As Nutritional Products International (NPI) prepares to participate in the 2026 ECRM Vitamin, Weight Management & Sports Nutrition Session, the company is also marking a significant milestone: two decades of guiding domestic and international brands through the complexities of U.S. retail expansion. The session, scheduled for September 14-17 at the PGA National Resort in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, brings together retail buyers from major health, specialty, food, drug, mass, and eCommerce retailers for pre-scheduled meetings with established and emerging brands.
NPI's founder and CEO, Mitch Gould, emphasized the importance of the ECRM platform in fostering meaningful business conversations. "ECRM continues to be one of the most efficient ways to connect innovative brands with major retail buyers," he said. "It creates an environment for meaningful business conversations and aligns perfectly with our Evolution of Distribution platform, which helps brands successfully enter and grow in the U.S. marketplace."
Gould's career spans more than 25 years, during which he has helped products secure placement with many of America's largest retailers, including Walmart, Costco, CVS, Walgreens, GNC, Rite Aid, The Home Depot, Lowe's, and Amazon. He was also among the early pioneers who helped establish Amazon's sports nutrition marketplace by introducing more than 100 brands to the platform during its formative years, shaping what is now one of the largest online health and wellness retail categories.
His collaborations with well-known athletes and celebrities, including Steven Seagal, Hulk Hogan, Chuck Liddell, Ronnie Coleman, and Roberto Clemente Jr., have helped transform emerging consumer products into nationally distributed brands. This experience underpins NPI's proprietary Evolution of Distribution platform, which integrates global logistics, product readiness and regulatory alignment, market positioning and brand strategy, retail and eCommerce placement, and post-placement marketing into a single turnkey solution.
Rather than simply introducing products to retailers, NPI works alongside brands throughout the commercialization process. "ECRM is an important part of that process," Gould explained. "The meetings create opportunities, but success comes from everything that happens before and after those conversations. We help brands prepare for retail, secure placement, and continue building momentum long after the meetings conclude."
As NPI celebrates its 20th anniversary, the company continues to focus on the evolving intersection of performance, wellness, and consumer demand. During this year's ECRM session, NPI will meet with retail buyers while representing a growing portfolio of domestic and international health and wellness brands seeking to expand throughout the United States.
