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23rd March 2016

Horizon's Annual Briefing 2016 Ten Top Take Outs

Foodservice Marketing Agency - Horizons 2016 As the leading foodservice marketing agency we were lucky enough to be invited along to the ‘invitation only’ Annual Horizons Briefing, at the world’s largest firm of lawyers, Dentons. As ever the great and the good of the foodservice world gathered to hear what Horizons FS had to say on the state of the ‘out of home’ nation. The day kicked off as usual with a confidential talk from a leading economist on the wider macro setting which of course influences the foodservice market. Then it was on to the specifics of the out of home market. There was as ever a huge amount of information to digest from Peter and his team, not to mention the pearls of wisdom from M Restaurants, GBK and Dentons, as part of the panel discussion and Q&A session, but here are my top ten takeouts from the day…

1) The foodservice market (based on food and beverage sales) rose to around £47.9bil in 2015 and is growing at around 2%, taking us back to similar levels seen in 2008 – an expanding market at a slower rate of growth. But there are, as Horizons put it ‘stones in the road’ to bear in mind such as the slowdown in the economy, consumers becoming more cautious, Brexit, national living wage, rising rents and business rates and even England’s future football performance! However, the long term forecast is positive with 2020 set to see the market hit £56.1bn

2) QSR, Hotels and Pubs (and education) are doing well with strong growth, whilst staff catering, healthcare and services are in decline. Food and drink sales in QSR, restaurants and hotels are forecast to grow in 2016. As for overall winners and losers, on the winning side are pizza and pasta restaurants, pub restaurants, coffee shops, sandwich shops and of all things, holiday camps (!), whilst the losers (lowest performers) are tenanted and leased pubs, airlines, off shore, fish & chips / kebab shops and traditional cafes.

3) The smaller casual dining chains are driving innovation in the market with ones to watch like Creams, Turtle Bay and Filmore & Union.

4) Discounting and vouchers are still around but operators are far more savvy, using more sophisticated techniques to drive brand loyalty via online marketing or brand apps and clever vouchering to drive traffic in downtime or to upsell around occasions.

5) After some dips, eating out penetration is back to 72% where it was back in June 2012. Burgers remain no.1 on menus, whilst healthier food to go is also on the rise demonstrating how consumers want to be good but only sometimes!

6) New twists on old favourites are coming through on menus, such as Lobster mac ‘n’ cheese, arctic roll, toasties and even popping candy. Whilst Wagyu beef, cholla buns and chilli jam fillings along with wellbeing superfoods and gluten free options seem to be cropping up more and more.

7) The trend seems to be for acquisition, whether it’s Sysco buying up Brakes or larger high street brands to buy up the smaller ones. However, bucking the trend and still independent are ‘bubbling under brands’ like Shoryu Ramen, Almost Famous Burgers, Tootoomoo, Snowflake Luxury Gelato and M Restaurants.

8) As far as operator trends go, coffee shops, Mexican fast casual, Italian casual dining, sandwich bars, healthy quick service and juice bars seem to be doing well. London is still key but other large conurbations offer eating out ‘hot spots’.

9) The restaurant market could learn a thing or two from the airlines when it comes to things like being able to choose your table prior to dining and re-marketing online to traffic that has visited their site and then shops around online. Whilst with the rise of the likes of Deliveroo, restaurants need to make dining-in attractive to drive bookings by offering a real experience, differentiating it from the delivered option whilst still benefiting from the incremental sales ‘delivery’ can offer.

10) Finally a word of wisdom on menu innovation from a very experienced operator – simply put…try stuff and see if it sells – sounds fair enough to me!

So in summary for 2016, as Peter Backman puts it, ‘There are lots of opportunities, but also plenty to stumble on!’
#HrznsAB

jellybean is a leading foodservice marketing agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Susan Wickes

21st March 2016

Easter and the Egg

foodservice pr agency - easter and the egg Here’s something we all know: Us Brits love chocolate. In world league tables of per capita consumption, the UK takes joint fourth place behind Switzerland, Germany and Austria. On average, each person in Britain eats approximately 9.5kg of chocolate per year, and Easter sees consumption of the sweet stuff rocket. Figures show across the UK, approximately 80 million chocolate eggs are sold, with Easter chocolate sales making up 10% of our annual chocolate spend.

The origin of the Easter egg is often lost in the chocolate frenzy, but Easter is as we know a Christian festival which celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Eggs have traditionally been used to illustrate new life, just as Jesus began his new life on Easter Sunday after his resurrection. Others however, believe the new life celebrated refers to the coming of the new season, Spring.

