Southern Innovations mixing country with rock ’n’ roll

The city of Nashville is home to the Grand Ole Opry and the Country Music Hall of Fame. So with the Southeast Produce Council’s upcoming Southern Innovations event taking place there, it’s no secret that attendees can expect country music to play a big role.

But the council will be taking it up a notch by adding some legendary artists from the rock ‘n’ roll genre, too.

As David Sherrod, the council’s president and CEO, put it, “If you remember the Donny & Marie show from the late 1970s, she was a little bit country, and he was a little bit rock ‘n’ roll. We’re going to be a little bit country at the opening party, and then we’re going to be a little bit rock ‘n’ roll at the Chairman’s Dinner Dance. That’s our theme this year.”

Southern Innovations 2024 will take place from Thursday, Sept. 12, to Saturday, Sept. 14, at the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center in Nashville — and a big crowd is expected.

“We’re already over the 1,200 mark right now, and we’re expecting about 1,500 attendees, which is another record for Southern Innovations,” Sherrod told The Produce News Aug. 14. “And we’re looking at a little north of 300 retail and foodservice buyers. That’s a really good ratio of buyers to sellers. And we feel like it’s going to be a very intimate show at the same time, with a lot to offer the retail and foodservice buyers in attendance.”

Attendees will notice a few changes in the schedule at Southern Innovations 2024. The expo continues to be on Friday, but that evening will be free for attendees. The Chairman’s Dinner Dance, which previously took place after the expo, has been moved to Saturday evening.

In addition, there will be no keynote luncheon and address this year. As to the Ultimate Tailgate Party, which for many years had been the final event, “That’s going away this year,” said Sherrod.

But attendees can definitely look forward to all the other business and social events that they have come to enjoy every year.

The schedule

The board of directors meeting will take place Wednesday afternoon, Sept. 11, and the VIP dinner (by invitation only) will take place that evening aboard the General Jackson Showboat.

On Thursday, Sept. 12, registration opens at 7:30 a.m. and continues until 5 p.m. Committee meeting take place all day, from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. The STEP-UPP Team Building Experience, which takes place from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., will look a little different, with STEP-UPP Retail competing against STEP-UPP Foodservice. “And we’re excited to see who’s going to come out on top,” said Sherrod.

The Board of Governors will meet from noon to 3 p.m., and the Next Generation Leadership Academy’s session will take place from noon until 5 p.m.

The main event will be the Welcome Reception, from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the Opryland’s Delta Garden. “This will be a little bit country,” Sherrod noted again.

A full array of events will take place on Friday, Sept. 13.

First up, from 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m., is the University Educational Session titled “What’s New,” with moderator Kristin Yerecic Scott, director of marketing at Yerecic Label, and speaker Anne-Marie Roerink, president of 210 Analytics LLC. “We will be revealing this year’s What’s New report,” said Sherrod. “This year’s report will have a lot on consumer reviews as well as retailer and grower-shipper-packer views. This will be a comprehensive report from every angle.”

Southern Roots, the council’s leadership program for women in produce, will meet from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. (a little earlier than previous years). Dan’l Mackey Almy, founder and CEO of DMA Solutions and co-host of the Self Smarter Podcast, and Megan Zweig, president of DMA Solutions and co-host of the Self Smarter Podcast, will speak about “self-discovery and personal development,” said Sherrod. “This topic was done before, but it’s back by popular demand. It was requested by a lot of the women who had gone previously or had missed it the first time around.”

The Good Seeds MENtor Program is also scheduled to take place from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Ben Watson, a former NFL tight end, as well as an author, speaker and advocate, will talk about “A Life of Faith, Family & Football.”

Sherrod proudly mentioned that over 200 people had registered for both the ladies’ and men’s programs this year.

Friday’s main event is the expo, which will take place from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. “This year we have added an hour to the expo based on our post-conference surveys from last year, which said that people needed a little bit more time to get around,” said the SEPC president. “We have grown to 178 exhibitors, which is really good. And we have a wait list. We feel like next year we’ll be over 200.”

Noting that no events are scheduled for after the expo, Sherrod stated, “That’s something different this year. Friday evening after the show is over, people can have dinner with customers or go out on the town. That’s been something that attendees have asked for.”

Three familiar and very popular events (all sold out) are scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 14. The Founders Memorial Golf Tournament will take place at the Gaylord Springs Golf Links, beginning with a 6:15 a.m. departure, and concluding with an Awards Luncheon from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.

The Martin Eubanks Sporting Clays Classic will take place at the Nashville Gun Club, beginning with a 7:30 a.m. departure, and concluding with an Awards Luncheon from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.

A local tour, “Origins of the Opry,” will take place from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., and will including a guided tour of the Grand Old Opry House, a self-guided tour of Ryman Auditorium, and lunch at Peg Leg Porker.

Attendees will have time to wind down before the Chairman’s Dinner Dance, which will run from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Following tradition, the new slate of officers will be introduced. Outgoing Chairman Mike Roberts of Harps Food Stores will hand the gavel to Kristen Yerecic Scott of Yerecic Label; she will be joined on stage by Sloan Lott of Bland Farms as vice chairman; Gary Baker of Merchants Distributors as secretary; and Derek Ennis of L&M Cos. as treasurer.

Along with Roberts, the following members are rolling off the board of directors: Mark Shuman of Shuman Farms and Jeff Tant of PFG. The new members on the board are John Barnette of Southeastern Grocers, Robert Bonghi of Buyers Edge/Fresh Alliance, Karin Humanik of Harris Teeter and Erin Waters of Shuman Farms. All were elected to two-year terms and may be re-elected for another two-year term.