You work in a competitive, complex industry. Success in your field — as a logistics professional — hinges on an ability to improve supply chain efficiency and overcome challenges. It doesn’t take long for people in your role to discover just how diverse these challenges can be and how difficult forces (out of your control) can make things.
You’re not alone in this struggle, though. Thousands of logistics experts, like you, dedicate themselves to improving their business’ inbound and outbound supply chains. The same issues you encounter, they experience too.
This is why supply chain and logistics conferences exist; a healthy international supply chain makes for a healthy world economy and, in turn, a more prosperous global community.
Every year, hundreds of supply chain conferences host thousands of logistics professionals around the world.
Each conference is put on to educate logistics professionals within a niche/industry, providing an opportunity for like-minded people to gain insights and develop strategies that will help them forward. The impact of these conferences is undeniable and attending one is worth your time.
That said, you have a lot on your plate, leaving little time to sift through every option.
To save you some effort, we’ve narrowed down a list of 15 of the most renowned supply chain and logistics conferences you should know about in the year ahead.
Here at Anderson Trucking Service (ATS), we’ve been attending supply chain events for more than five decades, across several disciplines. Over the years we’ve exhibited at and attended many of the best logistics conferences in the U.S. — and a few conferences that weren’t so great.
Below, you’ll find a list of logistics conferences you should consider attending in 2023, complete with location details, summaries and scheduling information.
Note: these conferences are ordered alphabetically.
15 Supply Chain and Logistics Conferences to Attend in 2023
- American Supply Chain Summit
- ASCM Connect
- Breakbulk Americas
- CSCMP Edge Conference
- Food Shippers of America Conference
- Gartner Supply Chain Symposium | Xpo
- GS1 Connect
- ISM World Conference
- LINK2023: The Retail Supply Chain Conference
- Manifest
- Pack Expo
- ProMat
- RLA Conference and Expo
- Supply Chain USA 2023
- TPM Annual Conference
American Supply Chain Summit
The American Supply Chain Summit is an annual conference held to help companies around the globe improve their supply chain and procurement strategies. With the key themes of cost optimization, workforce management, technology and profitability & risk management, the American Supply Chain Summit provides a valuable experience for every logistics leader.
Who should attend?: Supply chain leaders across industries.
Dates: May 16-17, 2023
Location: Hyatt Regency DFW Airport, Dallas, Texas
Visit the American Supply Chain Summit website
ASCM Connect Annual Conference
Each year the Association for Supply Chain Management puts on a conference focused on bringing together logistics leaders from across industries. This conference, which is held both in-person and virtually, lets attendees network with industry leaders, gain valuable insights on trending supply chain topics and sit in on educational sessions presented by prominent logistics leaders.
Who should attend?: Logistics professionals, managers, engineers and sales staff across industries. Here is a breakdown of who usually attends.
Dates: September 11-13, 2023
Location: Louisville, Kentucky | Virtually
Breakbulk Americas
Breakbulk Americas is hosted each year to bring together individuals responsible for the movement of out-of-gauge and project cargoes. As the largest trade event for project cargo/breakbulk stakeholders in the U.S., this conference is attended by companies across industries and, along with a robust panel of presentations, provides extensive networking opportunities.
Who should attend?: Logistics and supply chain managers responsible for moving breakbulk products.
Dates: September 26-28, 2023
Location: George R. Brown Convention Center, Houston, Texas
Check out the Breakbulk Americas website
CSCMP EDGE Conference
This renowned conference, hosted by the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals, brings together global supply chain leaders for a three-day exhibition wherein valuable insights and information is shared, emerging logistics trends are explored and networking is encouraged. No matter which industry you work in, as a logistics professional the CSCMP EDGE conference will leave you with actionable takeaways.
Who should attend?: Supply chain executives, managers and specialists — particularly those involved in international transportation projects/decisions.
Dates: October 1-4, 2023
Location: Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center, Kissimmee, Florida
Visit the CSCMP EDGE 2023 website
Food Shippers of America Conference
The 67th annual Food Shippers of America conference will be held in Palm Springs, California. This conference, which brings together stakeholders in the food and beverage industry for education and networking, has become increasingly successful over the years. At the Food Shippers of America conference expect to hear from renowned speakers and receive valuable insights that apply to every organization moving these products.
Who should attend?: Logistics and supply chain managers at companies that ship food and/or beverage products.
Dates: March 5-7, 2023
Location: J.W. Marriott Palm Desert Resort, Palm Springs, California
Gartner Supply Chain Symposium | Xpo
As always, Gartner’s Supply Chain Symposium | Xpo promises to deliver helpful insights, tools, strategies and frameworks for supply chain leaders across industries. Round-table discussions, end-user case studies, peer-to-peer conversations and a panel of guest speakers are only a few of this symposium’s offerings. 