So, now we’re on the same page regarding why we have chocolate eggs at Easter – the egg symbolises new life, whether that is a religious belief or whether it is to mark the birth of Spring and they’re chocolate because, well…chocolate makes money!

In fact the Easter Egg market is the number one gifting occasion worldwide and the second most popular time of the year for eating chocolate. The UK market is worth in excess of £220 million with shell eggs representing the oldest and largest sector.

Did you know the first chocolate Easter egg was produced by Fry’s in 1873? Now, 143 years later Cadbury dominates the market with more than a 50% share! So this begs the question, what’s your favourite Easter egg? Tweet us and let us know. Happy Egg-eating.

Sources:
www.eauk.org/culture/statistics/easter-facts-and-statistics.cfm
www.cadburyworld.co.uk/schoolandgroups/~/media/CadburyWorld/en/Files/Pdf/factsheet-easterbrands

jellybean is a leading foodservice pr agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Guest Blogger

18th March 2016

Why Wagyu?

Foodservice PR - Wagyu Burger Working for one of foodservice’s leading agencies means that I’ve been lucky enough to sample a range of amazing new cuisines and food trends over the years. One opportunity that hadn’t crossed my path until now was Wagyu, which appeared on my local’s menu, The Bell in Godstone – well worth a visit if you’re ever in the area – as their new premium burger.

Well this raised my curiosity, I was aware of all the buzz around Wagyu being the beef equivalent of champagne and caviar, but why was Wagyu so darn expensive? With a table booked to sample this ultimate burger, I set upon doing some research and this is what I discovered.

1. Wagyu is a Japanese beef cattle breed, ‘Wa’ means Japanese and ‘gyu’ means cow.
2. There are just four breeds that are considered Wagyu in Japan, though export now means it can be found in America, Australia and Britain.
3. Wagyu is the world’s highest grade of beef and the most expensive.
4. Wagyu’s high fat marbling is what makes for its unique taste and a velvety texture, prime beef contains 6-8% versus Wagyu’s 20-25% marbled fat, which melts like butter when cooked.
5. It’s Wagyu’s superior genetics and painstaking care that lead to the meat’s higher marbling, they are not fed grass but given a special diet of corn, soybean, barley, wheat bran and aren’t slaughtered until 3 years old.
6. The mono-unsaturated to saturated fat ratio is higher in Wagyu than in any other beef making it healthier.

Sharing my findings with my fiancée that we were actually being healthy by eating this burger, we headed to the pub. The burgers proved a taste sensation! Topped with smoked cheddar, crispy onions, relish and gherkins with a side of sweet potato fries Wagyu’s ‘melt in the mouth texture’ and flavour was delicious and well worth the £16 price tag given the care that goes into this delicacy.

If you’ve sampled Wagyu I’d love to hear your thoughts on the world’s most expensive beef, as for me I’m already planning when I get back to my local to sample another!

jellybean is a leading foodservice marketing and communications agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Gemma Felstead

18th March 2016

Digital Food and Drink Conference

Foodservice Digital Agency - Digital Food and Drink Conference As you would expect from the leading foodservice digital agency, much of our time is spent ensuring we are abreast of the latest trends in our industry. And so it was that I found myself bound for this year’s Digital Food and Drink Conference held at America Square in London.

With a truly impressive selection of speakers I was looking forward to the thrust and parry of debate as retailer and brand alike took to the stage to put forward their presentations and debate how each can help one and other deliver success in the digital space.

For those of you not lucky enough to have attended, here are my top 10 take outs from the day’s speakers. Ready? Right, here goes.

1) Kate Douglas from Twitter talked about their exciting new products – namely Amplify, Moments and Niche. Want to keep up to speed on social? Go and read up on those.
2) ASDA noted that ‘incentivised’ emails outperformed Supplier Branded emails by a factor of 30%. Looks like money off or a giveaway still reigns supreme.
3) Steve Millard of Burton’s Biscuits revealed that the value of online sales in food is set to double by 2020 – those not exploiting digital are missing out – big time.
4) A straw poll of attendees showed zero plans for adoption of iBeacon technology – the need for an app, bluetooth enabled, lack of signal in store all seems too high a barrier.
5) Jamie Nascimento from Orangina spoke of his ‘comma, not full stop’ approach – always think of the next step you wish a consumer to make to continue their marketing journey.
6) Gordon Morrin of Kerry Foods shared the success of Sausage and Chip – his Christmas campaign, and how emotional marketing drove great results for Richmond sausages.
7) Jamie from Orangina talked of ‘thumb-stopping’ video – quick, video edits from a longer cut without audio that encourage mobile users to stop in their scrolling and take note.
8) Dan Jeffreys from Bettys / Taylors of Harrogate showed the room his case study for how a viral video of their £250.00 Easter Egg drove online chatter and ultimately sales uplift. Seems like a good stunt, well executed is still a very powerful way of getting virtual tongues wagging.
9) Nick Bamber of Asda and Joe Comiskey of Unilever spoke of the power of customer reviews online, and how they even power shopper behaviour in store as well as via the e-commerce experience.
10) On average we unlock our phones 150 times a day, Twitter sends 6000 tweets per second, 1 in 5 of us follow a food brand on Twitter, we tweet more about #meat than #chocolate, and Greek food is fastest growing food trend on Twitter. Enough stats for one day? Thought so.

