Last week, Natural Products Expo West (commonly known as Expo West) descended on Anaheim, CA for the first time since 2019. Expo West is the Natural Products category’s largest trade show — where the great, the good and the upcoming put their best foot forward in the hopes of capturing the attention of retailer buyers and investors alike.

I made the hour trip from Los Angeles to see if I could spot some emerging challenger brands amongst the thousands of “natural” brands on display — across food, personal care, cleaning and a whole range of other categories.

On my scouting trip, there were four things that really stuck with me.

1. Intent is always more interesting than ingredient

The “Natural Products” nature of the expo instantly sets up a counter-cultural movement within many of the brands that are on display at the event. The rise in demand for Natural Products corresponds with consumer trends eschewing the synthetic ingredients or damaging practices of many of the brands of yesteryear, and these are often brands that are looking to provide an alternative to the mainstream.

However, too often that alternative was limited to the product and its ingredients alone. Just because you can make milk out of something, doesn’t necessarily mean you should. As I sampled yet another plant-based ice cream, palatable as it was, I tended to ask myself… why?

The real winners at Expo West, in my view, were the ones who were able to show the world why what they were doing was important… not just a credible alternative to the mainstream, but an essential one. 

In terms of visibility, Liquid Death, the irreverent mineral water brand, absolutely stole the show… they were in everybody’s hands, but they lead with a message about why their work is so important.

That they were handing out samples from inside a coffin also added to the buzz that this brand was generating with a simple water product.

I thought Ritual Zero Proof spirit alternatives also did a fantastic job of showing how their products could offer a replacement for those who missed the experience of alcohol, and their stall did an impressive job of showcasing how their own products could usher away the alcohol brands that you might have been used to before.

Organic Valley also led with their own mission — a desire to support small family farms in the face of overwhelming pressure from factory farming and stood out as a result.

2. There is no excuse for B2B to be boring

In our work at eatbigfish, we’ll often hear “this challenger idea is all very well in B2C, but we’re a B2B business… you have to be ‘professional’ when you’re doing B2B”. 

The wide range of creative stalls and brands at Expo West shows that doesn’t have to be true. If anything, overcommitting to your brand in a traditional B2B setting allows you to really stand out amongst the other brands that are beholden to the thinking above.

Catalyst cat litter were recruiting for their revolution.

Bon Devil desserts created an eye-grabbing stall in black and red.

And you don’t even have to spend big. Cookie dough brand DOUGHP, decided they would take the $40,000 they would have spent on stall design and instead donate it to those who needed it more.

As Tom Klein (former CMO at Mail Chimp) told us, when everyone else is doing the same thing, there’s an opportunity to be “a yellow banana in a sea of grey”. You just have to remember the person behind the professional you’re trying to entice.

3. New criteria for choice in commoditized markets

Many of the claims being made at Expo West could be succinctly summarized as “It’s like x but made from y”. Avocado chips. Tofu turkey. Sesame Milk. The danger with this route is always that it leaves you with the sense that instead of a desirable alternative, it’s simply a viable one. 

However, the brands that stood out were able to not just offer a new product, but an entirely new criteria for choice — a different reason to buy this product compared to anyone else. Criteria upon which your brand can win, because no one else is thinking this way.

That might be promising a dangerously strong coffee brand — for those who can take it — as Death Wish Coffee Co. did.

Or promising Vegan food for people who don’t eat vegan food, like Wicked Kitchen did.

Or squeezable instant pancake mix brand Happy Grub that trades on the idea of child-friendly simplicity instead of flavors, ingredients or anything else.

In amongst a sea of similar claims, the brands that tried to address an issue or need that no one else was thinking about elevated themselves above the competition.

4. Surprising use of celebrity

In Peter Field’s Marketing In The Era Of Accountability, he talks about the power of brand fame and the ways to achieve, with one being element being “the surprising use of celebrity”. Note “surprising” not “unnecessary” as we witnessed a lot during the Super Bowl this year.

Amongst all of the various brands, I saw two brilliant uses of celebrities that both caught me off guard.

Firstly, Martha Stewart’s range of CBD gummies and the glorious photo that goes with it.

And finally, my favourite discovery of the Expo, Chuck Norris has a water brand. Named C Force of all things. Perhaps a Challenger to Watch in 2023? We’ll see.

Nick Geoghegan is a Strategy Director at eatbigfish.