Behind the Booth: The Hustle, Chaos, and Wins of CHFA Toronto 2025
Behind the Booth:
The Hustle, Chaos, and Wins of CHFA Toronto 2025
When we first launched Nam Fruits in May 2025, our focus was simple: get our tropical snacks onto shelves in Montreal and start building momentum. But just one month later, a conversation changed everything.
While chatting with my friend and fellow CEO, Kyle Feigenbaum of Healthybud, he suggested we consider exhibiting at the Canadian Health Food Association (CHFA) trade show in Toronto — the country’s largest stage for natural food brands. The idea was thrilling… and terrifying.
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We only had three months until CHFA 2025 Toronto. Three months to design and build a booth from scratch, produce catalogues, flyers, banners, and business cards, secure logistics, line up staffing, and still grow our presence in Montreal grocery stores. It was an insane challenge — but one we knew we had to take if we wanted Nam Fruits to break through.
The Hustle Before the Show
The weeks leading up to CHFA were a blur of late nights, weekend crunch sessions, and “all hands on deck” teamwork. We were finalizing packaging, coordinating printers, arranging pallet shipments from Montreal to Toronto, and planning every last detail of our booth.
I brought in family from Toronto and Montreal to join the team for the weekend. To make sure we had enough coverage, a friend also connected me to Richard, who helped us capture pictures and video throughout the event while also jumping in to support whenever things got busy.
By the time setup day arrived on Friday, September 19, we were running on adrenaline. We spent hours in Toronto traffic shuttling between the venue, Hai’s place, and back again, but by the end of the night, our 10x10 corner booth was fully built, bright, and beautiful — ready to showcase our premium tropical snacks from Vietnam.
The Chaos of Opening Day
Saturday morning, September 20, the doors opened — and we thought we’d have an hour of calm before the crowds reached us. We couldn’t have been more wrong.
Within minutes, the aisles were jam-packed and our booth was swarmed. For two straight days, we were talking non-stop with buyers, distributors, brokers, and store owners. We handed out thousands of samples of our dried mangoes, banana chips, and jackfruit chips, and the reactions were everything we had hoped for — and more:
“Wow, these are the best dried mangoes I’ve ever had!”
“Your packaging and branding are beautiful.”
"You’ve only been in business for four months?!"
The booth was alive with energy. People loved our story, our products, and our presentation. Business cards were exchanged, catalogues were grabbed, and we even took orders right on the spot.
Why CHFA 2025 Was a Game-Changer
Beyond the samples and conversations, CHFA Toronto 2025 validated everything we’ve been working toward:
- Consumers loved the taste. Just like at our grocery tastings, people couldn’t believe how juicy and flavourful our mango slices were, or how crispy and addictive the banana and jackfruit chips tasted.
- Retailers saw the opportunity. Buyers from independent stores to multi-chain retailers stopped by, impressed by both the products and the packaging.
- Distributors showed interest. Established companies — including a major Montreal distributor — came to pitch us on why we should work with them. That’s when it hit me: Nam Fruits is onto something real.
And perhaps most importantly, people were shocked — in the best way — that we had pulled all of this together in just four months. The booth, the branding, the products, the story. For them, it felt polished and professional. For us, it was the result of countless nights, weekends, and sacrifices.
Wins We’re Bringing Home
By the end of the weekend, we had achieved far more than we set out to:
Captured plenty of photos and video content we can use for marketing. Gave our whole Nam Fruits team a massive confidence boost.
Generated dozens of strong leads with buyers and distributors.
Secured new orders and started conversations that will bring Nam Fruits into Ontario stores.
CHFA 2025 Toronto was our first-ever trade show — and it was a huge success. We left Toronto tired, but inspired and motivated, knowing that Nam Fruits is resonating with exactly the people we want to reach.
What’s Next
This was only the beginning. We’ve proven ourselves at CHFA, and now it’s time to follow up, close deals, and get Nam Fruits into more stores across Canada.
As a Canadian company, we’re proud to bring dried mangoes and tropical snacks from Vietnam to Canadian shelves. We’re not reinventing the wheel — people already love mangoes, bananas, and jackfruit. We’ve simply sourced ripe fruit, packaged it beautifully, and made it easy to enjoy.
CHFA Toronto 2025 was a milestone moment for us. And trust me — it won’t be our last trade show.
If you’re a store, broker, or distributor interested in working with Nam Fruits, we’d love to hear from you. Please reach out at info@namfruits.com with your company details, and we’ll be in touch.
