This year’s lunch! trade show, which returns to the Business Design Centre in London on 23-24 September, will feature a host of big industry names from across the food to go retailing and contract catering industry.
Working lunch! Theatre
The latest speakers to join the 2014 line-up are Corrado Accardi, founder of Pizza Rossa, Darren Westlake, CEO and co-founder of CrowdCube, Martyn Herriott, chairman & executive director of Beverage Standards Association, and Cyril Lavenant, director of Foodservice UK and France at The NPD Group.
The show’s Working lunch! Theatre (sponsored by Magrini) already includes previously confirmed sessions by Henry Dimbleby, co-founder of Leon and a founding director of the Sustainable Restaurant Association, Steve Flanagan, UK marketing and category director at Starbucks, and Sarah Doyle, brand director at EAT.
Crowdfunding – the future of food-to-go?
Thanks to its universal appeal, food and drink has proved to be one of the most popular categories of crowdfunding investment, offering brand new start-ups (and established businesses) an alternative way to get all-important funding. And Pizza Rossa is a stand out example of how successful an alternative it can be.
Founded by Corrado Accardi, the company made headlines last year when it broke the European record for equity-based crowdfunding for a start-up, raising £440,000 in 17 days from 119 investors through Crowdcube. Since then Accardi has opened his first gourmet pizza al taglio grab and go outlet in London’s Leadenhall Market and is planning more openings by the end of the year.
Although far from a new concept, the crowdfunding campaigns are growing rapidly, and Accardi believes that its “versatility across all sectors and industries” will help it become a mainstay in business financing.
Accardi will be joined by Darren Westlake, CEO and co-founder of CrowdCube – the first equity crowdfunding website in the world, in the Working lunch! Theatre at 4.20pm on Tuesday 23 September.
Allergens legislation update
The EU’s new Food Information Regulations (FIR), which come into effect in December, are also the subject of a timely update at lunch! (4.20pm, on Wednesday 24 September). Hosted by Wendy Duncan, R&D deploy manager at Unilever Food Solutions, the session is designed to help all foodservice operators (no matter their size) prepare for the changes. Under the new law, it is a legal requirement for allergen information (the EU’s Top14) to be provided for all foods that are sold onsite (non-packed or pre-packed for direct sale).
Other notable sessions
- Engage, Grow & Profit with Social Media – Susanne Currid, Marketing Consultant and Social Media Coach, The Loop
- Food-To-Go: London Versus the Rest of the UK – Cyril Lavenant, The NPD Group
- How to Improve Hot Beverages and Profit in Your Business – BSA Panel debate chaired by Martyn Herriott, Beverage Standards Association
“Although coffee culture is booming in the UK, it is important that independent coffee shops are equipped with all the information they need to build a long term successful business. By providing this panel of experts at lunch!, we hope to do this,” says BSA chairman Martyn Herriott.
The full Working lunch! Theatre line-up is available to view on the show’s website here
Keynotes, Innovation Zone…
The show’s free Keynotes, the popular 30-stand Innovation Zone, the annual British Smoothie Championships (sponsored by Magrini), and the Innovation Challenge Showcase (offering a preview of all the latest new product developments) are all located on the show’s aptly-named Upper Feature Level.
“I always find lunch! a great source of trends and innovation,” comments Martin Hambleton, head of procurement & innovation at En Route International (and a former senior buyer from Elior UK and EAT.), who will also be speaking at the show. “Lunch times are notoriously short these days, and food-to-go needs to deliver the lunch experience in short, sharp and innovative ways.”
“Trade shows offer a platform in a busy schedule to bring together innovation in one go. That coupled with the Innovation Challenge Awards and bespoke highlighting of new products, makes lunch! stand out as a must go,” he says.
300 exhibitors
Returning to the Business Design Centre in London on 23-24 September, the multi-award winning lunch! show will feature 300 exhibiting companies showcasing a wealth of new food and drink products, packaging, equipment and technologies.
Register for free entry
To register for a free trade pass, please visit www.lunchshow.co.uk and quote priority code PR (direct link: http://www.eventdata.co.uk/Visitor/Lunch.aspx?TrackingCode=PR).