NCA president hails the power of collaboration at SOTIC, as US delivers record confectionery sales
John Downs, CEO and president of the NCA (right of pic), invites fellow NCA executive Chris Gindlesperger to speak on the 'Candy Dish' show at the State of the Industry Conference. Pic: Neill Barston
An engaging opening to this year’s State of the Industry Conference in Miami was fashioned, as John Downs, CEO and president and CEO John Downs took to the stage taking the guise of a late night TV host, reports Neill Barston.
The ‘Candy Dish’ provided a vivid focal point to kick-off a memorable first day, that offered a clear overview of an industry showing considerable resilience in the face of market headwinds.
As the CEO noted, the event was attended by around 800 representatives from across the sector, citing the efforts of such business as being pivotal to the industry’s latest annual performance of $54.2 billion sales figures for the past year.
While he acknowledged that tests remained in the market, the CEO noted that in his tenth year of being involved in the key US confectionery organisation, he said there were many reasons to be optimistic for the long-term health of the sector.
Addressing the audience, he stated that this year has felt like it has already been especially momentous in terms of being a ‘whirlwind’ of global events, which the NCA and its membership must adapt to, but he remained upbeat about prospects for its vibrant market segments.
He highlighted the continued growth of Sweets and Snacks Expo, which he said had become ‘packed in Chicago’ to the point of needing to find alternative venues that enabled greater scale to reflect the level of demand across the industry. This, he said, had been ably delivered by the team in hosting the show in Indianapolis, split with also being hosted in Las Vegas.
“Our industry is growing, with a record 54 billion in sales last year in total, which is quite an accomplishment. But on the other hand, we all know that you are under pressure because of inflation. So we all need to pay attention to price points, value sizes, in-store merchandising and creating that experience by working with our retail partners to dream up innovations that work and inspire, and put smiles on peoples’ faces,” stated the CEO, commenting that the use of newer channels including social media, as well as ecommerce were also becoming ever-more significant to help reverse a decline in physical volumes of candy, which was down a couple of percentage points this year.
“All that growth that we have seen has helped us to allocate those top line finances, to make the right investments in public policy, science and regulatory, strategic comms, as well as industry development,:” he explained of its progress in recent years. (See our event review video below).
Legislative reform
Significantly, he said the NCA remained focused on its mission of sugar reform within the industry, against a backdrop of continued comparatively high prices impacting manufacturers across the confectionery space.
He noted that there had been delays with the Farm Bill that had been put back by Congress, but it would continue to seek a positive direction of travel for needed reforms.
Another major pressing matter that has hit the headlines in recent weeks since the new government administration came to power has been the introduction of import tariffs.
As has been widely reported, these have attracted economic concerns over the potential financial impact of effectively making imports more expensive, with confectionery and snacks industries not immune from the deployment of such policies.
Downs added: “There’s been a whirl of executive orders, with President Trump announcing a 25% tariff on all goods from Mexico and Canada, with the deadline for that at midnight tonight for negotiations on this.
“Are we feeling terrified – yes, kind of terrified, so Washington DC is ground zero for business, finance, politics and media and even culture. So to be successful in this new environment, we are going to have a sophisticated operation. It’s a little bit like making candy, one part science, one part art, so that’s going to be our new approach to congress and the new administration, we have to prepare for the long game, and build the right relationships and decision makers in the right places so that we can be successful, “ explained the CEO, who expressed his thanks across the industry to all those who had contributed towards making the industry exceptionally special.
As he noted, the organisation remains committed to its brand promise to protect the industry’s licence to operate.
Reflecting on his decade in post to date, he noted that he had pledged to be transparent and open minded and authentic and drive consensus, as well as seeking to be a good steward by gathering the right research and data, and provide thought leadership by taking a consumer-centric approach to its operations.
He added: “We have achieved transforming the NCA from an event focused organisation, to a mission-driven advocacy association. And guess what, in that process, our events only got stronger, serving the needs of the industry better, and providing us with a credible platform of communications,” he asserted of the progress that had collectively been made over the past decade.
Moreover, he also added that there has been another significant achievement in achieving the organisation’s ‘moonshot’ of helping deliver a strong message of responsible enjoyment of confectionery with its “Always a Treat” campaign.
However, he continued that there had been further major goals attained in recent years with the emergence of National Candy month that had helped foster greater levels of engagement across the industry, and added additional retailing opportunities.
Furthermore, he hailed the collective work of hundreds of thousands of workers across the wider candy and snacks business for its endeavours over the past few years, from farmers, suppliers and chemists, line-workers and research and development specialists that have contributed to its comparative buoyancy amid market headwinds.
As the NCA president added, it retained a belief in the three A’s as its mantra – affordability, being one of the least expensive for of treats, as well as availability in having 98% per cent penetration in retail and other outlets. There is also an element of acceptability – “consumers need and want us, which is validated in all our research,” stated Downs on the relationship that it has with shoppers.
Late night TV show
As the CEO snapped into his Late Night TV host mode, he brought on fellow NCA executive Chris Gindlesperger, the organisation’s vice president of public affairs.
Notably, as the pair relayed, while there have been many moments of fun and joy to communicate to the nation and beyond with it work across the sector, responding swiftly to challenges has been vital.
Chris Gindlesperger: “Our rapid response capability has been there for many years, and is based around what it takes to be effective in developing those crisis communications.
“You have to seize moments of opportunity, and drive a truck through them, and we have done that through a philosophy of making friends before you need them.
So we do that with our advocacy work, as well as our media operations at the NCA, and it’s paid dividends with us. So when we are faced with those crisis moments, we are already prepared with the network and the connections.”
Special presidential advisor
For the concluding part of the “Candy Dish,” Downs brought on a special guest in the form of Kellyanne Conway, senior counsellor to president Trump during his first term of government.
With the Republican administration attracting a host of global headlines in its first 60 days, Downs asked the former White House insider, just what people should expect from him and what he is like.
“I think with Trump a few things are true – one is that rather than reacting to every Tweet or Truth Social post, or comment or Air Force One, it’s more important to reflect on what his main goals are, and how they are being executed,” she said, noting that the president has shown that he has operated in a manner that has ‘defied political gravity,” adding that she welcomed his return to the White Office.
Furthermore, the former special counsel added that in her view it was “not true that he likes to surround himself with yes men – he wants different views around him,” she added.
In terms of the challenging topic of the moment with the incoming tariffs, she said that if companies wanted to gain acceptance from the administration, it had to be in terms of approaching the White House in a positive manner, stating what you can do for the economy, rather than complaining about having tariffs imposed on them.
