Winter Fancy Food Show 2012 Post Show Report

Show Breaks Records! 37th Winter Fancy Food Show

The Winter Fancy Food Show in San Francisco exceeded all expectations. Attendance was the highest ever in the show’s 37-year history, and the sold-out exhibit space was the largest to date in San Francisco, the show’s longtime West Coast home.

“The Winter Show confirmed it. The specialty food industry is thriving again,” says NASFT president Ann Daw. “The numbers were strong, and so was the spirit of innovation and creativity from throughout the exhibit halls from first-time exhibitors, and show veterans alike.”

The three-day event at Moscone Center, which ran Jan. 17 – 19, 2012, continues to be the largest marketplace devoted exclusively to specialty foods and beverages on the West Coast. Attendance rose 6.5 percent above 2011’s record numbers. More than 18,000 buyers attended the show. They reflected a new mix of decision makers from the top names in retail and foodservice including more buyers from supermarkets, mass merchants and natural and organic retailers. Buyers represented industry mainstays like Whole Foods Market, Trader Joe’s, Central Market and A Southern Season and new participants including Sodexo Senior Living, Wynn Las Vegas and The California Parks Company.

The show covered 206,000 sq. ft. of exhibit space, up from 196,000 sq. ft. in 2011. To accommodate demand from exhibitors, NASFT added additional space that allowed 60 more specialty food makers to present their products alongside a popular exhibit of 30 emerging food entrepreneurs called New Brands on the Shelf. In all, the exhibit halls were filled with some 80,000 specialty products from 1,300 food artisans, importers and entrepreneurs representing more than 35 countries and regions.

Great Press

The Fancy Food Show was a media magnet.  Camera crews from NBC, ABC, NBC and Fox News affiliates came to find great stories about food trends and the artisans and entrepreneurs behind them. More than 400 journalists attended the show, and presented great stories across all media. Press included NPR, USA Today, Wall Street Journal,  San Francisco Chronicle, Cooking Light, Food & Wine,  Vegetarian Times, Better Homes & Gardens, Gourmet Retailer, Supermarket News, most every local TV network affiliate, important internet publication and trade journal.

Show Highlights:

• Keynote address. “Doing Well by Doing Good,” by Greg Steltenphol, founder of Odwalla Juices and current CEO of Califia Farms, who was joined by Deb Nelson, executive director of the Social Venture Network.

• What’s New, What’s Hot! A display with hundreds of new products, gift ideas, natural and organic products, and the latest from participants in NASFT’s Diversity Program.

• Business Builders 1-1. NASFT facilitated 1,400 face-to-face meetings between buyers and manufacturers the day before the show in a customized match-making program a la speed dating. Participation was up 7 percent from 2011’s Winter Fancy Food Show.

Top Buyers, Top Stores, New Names

The Winter Fancy Food Show is the place to be for top buyers in retail and foodservice to find the latest in chocolate, cheese, olive oil, spices, ethnic specialties and natural and organic products to fill their stores and restaurants for the year to come. This year’s show drew buyers from a wide range of important companies including A Southern Season, Amazon, Alaska Airlines, Costco, Bed, Bath & Beyond, Bozzutos, Central Market, Crate & Barrel, Gilt Taste, Lund Food Holdings, Mollie Stone’s Markets, Sodexo, The Chefs Warehouse, Whole Foods, Winn Dixie and Wynn Las Vegas.

Attendees Give Show High Marks, Make Deals

Attendees placed one to four orders during the show, according to NASFT’s post-show survey of buyers. The survey also found:

• The majority of respondents plan on placing future orders with exhibitors.
• The show’s most valuable aspects: meeting new business associations; sampling new products.
• Close to 80 percent said the show met or exceeded their objectives.
• More than 80 percent gave Moscone Center an 8 rating or higher out of a possible 10.
• More than three quarters of respondents said they are likely to recommend attending the Winter Show.

New Contacts, New Business

A large majority of exhibitors at the show said in a survey they are very likely to recommend exhibiting at the next Winter Fancy Food Show, in 2013. The survey also found:

• More than half the respondents said they generated from 16 to 20 new business leads, of which close to half are new contacts.
• Close to three quarters of those surveyed said they had meaningful interactions with attendees via face-to-face meetings, product demonstrations, and requests for follow-up.

Buyers from Around the World and Across the U.S.

The show attracted attendees from Brazil to Gambia to Japan. Buyers came to source new products and see what’s new from 105 countries including:

Education – Sessions Sell Out

Food artisans and entrepreneurs are hungry for information on how to succeed in the specialty food industry. With more than 20 seminars, tastings and tours, participation was up 10 percent versus the 2011Winter Show.  The NASFT’s signature “Start-Up” series for industry newcomers sold out, as did expert-led tasting sessions for cheese and olive oil.

What’s Hot for the Year Ahead

The exhibit halls were filled with 80,000 products across 30 product categories including new twists on classics, foods targeting health concerns, super hot savory flavors combined with sweet, and myriad international accents in everything from appetizers to snack chips to quinoa to tea.  The Brewers Association and the American Cheese Society presented dozens of hand-crafted products from U.S. food entrepreneurs.

Amid all the abundance, the NASFT assembled a panel of prominent journalists to comb the exhibit halls and identify the top five food trends for 2012. Their top five picks:

• Pickling 2.0
• Drinks Go Nuts (beverages made from nuts, seeds and grains)
• Coconut Cracks Open
• Ancient Grains
• Gluten-Free Grows Up

Other trends identified at the Winter Fancy Food Show include savory sweets such as bacon brittle, mindful snacks such as raw bars, bean chips and seaweed, cocktail mix makeovers, new takes on chai, and everything fig. Read more about these trends and their related products on foodspring.com.

Connecting Exhibitors Before, During and After the Show

The NASFT’s Specialty Food Media connects exhibitors to the right buyers for the Fancy Food Show, and year round, through its variety of media properties focused on food and beverages. It is the leading information source bringing together buyers and sellers in the $75-billion specialty food trade. Channels include:

• Specialty Food Magazine: Mailed to 30,100 subscribers and with bonus distribution in the exhibit hall, the Winter Fancy Food Show Issue provided 160 pages of food trends, products and business insights.
• specialtyfood.com: NASFT’s trade website--where more than 90 percent of Fancy Food Show attendees register for the show—features rich content as well as the popular foodle™ product finder search tool.
• Specialty Food News, the daily e-newsletter featuring industry specific news and trends data that is emailed to 50,000 subscribers, including show registrants.
• foodspring.com: NASFT’s consumer website for specialty food enthusiasts, providing an insider’s look at specialty foods and the companies, food entrepreneurs and artisans behind them.

Giving Back

Fancy Food Show exhibitors have a long tradition of giving back. At the end of the show, exhibitors made a major food donation to Bay Area food pantries and soup kitchens in partnership with Feed the Hungry, an anti-hunger organization. More than 150 volunteers gathered enough specialty chocolate, cheese, olive oil, meats, snacks and confections to fill more than three tractor trailers and supply meals to 5,000 individuals in need.