Dan Sadler

Principal, Client Insights

Dan Sadler works as a consultant providing insights and solutions to the confections industry. He has been Circana’s National Confectioners Association (NCA) liaison since 2014 and manages the partnerships between Circana and many confection manufacturers. Sadler’s career expertise spans more than 25 years in the CPG industry, with the last decade focused on the confections market.

A recognized confections industry thought leader, Sadler has authored or contributed to several reports, webinars, and podcasts on snack and candy trends. He is a familiar face and speaker at NCA’s State of Industry, ECRM, and other top industry trade events.

Dan Sadler

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Spot Risks and Opportunities the Moments They Emerge

Insights and analytics leaders face a growing need to deliver faster, sharper decisions, and the traditional reporting cycle can no longer keep pace. Circana's Liquid AI digital intelligence platform gives these leaders a decisive edge: reducing chokepoints, swiftly surfacing what matters, and freeing their teams to focus on the high-impact work that moves the business forward.

16 Sept 2026

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250

Circana Enhances Unify+ with AI-Powered Analysis Builder for Faster, More Intuitive Reporting

Redesigned authoring experience in the Unify+ solution generates presentation-ready charts and written insight summaries, with export to PowerPoint, Excel and PDF

15 Sept 2026

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Responsible AI in 2026: Key Considerations for Emerging Brands

CPG brands are leaning into AI in a hard way. AI can help brands learn how to read demand, set prices, and decide where to compete for shelf space, among other things. But speed without responsibility creates risk, and for small and emerging brands, that risk can be costly. As consumer behavior fragments with habits shifting by channel, season, and region, and with growing expectations around convenience, scaling brands operate in an environment focused on immediacy and value. At the same...

14 Sept 2026

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367

As Spending Tightens, Consumers Choose What They Need and What They Love, Reports Circana

August retail sales rose 0.8%, but unit demand fell 1.7% as increasingly selective shoppers focused spending on purchases they deem truly worth it.

14 Sept 2026

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247

Flavor Tourists: How Consumers Worldwide Are Broadening Their Snack Palates

Consumers across global markets are evolving into epicurean snackers, gravitating toward adventurous cultural flavors and layered profiles that balance heat with sweet, smoky, and tangy notes. This appetite for experimentation is fueling notable category expansion and premiumization.

9 Sept 2026

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852

Circana Advances AI-Powered Marketing Measurement: Introducing Liquid Mix with Google Meridian

Marketers want transparent, flexible measurement without sacrificing the depth of data and expertise required for rigor, or the ease and speed needed to make better business decisions

8 Sept 2026

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476

Circana and DoorDash Partner to Validate Incremental Sales for CPG Brands

As a best in class for independent third-party validation, Circana grounds every result in real purchase behavior. This partnership gives marketers a clear, objective view of the incremental sales and new buyer growth their DoorDash investments create.

2 Sept 2026

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352

Going Solo: How More Consumers Are Dining Alone

Circana’s latest Eating Patterns in America report highlights a growing trend toward solo dining. Half of all at-home main meals are now eaten alone, with solo breakfasts, lunches, and snacks also increasing. Solo dining is rising in restaurants as well, especially at breakfast and full-service establishments. Circana attributes the shift to workplace mobility, convenience, smaller households, and affluent older consumers.

31 Aug 2026

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How to Leverage Retailer Collaboration Programs to Drive Joint Business Plans

The term “collaborate” is often used in discussions between suppliers and retailers. Taken to the next level, formalized retailer collaboration initiatives can lead to win-win-win opportunities for brands, sellers, and consumers.

31 Aug 2026

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275

US Consumers are Spending on Youth Team Sports Equipment Amid Rising Costs, According to Circana

Top growing categories include baseball and softball, lacrosse, and football

31 Aug 2026

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Demand Signals Report: Unlock CPG, Consumer Behavior Insights

Monitoring macroeconomic impacts on volume, price, and other aspects of the U.S. CPG industry.

27 Aug 2026

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Using Survey Data to Navigate Shifting Consumer Preferences During Economic Uncertainty

As macroeconomic headwinds stubbornly stick around, consumers continue to move between channels, products, and brands. Whether switching to private label products, holding out for promotions, or splitting visits across more stores, today’s shoppers are tougher to track.

27 Aug 2026

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191

How One Data View Optimizes a Retailer’s Operational Effectiveness and Overall Performance

Even with a vast amount of information, many, if not most, retailers can’t explain why their market share moves and that is a costly blind spot. A single, unified view of performance separates a retailer's own execution from external market forces, replacing competing departmental narratives with one authoritative answer.

27 Aug 2026

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153

The Biggest Back-to-College Opportunity Isn’t in the Dorm Room

For years, retailers have focused their back-to-college strategies on incoming freshmen and dorm move-in season. But the real growth opportunity may lie with upperclassmen transitioning to apartments and off-campus housing. From graduation celebrations to fully furnishing living spaces, college spending evolves dramatically throughout the student journey, creating opportunities for retailers and manufacturers to capture demand far beyond the freshman year.

26 Aug 2026

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Demand Under Pressure: What Today's Consumer Signals Mean for Smaller CPG Brands

For a time, the challenging operating environment for brands, retailers, and others across the supply chain was described as the “new normal.” Today, after years of volatility in various forms, those who create and market products to consumers recognize that “normal” has become, frankly, abnormal.

24 Aug 2026

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Life Imitates Brands: How Dupe Demand is Evolving

More than half (58%) of shoppers have purchased a dupe, and price is no longer the whole story. Quality, convenience, and social media discovery are reshaping how consumers buy across apparel, footwear, and beauty, turning dupes from a budget compromise into a deliberate choice that brands can no longer afford to ignore

21 Aug 2026

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184

Better Customer Experiences Start with the Right Data Mix

In today’s retail environment, customer experience is the key differentiator, but improving it requires more than just data. First-party loyalty data provides precise insight into shopper behavior within a retailer, while panel data reveals how customers behave across the broader market. Used together, they help retailers identify friction points, prevent misdiagnoses, and make smarter decisions that drive loyalty, growth, and better customer experiences.

21 Aug 2026

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217

Weak Confidence, What's Driving Foodservice Growth?

July 2026 China Foodservice Sentiment Report

20 Aug 2026

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Circana Report Highlights Protein and Convenience as Two Forces Influencing America’s Evolving...

Americans' eating and drinking patterns continue to evolve as they balance nutrition, convenience, cost, and connection

19 Aug 2026

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