Today’s Hot New Consumer Trends

Recently, I went to a fabulous trends conference. I had always meant to join the Association of Consumer Trends and attend the annual Consumer Trends Forum. But I belong to so many organizations and attend so many conferences that it was just one too many.

This year, the conference was held in San Francisco so there was no excuse. No hotel, no airfare, just a quick trip to the Kabuki Hotel. I was glad I made the commitment. From the upbeat, high-energy keynote speech, Unlocking Cool and Exploiting Chaos, by Jeremy Gutche of TrendHunter.com; to the thoughtful talk from Slow Food USA’s president Josh Viertel; to the data-rich presentation by Lee Boyland of DYG Inc.; and the insightful look at Gen Y by Kara Nielsen, trendologist for the Center of Culinary Development; there was a lot to mull over and process following the two-day event. [more…]