August 23-25, Las Vegas’s Mandalay Bay Convention Center was packed with pet industry professionals from around the world for SuperZoo, North America’s leading pet retail trade show.
Produced by World Pet Association (WPA), SuperZoo 2022 welcomed more than 16,000 pet professionals, representing over 25 countries and all 50 states, to engage in new product introductions, expert-led education sessions and peer-to-peer networking events.
The energetic 331,500 square foot show floor featured more than 1000 exhibitors from every pet product category and 900+ products made their debut in SuperZoo’s sold-out New Product Showcase.
“As evidenced by this year’s attendance, SuperZoo continues to be the industry’s go-to trade show for the pet retail community – spanning one-door independent retailers to the biggest household names in retail,” says Vic Mason, president of WPA.
“SuperZoo 2022 attracted high-quality decision makers and delivered a show floor filled with emerging products and grooming trends, a highly popular and successful live animal area, an education program packed with thought leaders and rich content offerings, and a fun-filled atmosphere for pet professionals to connect and network with their community. We are counting down the days until we can do it again in 2023.”
Buzzing from open to close
The 331,500 square foot SuperZoo show floor was buzzing from open to close, drawing nearly 10,000 of the most qualified pet industry retailers, buyers and decision- maker —including Target, Mud Bay, Chewy.com and more, as they scoped out the latest products, newest tech and emerging trends.
This year’s event featured more than 1000 exhibitors across the curated show floor areas Natural and Health, Specialty and Lifestyle, Farm and Feed, Aquatics, Reptiles and Small Animals, Groomers, Marketplace, Emerging Brands and the New Product Showcase, including an impressive 262 first-time exhibitors and 72 emerging brands.
Attendees and exhibitors alike expressed their overwhelming satisfaction at the display of innovation, buying opportunities and overall quality and diversity of exhibitors and retailers in attendance.
“As a company created born out of the pandemic, we didn’t know what to expect. We were blown away. The access to wholesalers, distributors and other brands to network with was incredible. SuperZoo was absolutely awesome,” says Peter Liu, co-founder of RIFRUF.”
SuperZoo is very professionally put together in a thoughtful way that enhanced the experience. In the ‘live animals’ area, people are able to come up to see the animals, hold the animals, and it allows us as exhibitors to be interactive with potential customers,” adds a Northwest Zoological Supply (live animals) employee.
SuperZoo’s international attendance was strong, representing 25 countries and over 13 percent of SuperZoo’s 2022 total attendance. Canada, the United Kingdom, Columbia and Brazil were highly represented and surpassed 2019 attendance figures, while Asian market attendance continues to increase steadily post-pandemic.
“We are attending SuperZoo from Pakistan. As a new business, I did not know what to expect at our first tradeshow. Being selected as a winner in the New Product Showcase makes our brand an award-winning product, which helps with brand recognition and our marketing efforts. Because of SuperZoo there have been so many new opportunities; I encourage all entrepreneurs in pet to come!” said Ayesha Chundrigar, Founder of TRIO Eco Friendly Pet Products, winner of the best accessory and gift category in the New Product Showcase. A record-breaking 900 debut products were on display at SuperZoo’s sold-out New Product Showcase.
“This was our first time at SuperZoo. It was great to be featured in the New Product Showcase, as it brought a lot of attention to our product and company. It boosted the number of buyers – both big and small – that we’ve been able to connect with, including those from Germany, Japan, The Netherlands, France and Korea,” says Simon Chun, co-founder of Jiby Dog Crew, runner-up for the best new dog product in the New Product Showcase. “We’re excited that people are excited about our product!”
Setting the industry standard
SuperZoo’s customisable education lineup delivered 70+ seminars and trainings—led by nearly 30 industry thought leaders—to help pet professionals refine their retail strategies, master the latest grooming techniques and stay ahead of animal wellness trends.
Following input from attendees, show organisers streamlined the 2022 education program, with sessions taking place Monday and Tuesday to allow for more time on the show floor to discover the newest pet products and innovations.
This year’s education featured two specialty tracks—grooming and retail—and highly-attended 30-minute Free Show Floor Talks that covered consumer trends, technology, social media and influencer marketing, sales tactics and more.
“We’ve always heard that SuperZoo was the industry standard, but it’s our first time. Education is really what brought us here. We learned some good information that was really helpful for our business,” says Mark Winner, owner of WagPride Pet Boutiques.
An expanded education partnership
World Pet Association announced that they have expanded their education partnership with Fetchfind to include IndiePet Retailers and manufacturer product trainings and is also working on the development of a FREE industry-wide product database that is backed by WPA and powered by NextPAW to help foster the ease of product information sharing.
With more than US$35,000 in winnings at stake, SuperZoo’s grooming contests celebrated the creativity and talent of grooming professionals on the industry’s grandest stage.
WPA also recognised several pet retailers and industry leaders during the WPA Chairman’s Reception, which was held at the Skyfall Lounge in the Delano on Tuesday, August 23, 2022.
Pet professionals who are looking for additional ways to continue their SuperZoo experience can access WPA365 to discover a vibrant on-demand community, marketplace and learning centre by going to: https://mymag.info/e/1641
Exclusively for industry professionals, they’ll have the opportunity to find more products from top exhibitors, access exclusive education sessions and connect with passionate pros, reps, suppliers and other industry leaders.
SuperZoo 2023 will be shifting to new Wednesday through Friday dates, taking place August 16-18, 2023, with education August 15-16.
For more information, visit: https://mymag.info/e/1642
About SuperZoo
SuperZoo boasts the most buyer participation of any trade show for the pet retail industry in North America. SuperZoo provides pet retail and industry professionals with leading-edge education and access to the most comprehensive array of market-ready products for a hands-on experience for retailers to competitively differentiate themselves.
For the ninth consecutive year, SuperZoo has grown in exhibitor space and square footage and has been listed among Trade Show Executive’s “Gold 100” trade events since 2014. Produced by World Pet Association (WPA), the show attracts retailers, product suppliers and service providers at this must-attend annual event.
For more information: www.superzoo.org
Article Provided by SuperZoo
