Shopper Marketing Fusion 2009 Highlighted Session: Defining Consumer Behavior at Retail with Phillip Raub, Nintendo

Join Phillip on Friday, October 16th at 1:30PM for his presentation, "Defining Consumer Behavior at Retail: Why do Consumers Cross the Retail Threshold?" at Shopper Marketing Fusion 2009.

Why do consumers decide to shop where they shop: in-store design, superior customer service, quality products, low cost...In the original 5 & dimes it was about variety and value. In the 1980s specialty reigned king. By the 90s big bog had emerged, yet luxury prevailed with the Internet boom. By 2000, bit box was holding storn as the economy contracted; however, by mid-decade speciality retail was back and in only a few short years, big box rules again.

So what drives why consumers show where they shop?

In this session you'll learn:

• A better understanding of why consumers choose one retailer over another.
• What it takes to ensure that your Brand is still relevant and top of mind to consumers
• The need to diversify your business and constantly budget for appropriate reinventions.

For more information about the great sessions offered at Shopper Marketing Fusion 2009, please download the brochure.

Shopper Marketing Fusion 2009 Speaker: Anne Howe, MARS

Anne Howe
SVP, Market Intelligence
MARS

As Senior Vice President - Market Intelligence, Anne Howe serves as the agency futurist. Focused on interpretations of overall market trends, Anne develops both immediate and long-term strategies for the agency and its shopper marketing clients. As a member of the Executive Team, she also leads the agency's industry association activation efforts.

Anne brings to MARS more than 24 years of experience in all aspects of consumer and shopper marketing. She is responsible for the formation of the agency's Insights and Planning team and also played a large role in the development and organization of the Account Management and Promotion Development departments.

Previous to MARS, Anne's extensive marketing communications background includes a Regional Sales VP position with Sara Lee Hosiery. She also has shopper marketing knowledge in consumer packaged goods, food and beverages, hotels, intimate apparel, appliances, personal care products and more.

Anne's biography courtesy of MARS.

____________________________________________________________________

We recently asked Anne a few questions about the importance of Shopper Marketing, here are her answers:


1. Why do you feel shopper marketing is getting so much attention?


Anne Howe: Shopper marketing is getting attention because of the results realized from shopper-centric marketing.
Manufacturers and retailers working together to create better shopping experiences and solutions for shoppers understand the power of collaboration against true insights.

2. What do you think needs to happen for it to progress?

AH: In order for shopper marketing to reach its full potential, all the players have to share data, insights and be open to out of the box ideation. The future is about meeting unmet needs that the shoppers can't articulate.
Taking the industry forward will require marketers to integrate budgets across all phases of the Shopper's Journey, not just inside the store.

3. What are you speaking about and how will that information help
move the industry ahead?

AH: John Andrews of MARS affiliate Collective Bias and I are speaking together on the intersection of social media and shopper marketing.
The "wisdom of the collective crowd" continues to grow as an important purchase influencer, impacting brand relevancy and business results for both manufacturers and retailers. We will help marketers learn why social media matters and how community influence programs can be the catalyst for success before the store, at the shelf and beyond. The shopper marketing industry will be able to better understand how social media efforts can create not just buzz, but relevant brand influence and sales growth.

Anne will be speaking at Shopper Marketing Fusion 2009 with her presentation, "The Power of Bloggers: Integrating Social Media in Your Shopper Marketing Plan" on October 14 at 10:30am.

We'd love to have you join us next month at Shopper Marketing Fusion 2009. Join the most progressive BRANDS, RETAILERS and VISIONARIES for the first and only event to tackle the
true integration of ALL marketing functions - category management, in-store marketing and shopper marketing - to create a seamless experience from start to finish beginning with the first emotional trigger to the final point of purchase and beyond.

Event: http://bit.ly/20LPJn
Brochure: http://bit.ly/H8BVl
Registration: http://bit.ly/q9cYh

New Content Added to Walmart Presentation at the Shopper Marketing Fusion Event!

Walmart has added a new section to their presentation entitled “The Walmart Smart Network: Smarter Shopping, Smarter Marketing." In addition to the original content, Walmart has added a new piece around “halos” which will be shared for the first time at this event.

• Shopper Marketing Fusion 2009: http://bit.ly/2Z8bHW
• Brochure: http://bit.ly/14ZMFc
• Speakers: http://bit.ly/3Lvp3m
• Registration: http://bit.ly/fKjKy

New Section: THE 3 HALOS OF IN-STORE MARKETING
James Beck, General Manager, Walmart Smart Network, Walmart Stores, Inc.