So an all-round great event, and a fascinating collection of speakers from the world of foodservice digital. Thanks to Global Insight Conferences for a great event and for providing a platform for us digital foodies to congregate and thrash out the hot topics. Events as thoughtfully curated as this are hard to come by in my experience. We’re looking forward to next year’s event already!

jellybean is a leading foodservice digital agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Andy Wickes

14th March 2016

The Beautiful Bournemouth

Foodservice Marketing - The Beautiful Bournemouth I recently had the pleasure of having a couple of days away in Bournemouth and although we could’ve done with the temperature a few degrees hotter, the rain stayed away, so all round a pretty decent break in the UK.

We started off with a little wonder in the centre and (in an excited tone) we got to meet Che from the X Factor whilst he was out shopping – an amazing start, I think you’ll agree.

We then went on to experience the Bournemouth balloon, an anchored helium balloon that goes 150m up in the air. It probably wasn’t the best time to do this as it was windy and a little cloudy, but I’m so glad we did, the views were stunning – they say that on a clear day you can see for at least 20 miles.

Then onto my favourite bit…the food. We found a nice little independent café where we had lunch; we had freshly made hummus and flat bread, the perfect lunch-time snack.

Later on it was time to decide on where to go for dinner. We’d already decided on tapas as we wanted to pretend we were somewhere a bit more exotic, so we went in search for a nice authentic place. After doing a bit of research we decided on a restaurant called Lolas which had a rating of 4.5 out of 5 on trip advisor and great reviews. Now I can honestly say that it was the best tapas that I’ve ever had (including when I went to Spain). We started off by ordering a jug of sangria whilst we looked over the extensive menu and although we were tempted to order everything on there, a few of the dishes that we eventually ordered were calamari, patatas allioli, chicken croquettes and tasty prawns in olive oil, garlic and cayenne pepper, but ‘what was my favourite?’ I hear you ask, well it was a dish called Chorizo al Infierno, pan-fried chorizo slices cooked in a red Rioja wine, the flavours complemented each other perfectly making this dish absolutely delicious. All in all a fantastic restaurant that I would recommend to anyone, it certainly made our trip that bit more special and made us feel like we were in Spain.

I’d love to visit Bournemouth again but I think I’ll do the sensible thing and wait until summer next time!

jellybean is a leading foodservice marketing and communications agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, foodservice marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Guest Blogger

11th March 2016

Award Winning Work – FPA Marketing Award 2016

Foodservice Agency - FPA Awards As the leading foodservice agency we pride ourselves on creating strategically-led, highly creative, integrated campaigns for clients. Frankly it’s our job, and what’s kept us in business for nearly twenty nine years, working for some of the leading out-of-home brands. But it has to be said that it’s always nice to get a bit of recognition for a job well done and last night at the FPA Awards we got just that.

When Wrap Film Systems came to us last year to help them convert chefs and caterers to their Wrapmaster dispensing system for cling film, foil, parchment and more, we put our best heads on the brief and the ‘Wrap Smart’ campaign was conceived. This integrated campaign across digital, social, design, print, video and PR drove trial and conversion, along with chef engagement and brand awareness. Not only did it go down a storm with Wrap Film Systems themselves, but it also had great feedback from distributor partners and national accounts. However, most importantly, it drove sales – delivering an impressive 15% uplift for the brand during the campaign! Little wonder the esteemed panel of judges from the FPA Awards saw fit to select it as the winner of the marketing award last night.

