennigan
CEO
Strong Roots UK
12.20 Morning Round-Up, Quick-Wins Advice & Lunchtime Notices
The co-chairs will share closing thoughts and practical takeaways from the sessions so far, along with some brief notices.
12.30 Lunch Break With Informal, Facilitated Networking
LUNCHTIME PEER-TO-PEER NETWORKING DISCUSSIONS
13.10 Interactive Peer-To-Peer Discussions
A) Centennials
Hannah Hughes
Head of Group Innovation
SOHO Coffee Co.
B) Quality & Authenticity
Claire Gallagher
Head of Food & Drink Innovation
Bettys
C) NPD Models & Techniques
Mehdi Adjiri
Food Technologist – Bakery
M&S
D) On-The-Go
13.30 Co-Chairs’ Opening Remarks
Alex Aves
Head of Innovation, Brand & Business Insight
Brown-Forman
Steve Love
Principal Research Chef
McCormick
HEALTH TRENDS
13.45 Harnessing New Opportunities & Anticipating The Next Big Health Trends To Inspire Successful New Product Innovations
- As fad diets come and go, implement proactive approaches to better anticipate upcoming health crazes and develop standout, future-proofed food and drink products with demonstrable nutritional benefits
- Salt, sugar, calories, saturated fats, portion size – what’s next on the health agenda? Tackling new challenges in health and nutrition guidelines and legislation to deliver healthy, commercially-successful NPD
- Balancing health priorities with consumer perceptions and eating habits to create healthy, on-trend products which sell
- There’s a big drive to change products – but are we missing an opportunity to educate consumers and positively change behaviours to encourage more healthy lifestyles?
Claire Hughes
Head of Quality & Innovation
Sainsbury’s
CONSUMER INSIGHTS & SHOPPER BEHAVIOURS
14.05 Leverage Insights Into Diverse Consumer Desires & Expectations & Shopper Behaviours To Inspire Truly Successful NPD Which Excites Consumers & Flies Off The Shelves
- With new, growing markets and changing consumer habits, where should we be focusing our NPD energies?
- Exploring generational, customer and market trends to determine where the gaps in the market lie and inform future NPD strategies
- Tapping into shopper behaviours for in-store execution strategies which ensure ‘on-shelf’ engagement and inspire customers to purchase
- Striking the right balance of novelty and affordability to deliver attention-grabbing, on-trend products which excite your target consumers
- Ensure we’re getting new launches right! Effective avenues for testing new products and gaining valuable feedback
Joe Gosney
Director Of Channel Development - Grocers & Discounters
Britvic
14.25 Bonus Session; Reserved For Exclusive Conference Partner. Can you help drive food and drink NPD innovation? For more information on how to get involved, please call +44 (0) 20 3479 2299 or email partner@npdfoodconference.com
VEGAN CASE STUDY
14.55 The Vegan Movement: What Opportunities Can We Take Advantage Of?
As the vegan market continues to grow, what is the way forward? Exploring the potential opportunities and challenges around one of the biggest trends of 2018 to capture new audiences and stay on-trend with innovative vegan products – without losing your current consumer base.
Amir Ali
Culinary Strategy Manager
Mitchells & Butlers
KELLOGG CASE STUDY
15.15 The Future Of Retail: Transforming Your Organisation To Win Today & Tomorrow
Nick Dawson
Sales Director - Transformation Channels
Kellogg UK
15.35 Afternoon Refreshment Break & Informal Networking
SUCCESSFUL NPD
16.05 Drive Innovation In Food & Drink NPD With Best-In-Class Processes, Models & Strategies
Why do some products fail and some flourish? Lessons learned in taking an idea from concept to market – while it’s still relevant! How can we optimise processes and cross-functional teams to create on-trend products and launch them at the right time to maximise commercial success?
Jack Hinchliffe
Innovation Director
KFC UK & Ireland
TODAY'S RETAIL MARKET
16.25 Shaping Forward-Thinking, Insight-Driven Strategies To Drive Sales Growth & Remain Competitive In The Evolving Retail Landscape
- What is happening on the ground? Get ahead with insights into emerging trends and shopper purchase behaviours as seen by the retailers to stay on-trend – and on the shelves!
- From major mults, discounters and convenience to wholesalers, foodservice, coffee shops and more, what approaches work best to boost new product success across different sales channels?
- Understanding the key drivers behind strong retailer-manufacturer relationships to adapt to changing pressures and align new product innovations with retailer and shopper expectations
- Advice on adapting to market change, whether Brexit, unprecedented price hikes, digitalisation or unexpected issues, how can we future-proof NPD strategies?
Daniela Busseni
Head of Category Management - Sweet Treats
Premier Foods
16.45 Conference Round-Up, Quick-Wins Advice & Co-Chairs’ Closing Remarks
The co-chairs will share closing thoughts and practical takeaways from the day’s sessions – what top tips can you take back to the kitchen tomorrow?
17.00 Official Close Of Conference
Are you interested in getting involved in The NPD Food & Drink Conference - Trends & Innovations? For more information, please call +44 (0)20 3479 2299 or email info@npdfoodconference.com.