What is an in-store marketing halo? When marketing drives lift beyond the advertised item to other related items and beyond the campaign to subsequent weeks. It’s the inverse of cannibalization or forward buying.

On Friday, October 16, learn more about this outcome and see examples from the Walmart Smart Network that include brand halo and post-campaign halo.


Plus, James will share:
The Walmart Smart Network: Smarter Shopping, Smarter Marketing
The Walmart Smart Network was introduced a year ago to improve the shopper experience and to drive higher sales lift. Since then, it has delivered impressive results for Walmart’s partners. What has been achieved? What has been learned? What does the future hold? Learn how the Walmart Smart Network combines expertise in retail messaging, dynamic targeting in- store, and reliable insights to accelerate business results.

Key Takeaways:
· How partners on the Walmart Smart Network have achieved exceptional marketing results.
· Programs and programming that deliver what shoppers want and inspire them to buy.
· New approaches to optimization that drive higher sales lift.

---------------------------------------
James Beck, General Manager of the Walmart Smart Network, guides a team that is helping moms shop smarter and Walmart suppliers market smarter. Prior to the Walmart Smart Network, James led Walmart’s Home and Hardlines category marketing teams. Before joining Walmart, James served in executive marketing roles with Coca-Cola, Pillsbury and General Mills.

We hope to see you next month!

Cheers,
Shopper Marketing Fusion

Shopper Marketing Fusion 2009 Featured Company TracyLocke in the News

Shopper Marketing Fusion featured company, TracyLocke is in the news. The brand to retail marketing agency recently helped the iconic lock company Schlage kick off a national television campaign last week to support the LiNK remote home-management system, which enables homeowners to lock and unlock doors, monitor live camera feeds, and control temperature, lighting and other devices from a computer or Web-enabled mobile phone. Delivering more than 190 million impressions, the 30-second spots will run through mid-November on HGTV, DIY Network, Food Network, Travel Channel, TLC, The History Channel, MSNBC, A&E and NBC`s Today show.

Al Witteman of TracyLocke will be speaking at 10:30am on Friday, October 16 with John Dranow of Smartrevenue. Their presentation will discuss, "Solutions without Walls."

Because over 50% of purchase decisions are made in-store, there is a new paradigm. This new paradigm creates complexities that require understanding the purchase decision. Understanding the purchase decision requires the integration of consumer segments with shopper types and the retail environment. Purchase understanding drives a new model that is consumer-and shopper-centric and internally & externally collaborative. In this session, you will learn a new model that has been constructed by a best of class companies working collaboratively to provide Solutions without Walls.

To find out more about the presentations at this year's event, please download the brochure.

Shopper Marketing Fusion 2009 Podcast Series: Jesse Spungin, VP, Shopper Marketing, ConAgra Foods

Recently we had the pleasure of speaking with Jesse Spungin, VP of Shopper Marketing at ConAgra Foods. We invite you to hear our discussion by listening to the podcast or you may read the transcript below.


Melissa Sundaram: Thanks for joining us today for the Shopper Marketing Fusion 2009 podcast series. I'm Melissa Sundaram, Online Producer for the event and I have the pleasure of speaking today with Jesse Spungin who serves as the Vice President of Shopper Marketing at ConAgra foods. Jesse will be speaking on Tuesday Oct 15 on The Anatomy of a Winning Shopper-Centric Strategy.

MS: Thanks for joining us today Jesse.

Jesse Spungin: Thanks for having me, Melissa

MS: Jesse, let me begin by asking you--why do you feel shopper marketing is getting so much attention?

JS: You know I really feel like shopper marketing is quite frankly reinventing a lot of other names in the past. Regional co-marketing, account specific marketing; but I think its getting a lot of attention both on the manufacturer side and the retail side, quite frankly. Because finally we've gotten to a place where we can both agree on which is the mutual shopper and it really all starts with the shopper. The account shopper as well as the shopper for the manufacturer that picks up their brands.

MS: What do you think needs to happen for it to progress?

