It was great to wander the aisles of Natural Products Expo West this weekend. Richard and I spent time with some of our current sellers (Nicobella, Eco-Me, Bag the Habit and others), met some soon-to-be Abe’s Market sellers (I’ll keep you in suspense for now), and spoke with some companies that may or may not sell on Abe’s, but they have great products and inspire me. Of the hundreds of companies I spoke with, here are are a few non-Abe’s sellers that stand out for me:

Preserve A pioneer in the natural products world, Preserve makes stylish, high performance, eco-friendly products. Using innovative methods, they turn used materials into razors, colanders, cutting boards, tableware and more. Cool concept. Great design.

Innovative Kids Books, games, puzzles and toys that help parents and kids cut through the clutter that makes up today’s over-marketed toy market.

Wow Baking Company All-natural wheat-free and gluten-free baked goods. These moist and chewy baked goods pack taste that rivals any traditional baked goods. You’d never guess them to be wheat-free and gluten free.

Vermints  All-natural mints from the Green Mountains of Vermont. Taste great. Fresh packaging with fun design. Organic, gluten-free, nut-free and kosher.

I opened a can of tuna on a backcountry camping trip a few years ago. As I went to drain the tuna juice from the can, a fellow hiker grabbed the can and proceeded to suck the tuna juice straight from it. “What are you doing?” he shrieked. “That’s perfectly good water. This world doesn’t have enough water that you can afford to just waste it like that.”

That’s extreme! Even for a highly environmentally conscious guy like myself.

We talk a lot at Abe’s Market about how to make going green fun. Richard posted on this recently.

I love this TreeHugger piece and short video on Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn. The guy rides his bike to work every day. Because he’s a tuna-juice-sucking fanatic? No! His explanation: “I started biking to work for a bunch of different reasons. Ultimately, I bike now because I like it.”I love that simplicity!

Lately, I’ve been gratified to witness a recurring great example of recycle and reuse all in one. Obviously, we recycle everything in my house. We’ve been sending toilet paper rolls, empty boxes, etc. to my 4-year-old daughter’s preschool. Within days, those same items return home in the form of birdhouses, horns and more. It’s fun for us to watch that virtuous cycle in action.

I’ll add some more of my own family’s fun (and simple) green activities soon. For now, I’ll rely on this list from iVillage to get things going.

Do you do anything more than drink tuna juice to make going green fun?

As a longtime marketing guy, I’m fascinated by what drives product successes and failures. Classical marketers will cite the necessary 4P’s:

• Product – needs to be a good product that fills a consumer need
• Price – needs to be perceived as fair
• Place – has to have reliable distribution where shoppers shop
• Promotion – must be marketed in a compelling way that speaks to the target audience

But there’s more. What is it that drives some products to explode on the scene ala Rubik’s Cube, Beanie Babies and, more recently, Webkinz?

While we don’t reveal Abe’s Market sales figures, I can say that we have a runaway hit. Multibox mania is running wild. After quickly running out of inventory on our first order, we compiled a long waiting list of wannabe Multibox customers who wanted to be notified when we were replenished. We just listed the product back in stock a few hours ago and already it’s flying off the shelves.

So, what is it about Multibox that makes it a soon-to-be cult classic? Sure, it easily checks the box on the 4P’s. My kids love it. Parents love it for its combination of design, function and education. Parents magazine coverage certainly doesn’t hurt. And Green Lullaby, maker of Multibox, has a compelling story of a momtrepreneur who develops safe, environmentally-friendly toys and furniture for her own kids, then turns it into a business.

But what’s really driving the mad rush over and above a normal hot product? And why don’t more toys (or toy makers) know the secret formula?

Most of parenting is wonderful. There are some things, though, that no parent can claim to enjoy. Top (or should I say bottom?) on my list are:

1. Having a kid wake me from a state of deep REM in the middle of the night
2. Dealing with a screaming baby on a long plane ride
3. Changing a stinky diaper

Lesley Mattos, who once had 4 children under the age of 5, has done something about one of these. While her Bottoms Up Baby Wipes may not make me wish I still had kids in diapers, they are one of those no-brainer products. Better for baby. Better for the environment. Convenient. And far cheaper than disposable wipes. What’s the catch?

Now, Lesley, what can you do to make kids sleep through the night and behave like angels on airplanes?

While Susan Knapp was taking care of her mother, who was sick with breast cancer, Susan wasn’t able to make her Cinnamon Pear Jelly for her Corporate America coworkers for Christmas, as they had come to expect. Seeing their disappointment over not getting their favorite gift, Susan had an inkling that her culinary creations with her favorite fruit had the potential to be a “real” business. Eight years and numerous awards later, A Perfect Pear is an award-winning, extensive line of natural sauces, dressings and marinades.  “Our main objective for all our products is to help people create quick, healthy and delicious meals,” Susan says.

The Blue Ribbon Set is a great way to try several of Susan’s culinary creations at once.  The set of four award-winning items is available today only at 50% off.  It contains Pear Chipotle Grill Sauce, Champagne Pear Vinaigrette, Cinnamon Pear Jelly, Pear Fig Tapenade and some handy recipes.

Thank you, Susan (and team), for being a great partner to Abe’s Market and for participating in 10 Days of Discovery.