SuperZoo has become an annual August tradition for me. Despite the fact that it tends to coincide with my birthday, I love the networking and trendspotting, the chance to see new product launches, to meet new people, and reconnect with old friends. And as each year passes, the number of people I'm reconnecting with at SuperZoo continues to grow.
This year was special for me, as it represented the first time I'd attended SuperZoo since launching Petworking in April. I have to say, I was humbled by the positive response I received from nearly everyone at the show.
I wanted to post a compilation of the highlights and conversations that I managed to record during the show. In this week's episode of Petworking, you can check out:
- At SuperZoo 2023, manufacturers such as Instinct, Primal Pet Foods, and Stella & Chewy's talking about the benefits of adding even 20% of raw, freeze-dried, or gently cooked foods to your pet's diet.I spoke with Dr. James Templeman, Director of Nutrition at Primal Pet Foods , and he noted that the nutritional differences between raw, freeze-dried, or gently-cooked are minuscule. Dr. Templeman will be joining me on an upcoming episode, where we'll get into a deeper discussion of pet nutrition, and how these foods can benefit your pet.
- Mars Petcare unveiled a line extension for Greenies, which expanded into the pet nutrition space, with the launch of a dry food in 5 SKUs, along with 4 formulations of toppers.
- One of the launches I was most excited about at SuperZoo was Naavi Pet, a slow-roasted food option that seeks to combine the convenience of freeze-dried raw with the visual appeal of fresh/gently-cooked diets.As much as consumers have gravitated towards fresh/frozen gently-cooked diets, there are consumer concerns around convenience with these food forms, and it's left me wondering if a move towards shelf-stable fresh diets represents the next big trend in the pet nutrition space.I chatted with Sarah Hubler about Naavi Pet, which you can find in your local independent pet store.
- Supplements continue to be an area of growth in the pet industry. We saw an NAD+ supplement launch from Zesty Paws, which follows Leap Years® into the NAD+ space. Leap Years® was launched by Animal Bioscience earlier this year, and founders Nick Sinclair and Ginny Rentko appeared on the first episode of Petworking. I also had a chance to catch up with Dan Horner, VP of Sales at Pet Honesty, and talk about the company's amazing growth, which he said surpasses the growth he witnessed earlier in his career at FreshPet.
- Finally, Chad Stuart, Western Director of Sales at Halo, talked about how he did a 90-day trial of Halo Elevate with his dog Charlie, before joining the company.
SuperZoo was a great 3 days, and I can't wait to dive further into these topics on future episodes of Petworking.