JS: think a couple of things need to happen for all the great momentum that has built around shopper marketing to continue. I think strategic planning with each other, and when I say with each other I say both the manufacturer and the retailer, is critical--not just looking at the quarterly short term quarterly leads. But where is it going and how do we get there? I think the second thing that needs to happen in order for it to progress is on the manufacturer’s side, I think that more and more manufacturers need to build this capability inside. In order to do that it takes a decent amount of commitment not only from the human capital perspective, but also financial resources. And also a commitment to really getting at what are those insights, those deep shopper insights. Because without those, quite frankly, programming is just programming instead of stuff that can drive results for both the manufacturer and the retailer.

MS: As I mentioned earlier, you'll be speaking on the Anatomy of a Winning Shopper-Centric strategy, how do you think that information help move the industry ahead?

JS: I think its going to show clearly ConAgra Foods has the capabilities that we've built as an integrated customer marketing team. Not just a shopper marketing when you harness the power of shopper insights, category leadership, in-store marketing with shopper marketing. How you bring all four of those disciplines together and the power it can have on volume, growth and profit. That's what we hope to display, that's what I know we will display during that conference. And I think that will educate a lot of people on what does it take to do best in class in shopper marketing and achieve the kind of growth that both manufacturers and retailers want.

MS: Again, I'd like to thank Jesse Jesse Spungin and all of you for joining us today. We look forward to seeing you this October 14-16 for the 2009 Shopper Marketing Fusion conference at the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point in Bonita Springs, FL.

JS: Thank you, Melissa

MS: Great, see you in October!

Join the most progressive BRANDS, RETAILERS and VISIONARIES for the first and only event to tackle the true integration of ALL marketing functions - category management, in-store marketing and shopper marketing - to create a seamless experience from start to finish beginning with the first emotional trigger to the final point of purchase and beyond.

Shopper Marketing Fusion Speaker: James Damian, Best Buy

James Damian
SVP, Experience Design Group
Best Buy, Inc.

As senior vice president of the experience development group at Best Buy, James Damian is responsible for reinventing the experience of shopping in a big-box retail store. He is, in his own words, a “right-brain ambassador for the value of design within the left-brain world of consumer electronics.”

In 2004, Damian led the design of Best Buy’s first concept stores—Studio D and Escape in Chicago—and developed the company’s “new store experience” R&D capability. He continues to lead optimization of the big-box design for a shopping experience that not only answers, but anticipates changing customer desires. He names legendary Tiffany’s window designer Gene Moore as his primary source of inspiration.

Prior to joining Best Buy in 1998, Damian held positions with Howard Sant Partnerships, a London architectural firm; Harvey Nichols, a London-based luxury retailer; B. Altman & Co. and R.H. Macy & Co. department stores in New York; and Hindsgaul Mannequins Worldwide of Copenhagen, New York, and Paris. He also served as president of Damian Randd (Resources Advancing New Design Directions).

In 2005, he received the Markopoulos Award for his many contributions to the design industry; in 2006, DDI recognized him as one of the Design Influencers of the Year. He also recently received Best Buy’s Culture of Innovation Award in recognition of his leadership in concept development and execution. A graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology (F.I.T.) in New York City, Damian holds a degree in retail store design, exhibition design and corporate identity.

Damian is a member of the board of directors of NADI, NASFM's visual merchandising division, and serves on the advisory board for DDI magazine. He is also a member of the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation and the Minnesota Orchestra Board of Directors. At Best Buy, he is executive sponsor of the employee resource group P.R.I.D.E. (People Respecting Individual Differences Equally).

Biography courtesy of A.R.E.

Shopper Marketing Fusion Company TracyLocke Talks with Brandweek

TracyLocke will be represented at this year's Shopper Marketing Fusion Event by Al Wittemen, Managing Director for Retail Strategy. Alan's colleague, Dorothy Allan, SVP, Retail Strategy for TracyLocke, was recently interviewed by Brandweek editor, Todd Wasserman. In the interview, Allan discusses how she has helped packaged goods enhance their ROI from shopper marketing. As she notes, CPGs have to communicate value quickly in-store or they lose out. And that's too bad, because consumers aren't only motivated by price.

Here are a few highlights from their discussion.

