​In today’s Sprout’s Farmer’s Market Q2 16 Earnings Release call, Sprouts highlighted its continued strength in top line, bottom line, and comp sales trends.  It also fielded a question from a financial analyst that represented the short term view institutional firms take, the financial pummeling investors in public natural product stocks have taken, and the skepticism that the financial community has for how much runway exists for wellness in America.

The last 18+ months of competitive headwinds and deep investments to reinvent themselves in the new normal have taken their toll on stock prices at Whole Foods, UNFI, Hain, and others.  True that stock price is a reflection of recent as well as predicted future performance, and aside from the “I’ll believe it when I see it” cautionary approach of sell side analysts, part of the pessimistic outlook within the financial community stems from three things: 

​I attended the Campbell Investor Day conference today.  Of the many take aways, the overriding notion is that Denise Morrison, Campbell CEO, gets it. 

Denise clearly outlined the macro trends and rapid changes occurring in the marketplace and underscored Campbell’s commitment to being a leader in this environment.  As it soon became apparent, this wasn’t just talk.  What makes this CEO overview different is that the majority of macro trends affecting the food industry are directly aligned with the values and enduring philosophies of the natural products industry.  In fact, a sizeable portion of the three-hour event was spent on topics front and center to it: transparency, being purpose driven, plain-labeled GMO claims, animal welfare concerns, supply chain traceability, fresher food, clean labels & ingredients, and more.  

Unlike many other CPG companies who are following and trying to catch up with the trend, and who mention these terms as if they are on the outside looking in