Who should attend?: Supply chain leaders, heads of sourcing and procurement, chief supply chain officers, heads of manufacturing, heads of logistics
Dates: May 8-10, 2023
Location: Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort, Orlando, Florida
View the Gartner Supply Chain Symposium | Xpo website
GS1 Connect
GS1 Connect is a premier supply chain conference with sessions catered to the diverse needs of the modern supply chain. No matter which industry you work in, GS1 Connect has something of value for you. Among other things, GS1 Connect offers packages that include breakout sessions, keynote speakers and networking opportunities.
Who should attend?: Supply chain leaders, namely those in the food service, grocery, healthcare and retail industries.
Dates: June 5-7, 2023
Location: Gaylord Rockies Resort and Convention Center, Denver, Colorado
Check out the GS1 Connect website
ISM World Conference 2023
ISM World is a world-class supply chain and procurement event. This event offers educational opportunities focusing on key supply chain management and procurement topics. The Institute for Supply Management’s goal is to have every attendee walk away better equipped to facilitate their duties. This is done through a mix of networking sessions, small groups, short program education programs, idea labs and more. 
Who should attend?: Company thought leaders, supply chain and procurement professionals and solution-driven suppliers.
Dates: May 7-10, 2023
Location: Grapevine, Texas
View the ISM World 2023 website
LINK2023: The Retail Supply Chain Conference
This conference is heavily focused on the retail industry. Top executives from retail supply chains attend this conference each year to share case studies, network, share best practices and discover emerging logistics trends in this space. If you work in the retail industry, this conference is a great opportunity to start 2023 ahead of the curve.
Who should attend?: Global retail supply chain stakeholders from shippers to transportation companies.
Dates: February 22-26, 2023
Location: Orlando, Florida
Manifest
Manifest is “the global community for logistics and supply chain tech.” Manifest’s annual conference brings together industry leaders, investors and innovators from around the globe for a three-day presentation of technologies and innovations developed to propel logistics and transportation into the future.
Who should attend?: logistics-industry executives and leaders, those responsible for managing their company’s logistics and transportation supply chain.
Dates: January 31-February 2, 2023
Location: Caesars Forum, Las Vegas, Nevada
Pack Expo
Pack Expo is an international conference attended by stakeholders in any industry that uses packaging — for shipping, retail purposes and/or distribution. Pack Expo attendees receive networking and educational opportunities as well as hands-on experience with the newest technologies in the packing space.
Who should attend?: Logistics professionals, managers, engineers and sales staff across industries. Here is a breakdown of who usually attends.
Dates: September 11-13, 2023
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
ProMat
The ProMat conference is the place where cutting-edge logistics and supply chain technologies/equipment are on full display. Attend ProMat and receive first-person access to the latest and greatest supply chain, distribution and manufacturing systems, meant to propel your business forward. ProMat is a premier conference for logistics and material handling professionals around the world.
Who should attend?: Individuals involved in supply chain management, procurement, distribution and logistics.
Dates: March 20-23, 2023
Location: McCormick Place, Chicago, Illinois
View the ProMat conference website
RLA Conference and Expo
The Reverse Logistics Association’s conference and exposition is a must-attend for any logistics specialist, manager and leader. Since 2002, the RLA’s conference has brought together supply chain leaders for keynote speeches, content-driven panel discussions and networking opportunities. Reverse logistics is a crucial piece of international business, RLA’s conference and exposition is its premier event.
Who should attend?: Reverse logistics professionals responsible for overseeing the upstream movement of products/materials.
Dates: February 7-9, 2023
Location: The Mirage, Las Vegas, Nevada
Visit the RLA Conference and Expo website
Supply Chain USA 2023
Put on by Thomas Reuters, the Supply Chain USA conference is a start-to-finish logistics event — covering everything from inbound logistics to last-mile delivery. Re-design your supply chain the right way using insights from logistics leaders that are modernizing the way the global supply chain functions.
Who should attend?: Logistics managers, supply chain leaders, logistics planners, transportation managers, etc. Download the Supply Chain USA brochure here.
Dates: May 17-18, 2023
Location: McCormick Place Convention Center, Chicago, Illinois
Visit the Supply Chain USA website
TPM Annual Conference
TPM is the premier conference for international logistics technology. At TPM attendees network with industry peers, stay on top of the market by learning from others, find new customers/nurture existing relationships and get informed on international shipping market data/trends.
Who should attend?: Global supply chain stakeholders, from shippers to transportation companies.
Dates: February 26-March 1, 2023
Location: Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach, California
Conferences Aren’t Your Only Opportunity to Improve
On this list there is certainly a conference that will benefit you — we’re willing to bet there are a couple. However, even though these events provide valuable opportunities, they’re also expensive, making attending multiple cost prohibitive.
Luckily, attending these events isn’t the only way you can improve your supply chain processes and logistical efficiencies. There is plenty of learning to be done outside of these venues as well.
In fact, this article, outlining 5 ways to gain efficiencies in your transportation supply chain is a great place to start. Here at ATS, we take pride in helping companies like yours succeed by publishing educational content to our Learning Hub multiple times per week.
Check out the Learning Hub’s robust library of content and take your supply chain to the next level. We look forward to seeing you at some of the conferences referenced above. That said, there’s no reason your journey toward perfection should stop in the interim.