BW: What are some lessons you've learned in shopper marketing? (Granular
stuff, like "red doesn't work")?
DA: I’ve learned a lot about the human mind in this role. We all make decisions in basically the same way. We classify and sort information based on pattern recognition over the course of our lives. We deselect before we select. Our minds are designed to remove extraneous pieces of information to get to a decision, which is why shopper insights are so important. It gets to the very heart of what’s getting in the way of making a choice. On the granular side, there are principles of how human beings process information that need to be followed to achieve success. For example, if you want to be able to read anything from 10 feet away, you need to use a font that is at least three inches. If the store is dark, you need to use light colors for contrast. Color has meaning: Red is an action color; pink used to mean “girl” and now it stands for breast cancer; green equals the environment, etc. The first thing and last thing you read, you will remember twice as long as the lines in between, and the last line you will remember two times longer than the first. What’s the last piece of information on almost every Walmart point-of-sale unit? – “Save money. Live better.” I don’t think that’s a coincidence.

BW: How has shopper marketing reacted to the economy?
DA: This year, there has been a lot of information that really makes a case for the entire path to purchase and a cohesive approach. The In-Store Marketing Institute conference, as well as IRI and A.C. Nielsen, have begun to illustrate that the point of decision has crept out of the store. Clean store policies are forcing brands to use their leverage outside the store, and thankfully for the first time in 10 years, consumers and shoppers are reading. That is a good thing for brands. If you group shoppers into segments, you’ll find that the shopaholic is “out” and the mission-minded, pragmatic shopper is “in.” Value is the new darling, and brands have to find ways to quickly communicate their benefits to differentiate – or shoppers will default to comparing prices. Shoppers are looking to brands to help them make better value decisions. It’s not always about price, but price does have influence.


For the interview in its entirety, please click here.

Why Pink Means 'Cancer' at Retail

Al Witteman, will be speaking on Friday October 16 at the Shopper Marketing Fusion Event. Don't miss his presentation, "Solutions Without Walls" with John Dranow, SMARTREVENUE

Publicis Groupe Announces Acquisition Agreement of Unilever C.R.M. Program "Pour Tout Vous Dire"

Reuters reports that the French company, Publicis Groupe has announce that it has signed an agreement to acquire the Unilever subsidiary in charge of the customer relationship management program Pour Tout Vous Dire. This acquisition is part of Publicis` digital strategy. The goal here is to build a benchmark e-CRM platform for the Group`s clients that showcases brands and fosters interaction with consumers. Pour Tout Vous Dire will operate on an
open architecture basis so that it can accommodate any and all consumer retail
brands and fast moving consumer goods.

Major household brand names will be able to leverage the platform to engage
consumers in one-on-one communication - highlighting their latest innovations,
demonstrating their value, rewarding loyal customers, and ensuring easy access
to their products.

In conjunction with the transaction, Unilever has signed a five-year service
agreement with Publicis Groupe to keep its brands in the program and thereby
boost the incremental revenue it generates.

Today's blog post has been brought to you by Shopper Marketing Fusion 2009. Join the most progressive BRANDS, RETAILERS and VISIONARIES for the first and only event to tackle the
true integration of ALL marketing functions - category management, in-store marketing and shopper marketing - to create a seamless experience from start to finish beginning with the first emotional trigger to the final point of purchase and beyond.

Registered for another October event but wish to attend Fusion? We’ll pay your cancellation fee.

That’s right, we’re so confident that you’ll find all you need at Shopper Marketing Fusion 2009, that we’ll pay your cancellation fee if you’ve signed up for another October 2009 event.

Check out our event website: http://bit.ly/4bl1V4

In today’s fast-paced world, everyone’s making split second decisions. We recognize the challenge in breaking through the clutter and “popping out at desk” and that many events often look quite similar on the surface. Fact is, ours is quite superior and we’d like to highlight the premium benefits for you right now.


What makes Shopper Marketing Fusion different from any other conference or trade show?

Large Shows...what you can expect
The needle in the haystack. Having to navigate through hundreds of attendees, most of whom AREN’T RELEVANT TO YOU
Large WAREHOUSE LIKE SPACES that are conducive to rows of booths, but not to connecting on next generation learning
TRANSIENT ATTENDEES that come and go, depleting connectivity and in-depth conversations
NO REAL ENGAGEMENT
TACTICAL-FOCUSED professionals
The star of the show is the BOOTHS, not the content
RECYCLED presentations, overused speakers
Pay per session that can lead to you MISSING crucial breakthrough IDEAS
VENDOR-LED presentations that come across as SALES PITCHES.

