Next week in Anaheim, the Global Produce & Floral Show will bring our industry together for three high-value days of ideas, products, and relationships. The smartest leaders arrive with a plan. If you have not set yours yet, use this as your checklist.
A quick buyer preamble (read this first)
Most retail buyers come to the show to do three things:
- Find new suppliers or products that fill a specific niche or solve a defined business need.
- Plan the upcoming year and/or have a quick business recap with their biggest category partners.
- Renew relationships, often over dinners, with the owners and leaders they buy from the most.
I want to highlight the NEW conversations that you should be planning to have to this year’s show, given the huge exponential AI and technology wave we are all experiencing and will experience in the coming years:
If you are a grower or supplier with a booth
Make sure you intentionally open meetings with the conversations that matter most this year.
- Ask about AI and supply-chain initiatives.
“What new AI programs and supply-chain changes is your company implementing? What should we be doing to support them?” Push for specifics: timelines, data needs, needs for an API or other data linkage, any UPC or product-ID updates required for new AI tools. Align now while you are face-to-face; many buyers are still mapping how these tools will change workflows with suppliers. Some buyers are scared about these big initiatives that often are created primarily in the large center store departments, and they are wondering how, or if, they will be able to be ready to implement them in their business. They will need your help! - Ask what your competitors are doing better.
Directly: “Where are other growers supporting you more effectively on these initiatives?” Then take notes, repeat back what you heard, and commit to an action plan. - Ask about your team fit.
“Are our sales and supply-chain leaders giving you the service level you need to engage these new corporate initiatives? Should we add or swap players?” If the answer is anything short of “yes,” treat it as a priority.
These conversations are easy to postpone, and then the show is over. Put them first in your booth agenda so you do not miss the window.
If you are a retail buyer
Walk in ready to lead the same discussion with your key suppliers. Take at least a half-day between now and Tuesday to think through and synthesize your thoughts around the initiatives you are aware of within your company. Ask questions of your leadership team; both your direct boss as well as your VP of Tech or CIO. Take the time now to get our thoughts aligned and down on paper!
Bring a one-pager of the initiatives your company is implementing now or in 2026, outline the data and identification requirements, and the timeline. Use booth time and dinner time to align execution, not just swap greetings.
Do not skip the Innovation Hub
One of the biggest advantages of this show is the concentration of new technology on the floor. Block time to walk the tech aisles and talk with founders who are applying AI and large language models to supply-chain problems. Start at the Innovation Hub, AgTech Lounge, Booth 4543. It is a focal point for practical solutions, not just demos.
This gathering would also be a good way to meet some of the new tech leaders:
A good example of a company I’ve been following for a couple of years with “tech you can use” is Strella. CEO Katherine Sizov and her team are building sensor-driven platforms to predict ripeness and reduce waste, with live recommendations that can change how you prioritize inventory and scheduling. Explore how similar sensing and data models could translate to floral cold-chain and post-harvest handling.
I use her as an example of a young leader that I’ve met over the last couple of years at the GPFS. Hers is one of likely over 100 companies in the tech space that are bringing new ideas and solutions, powered by AI and the explosive growth of technology, to this year’s show.
How to work the floor like a pro
- Book short, focused meetings with clear outcomes: “Confirm UPC changes,” “Align AI demand-forecast data feed,” “Set pilot start date.”
- Carry a mini brief (digital or print): your priorities for AI, supply chain, and merchandising; your 2026 calendar; who to contact Monday after the show.
- Capture commitments in the moment. Send a same-day summary from your phone: “We agreed to share actively embrace clean data and begin sharing it by Nov 1 to train the forecasting model that the company is implementing.”
- Schedule a follow-up now for two weeks after the show. Momentum fades fast.
Leaders, get out of the pavilion
This show is huge, and the learning lives beyond your booth. Owners of large floral growers and suppliers, and retail floral VPs or Directors, should carve out time to walk the Innovation areas and talk shop with tech founders. Many produce solutions will translate to floral with minor adaptation. If you spend the entire show inside your booth or only in the Floral Pavilion, you will miss the signal on what is coming next.
I will be in Anaheim, working on this plan myself, and I hope to see you there. If we do not catch each other on the floor, let us connect after. Keep an eye on rockingbarz.com for updates and follow me on LinkedIn for show takeaways and next steps.
Event details: IFPA Global Produce & Floral Show (Anaheim, Oct 16–18)
See you next week!
About the Author
Joe Don Zetzsche is a transformative leader in retail marketing and operations with a passion for elevating customer experiences and fostering high-performing teams. As Vice President of BLOOMS Floral Marketing at H-E-B, he led the transformation of its floral business from a traditional supermarket department into an award-winning full-service floral shop—growing annual sales from $80M to over $300M and earning recognition as the fastest-growing floral business in the U.S. mass-market segment. Honored with the Produce Marketing Association Floral Marketer of the Year Award and the International Fresh Produce Association “Team of Six” Merger Award, Joe now owns and operates Rocking Bar Z, bringing the same commitment to innovation, excellence, and empowering talent to his own ventures.
Published by New Bloom Media
New Bloom Media (NBM) is the first multi-channel B2B media platform dedicated solely to the floral industry across the Americas. Through thought leadership, industry insights, and collaborative storytelling, NBM helps businesses innovate, connect, and thrive.
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