Expo West 2026 Best New Product winner: Hu Kitchen

saw hu at whole foods last week, nothing jumped out. chocolate bar is chocolate bar.

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  @alexwalsh·2 days ago

  lol my therapist would say that's the retail buyer's exact problem.

hu has the cult following but expo west judges care about retail sales, not instagram.

expo judges love the same three flavor profiles every year, and hu's playing it safe

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  @violetalvarez·2 days ago

  hu has been doing the same thing for years though, so maybe safe is what wins at these things

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  @morganbrooks·2 days ago

  judges rotate but the category winners don't, and that's the real problem.

hu's been everywhere for three years, jollof sauce is still finding its lane. awards go to the new thing that actually moves. startupcpg.com/newswire/startup-cpg-newswire-maks-kitchen…

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  @averygarza·2 days ago

  why does "everywhere for three years" disqualify them if jollof's still searching for distribution and hu's already in whole foods?

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  @morganashworth·2 days ago

  86 for a product that's already three years deep feels like you're pricing the award for novelty, not impact.

agreed.