The difference with a PREMIUM event…Shopper Marketing Fusion
SENIOR-LEVEL ATTENDEES who want to discuss STRATEGY and co-create real solutions
The star is the CONTENT that elicits the RIGHT CONVERSATIONS.
Not about fixtures, pop-ups or lighting, but instead on strategy, ACTIONABILITY and insights
Continuity in your experience, develop long lasting relationships with THE BEST IN THE BUSINESS
An isolated, retreat-like venue that lends itself to OPTIMAL LEARNING with minimal distractions.
COMFORTABLE MEETING ROOMS to set the mood for strategic conversations.
Walmart Smart Network session at NO EXTRA CHARGE sharing new, never-heard before information
Answers to your MOST PRESSING ISSUES within category management and in-store marketing.
NO COMMERCIALISM from the podium, just real case studies, by client-side leaders
ONE-ON-ONE MEETINGS with speakers.
NEW TOOLS to assist you in executing on your ideas including a post-conference report, user-generated report, return on attendance toolkit and more.

Join our LinkedIn group for 15% off the standard rate.

To learn more about the content that drives the right conversations, visit http://bit.ly/gge13

Brochure: http://bit.ly/Y6igx
Registration: http://bit.ly/8O1Hy


Cheers,
Shopper Marketing Fusion
CMSI LinkedIn Group

Shopper Marketing Fusion Speaker: Jesse Spugin, VP, Shopper Marketing ConAgra Foods

Jesse Spungin,
VP, Shopper Marketing
ConAgra Foods

Promomagazine.com had a fascinating discussion with Shopper Marketing Fusion speaker, Jesse Spungin in February of this year. Here are a few excerpts that we thought were particularly timely.

PROMO: So ConAgra has embraced shopper marketing.

SPUNGIN: We used to call it customer marketing, but we changed the name a year ago to shopper marketing to be more in line with the industry standard. The one thing manufacturers and retailers can all agree on is the shopper. It's the common ground we can start with and put all the other issues aside, like fighting over trade dollars and slotting efficiency.

P: Is your customer shopping any differently in this economy?

s: In many ways. When gas prices were up, for example, the number of trips to retailers went down and so did the total basket ring. This crossed all income levels because people with higher incomes love great deals and people at lower levels need great deals. ConAgra has a diverse portfolio that has value, and that provides a big opportunity for us and for retailers.

P: Have you launched any value-driven products?

s: We launched Healthy Choice Fresh Mixers, a lunch product, last September. It's a great at-work option for $3.

P: What role did shopper marketing play in this?

s: It was part of the integrated plan. We understand who the shoppers are, and we developed customized programs for the launch at SuperValu [grocery retailer]. These included point-of-purchase communications, in-store shippers and other tactics that were different from what we did at Walmart. The Walmart shopper is different, so the messaging has to be different. The programs paid off with profitable results.

P: Is shopper marketing more important in a recession?

s: : In these times, there's a danger in pulling back on marketing. Now more than ever, you need your message to break through.

We look forward to hearing from Jesse at this year's conference!

Shopper Marketing Fusion 2009
Brochure

Shopper Marketing Fusion Speaker: Robert Spector

Robert Spector
Author, The Mom and Pop Store and The Nordstrom Way

Robert Spector is a bestselling business author and international speaker.

Robert gives keynote presentations and conducts customized customer-service workshops for a vast cross-section of companies and organizations throughout the world.

He is best known for writing the national bestseller, THE NORDSTROM WAY: The Inside Story of America's #1 Customer Service Company, the first and only up-close and personal look at how this company became the national standard of customer service. Robert is the only journalist ever given total access to the inner workings of the Nordstrom culture.

He is the author of corporate histories of an eclectic array of companies, including Chevron, Eddie Bauer, Kimberly-Clark, and the Space Needle.

Robert has written on business for the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, UPI International, NASDAQ Magazine, Customer Service Management and Corporate University Review; fashion for Women's Wear Daily and Details, and civil liberties for Parade; and has been a ghostwriter for Dr. Joyce Brothers. His humor writing has been published in The New York Times, Sports Illustrated and National Lampoon, and performed by Don Imus and Stiller & Meara.

Robert's biography courtesy of RobertSpector.com

Be sure to join us at this year's Shopper Marketing Fusion this October in Bonita Springs, FL.

CMSI LinkedIn Newsletter: Meet the Leaders in Shopper Marketing & Category Management at Fusion 2009

This is an excerpt from our LinkedIn newsletter that we distribute regularly to our Category Management and Shopper Insights Executive Group members. If you aren't already a member, we encourage you to join over 1,200 other professionals in retail, category management, branding and private label executive positions.

