NACDS Sets Up Shop in San Diego

A year’s worth of planning and preparation by the National Association of Chain Drug Stores will culminate in just over 2 weeks, when the pharmacy organization will hold its annual Marketplace Conference from June 5-8, 2010 in San Diego, California.

Representatives from nearly 500 healthcare, personal care, baby care, cosmetics, and fragrances manufacturers are expected to attend, along with more than 150,000 wholesaler, mass merchant, supermarket, and chain drug retail outlets.

“The 2010 NACDS Marketplace Conference will deliver tremendous value to retailers and suppliers, and we are hearing a great deal of enthusiasm for the business opportunities that this event will present to participants,” said Steven C. Anderson, IOM, CAE, president and chief executive officer of NACDS.

Marketplace is unique to the industry in its broad scope and historically strong attendance, giving retailers the rare opportunity to compare products, services, and pricing from manufacturing companies across 12 major categories, all housed under a single roof.

At this year’s conference, the “Meet the Market” program will connect retail buyers with suppliers in more than 8,000 pre-planned meetings. In “Meet the Retailer” sessions, manufacturers will gain insight from retailers on effective strategies for taking their products to market. In keeping with the event’s primary theme of “What a shopper does,” conference attendees will also explore the finer points of consumer behavior—from product development to check-out.

Following the conference, NACDS will donate all leftover products from exhibitors to the San Diego Food Bank.

Pharmacists can preview some of the products that will be presented at this year’s conference by visiting the virtual product showcase. For those who are unable to attend, NACDS will also post updates detailing current trends and analysis from the meeting on their Twitter feed, @NACDSmeetings.

To encourage attendance from chain stores and other retailers, NACDS is waiving retailer registration fees for the conference. Travel subsidies are also available for those who qualify. For more information on the program, contact Andrew Klapmust at aklapmust@nacds.org or visit the 2010 NACDS Marketplace Web site.

For other articles in this issue, see:

• Can Pharmacies Improve First-Time Adherence?
• WHO Reports on Impact of the 2009 H1N1 Flu Season
• Skin Cancer Lessons from MTV's "Jersey Shore"