We are pleased to announce a panel of product launch experts that will nominate their picks for the most memorable new product introductions to be included in the MMNPL survey. Below, you’ll find a list of the 2012 expert panelists. Look for product nominations from these experts that will be published on our blog.
FOOD and BEVERAGE (Consumer Packaged Goods)
Phil Lempert
Consumer Trend Tracker, Food Trends Editor, NBC’s Today and Author
Supermarket Guru
For more than 25 years, Phil Lempert, an expert analyst on consumer behavior, marketing trends, new products and the changing retail landscape, has identified and explained impending trends to consumers and some of the most prestigious companies worldwide. Known as The Supermarket Guru ®, Lempert is a distinguished author and speaker who alerts customers and business leaders to impending corporate and consumer trends, and empowers them to make educated purchasing and marketing decisions.
As one of America’s leading consumer trend-watchers and analysts, Phil Lempert is recognized on television, radio and in print. For over 20 years he has appeared on NBC News’ Today show, where he reports on consumer trends, as well as showcases new products. He makes regular appearances on ABC’s The View, abc news NOW and FOX Business News and has appeared numerous times on The Oprah Winfrey Show, 20/20, CNN, CNBC, and MSNBC. He is the editor of SupermarketGuru.com and The Lempert Report.
Domenick Celentano
Food & Beverage Correspondent
About.com
Domenick Celentano has spent his entire life in Retail Consumer Foods holding key positions in his family business, Celentano Bros., Inc. the well known Italian frozen foods brand in the North East.
Domenick is the Food & Beverage guide at About.com and writes articles and blogs on topics focused on food entrepreneurs starting or running a specialty food business such as trends and new product launch.
The FoodPreneur provides consulting and educational seminars to help food entrepreneurs create successful new product launches.
He is an Adjunct Professor at Fairleigh Dickinson University Silberman College of Business and Kean University College of Management, Marketing and International Business teaching Retail Marketing and Retail Buying and Merchandising Management.
Domenick has his MBA in Food Marketing from St. Joseph’s University, Philadelphia, PA.
Julie Hall
Executive Vice President of Strategy
Schneider Associates
Julie Hall provides strategic direction to several practice areas at Schneider Associates, including food and beverage. Julie brings a broad range of expertise in brand and integrated marketing in the consumer product and packaged goods categories, and her experience includes public relations, media relations, social media, sponsorship and promotional program development, cause marketing and new product launches for global brands. Julie has received numerous awards for her work including Silver Anvil, Sabre, and Bell Ringer awards.
HOME PRODUCTS
Tom Kraeutler
Host and Founder
The Money Pit
Tom Kraeutler is the Host, Founder and Chief Home Improvement Evangelist of The Money Pit. He is a hands-on home improvement broadcast journalist and the kind of guy homeowners want to call at midnight when their basement floods. He first earned his home improvement stripes as a professional home inspector, amassing over 20 years experience learning how houses are put together, and how they fall apart!
Tom is an accomplished speaker and appears regularly as a how-to guru on network and local television stations including CNN, MSNBC, The History Channel, HGTV and the DIY Network. A successful author, columnist and blogger, Tom served as AOL’s Home Improvement Editor. His work has been featured in House Beautiful, Smart Money, Reader’s Digest and in hundreds of daily newspapers across the nation. Together with Leslie Segrete, Tom co-authored My Home, My Money Pit: Your guide to Every Home Improvement Adventure.
CONSUMER PACKAGED GOODS
Pauline Hammerbeck
Editor in Chief
Brand Packaging
Pauline Hammerbeck is a brand design writer and editor with a background in package design, consumer culture, retail and consumer goods. Pauline shapes the editorial direction of BrandPackaging’s print, digital and event properties. She has experience with magazine redesigns, social media and conference development and produces the magazine’s hardbound design annual, the Design Gallery. Follow Pauline on twitter.com/phammerbeck.
BEAUTY/PERSONAL CARE PRODUCTS
Kelly Gould
Editor, Gouldylox Reviews
Kelly Logan Gould is editor of Gouldylox Reviews, which was recently named one of the Top 50 Best Beauty Blogs by IFabbo in 2012, Top Fifty Beauty Blogs by The Performance Leader and Konector and landed in the Top 10 Best Baltimore Blogs (Misfit category) in the 2010 Baltimore Mobbies. Gouldylox Reviews has become a go to source for local and national online and print publications about blogging, beauty and current trends. Kelly is also founder of the non-profit, Karma Dogs, and spends her spare time using therapy dogs to help kids, an experience which lead her to author the dog safety coloring book, “Dirk’s Guide to Dog Safety”, which has been used nationally to help teach children how to be safe around dogs. Kelly produces television commercials for national and regional clients at an ad agency, and contributes to Lock & Mane and She Said Beauty.
AUTOMOTIVE
Wayne Cunningham
Senior Editor
CNET’s Car Tech channel
Wayne Cunningham is the Senior Editor of CNET’s Car Tech channel. On the cutting edge of tech coverage, Wayne began his journalism career writing about the Web in 1995. A long term car nut, the advent of substantial new technology in cars such as navigation and Bluetooth phone systems allowed him to change his journalism focus to the automotive industry.
PET PRODUCTS
Amanda Shih
Editor in Chief and Founder
Doggieproductreview.com
Amanda Shih is a dog trainer and groomer from Chicago, Illinois who runs a dog product review blog. She believes that a tired dog is a well-behaved dog, thus any dog products that help tire dogs out will get an extra star in her book! She is joyfully married and has a one year old daughter named Emma Penelope.
MOMMY BLOGS
Piera Jolly
Editor-in-Chief and Founder
www.JollyMom.com
Piera is a thirty-something wife, mother, blogger, aspiring cookbook author and wannabe photographer living in Atlanta, Georgia. When she’s not puttering around in the kitchen, Piera is trying to keep up with her energetic four year old son, Lucas or hanging out with her family. Motherhood has opened up a whole new world for Piera and she enjoys sharing that with other moms through her blog, Jolly Mom. Founded in 2008, JollyMom.com is a savvy blog that provides moms with helpful parenting information, fun child-friendly activities, recipes, and the latest trends for moms, kids, and families. JollyMom.com is also proud to have been named a Power Mom by Nielsen in 2009 and one of Access Communication’s Top 50 Mommy Blogs in 2010! Just this year, Piera also became CEO and co-founder of Latina Mom Bloggers, which brings bloggers and brands together for creative WOM and social media campaigns.
TOYS
Dan Nessel
Founder and Editor-In-Chief
DadDoes.Com
As the saying goes…if you have lemons, make lemonade. For years Dan Nessel struggled to hide his bizarre fascination with children’s toys. Is a grown man really supposed to have so much fun playing with his kids’ toys? In 2010, Dan decided it was time to embrace his inner child, stare down the ridicule and launch DadDoes.Com - a product review site that focuses on real world toy reviews geared toward parents.
No longer does Dan need to hide his love of toys, in fact he is now well accepted as a kid trapped in a large body…with increasing amounts of grey hair. Dan has done over 200 toy reviews and his YouTube Channel of real world product reviews has received over 2.4 million views. Dan Nessel has been a guest on numerous radio shows, featured in news articles and most importantly, knows how to say “Where are the toys?” in 5 languages.