___________________________________________________________________

Hello! We’re thrilled you’re a member of the Category Management and Shopper Insights Executive group. We hope you’re finding value from the ability to connect with over 1200 people in your industry.

As a member, we’d like to extend a special discount for you to attend Shopper Marketing Fusion 2009 this October 14-16 in Bonita Springs, FL.

Please join the group for the exclusive discount.


This senior-level event will focus on synergizing category management and in-store marketing to build a seamless shopping experience for shoppers from start to finish. It’s a unique participatory format where speakers drive rich, purposeful conversations so that collectively, challenges are solved and industry standards are created. You’ll be propelled to improve external and internal collaboration and inspired to build a business model that will equip your brand and organization to long-term success.

Event website: http://bit.ly/SMFusion
Brochure download: http://bit.ly/SMBrochure


Highlighted Speakers:

• JB Steenkamp, Professor of Marketing, UNC, Author of The Private Label Strategy
• James Beck, General Manager, Walmart Smart Network, Walmart Stores
• Mark Bennett, Group Manager, Media Production, Target
• Jeff Swearingen, Group Vice President, Customer Sales & Marketing, Frito Lay
• Michael McMahon, Senior Vice President, Integrated Marketing, ConAgra Foods
• Alison Chaltas, Principal, Interscope
• John Dranow, President & CEO, SmartRevenue

New speakers added: http://bit.ly/SMSpeakers

Featured Category Management and Shopper Insights Executive Group Discussions:
Store specific shelf plans, and the challenges they face when they hit the store. New data. http://bit.ly/CMSIGroup1
70% of purchase decisions are made in-store... http://bit.ly/CMSIGroup2

Shopper Marketing News On Shopper360:

Category Management program set up for tomato sellers
According to The Packer, Farmer’s Best International LLC has decided to create a tomato category management campaign in order to better educate those both buying and selling different types of tomatoes… http://bit.ly/BlogTomato

Shopper Marketing Fusion Keynote Speaker: JB Steenkamp

JB Steenkamp, Author, The Private Label Strategy: How to Meet the Store Brand Challenge

Jan-Benedict E.M. Steenkamp researches global marketing; the effectiveness of marketing strategies such as branding, private labels and new products; interorganizational relationships; and marketing research techniques. He teaches in these areas and in innovation and strategy.

Dr. Steenkamp is the author of Private Label Strategy: How to Meet the Store Brand Challenge with Nirmalya Kumar of London Business School (Harvard Business School Press, 2007). An award-winning researcher, he has written or edited five books, and over 100 scholarly publications.

He also is executive director of AiMark, a global center studying key marketing strategy issues, which brings together academics around the world, two of the top-four market research agencies, and brand manufacturers. He has consulted with numerous companies, including Procter & Gamble, Kraft, Unilever, Reckitt Benckiser, Zurich Financial Services, KPMG, Sara Lee and Johnson & Johnson.

Dr. Steenkamp serves on the editorial boards of all top marketing journals and is past editor of the International Journal of Research in Marketing. The Royal Netherlands Academy of Sciences awarded him the Muller lifetime prize for “exceptional achievements in the area of the behavioral and social sciences.” It was the first time the prize was awarded to a researcher in any area of business administration.

Before joining UNC Kenan-Flagler, he taught at universities in Belgium, the Netherlands, Austria, Spain, South Africa and the United States.

He received his PhD, master’s and bachelor’s degrees, all summa cum laude, from Wageningen University in the Netherlands.

About the Shopper Marketing Fusion Conference

The Category Management Conference was transformed into this Shopper Marketing Fusion Event because brand and retail community wanted an event to feature the big picture of what next generation category management is able to achieve – and that’s only possible through the collaboration and convergence of other integrated marketers.

FUSION is based on the vision to overhaul an organizational mind-set to embrace shopper-centricity, beginning with the synergy of all marketing functions using shopper insights to innovate product offerings, product adjacencies, in-store environments, formats and more in order to increase basket size, improve brand differentiation and raise loyalty.

It is the first event to truly echo the progress the best-in-class brands and retailers are making.

Category Management program set up for tomato sellers

According to The Packer, Farmer’s Best International LLC has decided to create a tomato category management campaign in order to better educate those both buying and selling different types of tomatoes. Farmer's Best is hoping to have this educational program in place no later than this fall in order to educate those for the Mexican tomato season. Read more about the upcoming category management project here.