Paul Feery, Marketing Director Wrap Film Systems had this to say about the award winning campaign “We’ve really enjoyed working with jellybean on what has been a very successful foodservice campaign. As a member of the FPA we really value this award especially as we were up against some great work from other entrants. We look forward to building on the success of the Wrap Smart campaign as we continue to work with jellybeanand hopefully create more award-winning campaigns.”

Congratulations must go to all the nominees and winners from the night and of course to the team at FPA on arranging another fabulous event. As the celebrations went on into the wee small hours there’s sure to be a few sore heads today. As there is one thing you can say for the foodservice packaging industry – they work hard but they can party even harder.

jellybean is a leading foodservice marketing and foodservice pr agency. We help top brands with food service pr, food service marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Susan Wickes

8th March 2016

Hotelympia 2016

Hotelympia - Foodservice Marketing Agency As the UK’s largest foodservice and hospitality event, Hotelympia has always been the exhibition to visit for anyone looking for the latest developments in the foodservice industry not to mention unrivalled networking.

The PR team here at jellybeanhas been trusted with running the show’s press office for the last four consecutive events, as well as that of its sister show, Hospitality, in alternate years. What’s more, with many of our clients involved in the show, including Tilda, McCormick, Hobart, Ferrero and Essential Cuisine, Hotelympia showcases Jellybean’s handiwork in a variety of forms, from stand design and on-site management to press liaison and literature design.

And 2016 was no exception. Over the four days of the show, the ExCeL London played host to 26,000 visitors all hungry to see what the 1,000 strong food and drink, technology, catering equipment, interiors and waste management companies had to offer. Running the press office for a show of such a scale is no mean feat, but one which, in between writing press releases and tweeting updates, undoubtedly has its perks; meeting and greeting famous speakers, sampling stand goodies and listening in on top-tips from chefs, to name a few!

Strolling around the show the wealth of talent on display was second to none, from The Staff Canteen Live – Skillery, which saw a line-up of chefs with no less than 24 Michelin stars between them presenting live on-stage demos, to the incredible entries on display for the International Salon Culinaire. The Innovation Awards showcased the best of what’s to come in hospitality, whilst The Stage provided a platform for debate for some of the industry’s most pressing issues, including: the chef shortage with jellybeanclient Martin-Christian Kent of People 1st, the proposed taxation on sugar, and the national living wage.

The stands themselves were equally impressive. On the show floor, Artis’ wonderland stand wowed passers-by, long queues formed for a taste of Carpigiani’s freshly made gelato, Hobart impressed with its range of catering equipment and Essential Cuisine made a stir with the launch of its new Asian Range. And things only got better after Nutella on toast at Ferrero’s breakfast bar (delicious!).

It was all-systems-go on all fronts and though jam-packed, it was a fantastic, eye-opening experience for a first-time visitor like myself and one which left me with little doubt as to why it is the industry’s most distinguished exhibition. Bring on 2018!

jellybean is a leading foodservice marketing agency. We help top brands with foodservice web design, pr, food service marketing, foodservice digital marketing and foodservice design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Clare Fellowes-Freeman

2nd March 2016

The Big Event 2016

The Big Event 2016 - Foodservice Agency Hotelympia is always a busy time for us at Jellybean, whether it’s preparing clients to exhibit at the show, or running the PR, show press office and social media for Fresh Montgomery, you can guarantee there will be a buzz in the office (and possibly the odd nervous breakdown). But as the leading foodservice agency we try to take it all in our stride and somehow make time for the social side of the show as well, especially The Big Event!

This gala dinner – in aid of Springboard and its good work helping the young and underprivileged into careers in hospitality and promoting the sector as an attractive career choice – is one of the highlights of the Hotelympia calendar. Attracting exhibitors and visitors alike, this year the ‘do’ was themed around the date of the event –1^st of March…St. David’s Day. From the cheer of ‘Oggy Oggy Oggy’ to kick off the evening to the dulcet tones of the London Welsh Rugby Club Choir, followed by the hip thrusts of Tom Jones (AKA Ian Anthony) and the belting high notes from Shirley Bassey (AKA Paula Randell) the entertainment came straight from the valleys! The food, thankfully ( no offence to the Welsh) was not traditional Welsh fare, but instead a sophisticated menu featuring what else but Welsh Lamb. All prepared by the team at Compass under Nick Vardis, the meal was a triumph (and even included a little help from our client Vegetarian Express). But as with all of these events it’s the company that makes it and we were lucky enough to host a table (which was kindly given to us by Springboard for creating their new Team Velo Challenge Website) and were joined by some of our lovely clients exhibiting or speaking at the show including: Hobart, Essential Cuisine, Ferrero and People 1^st.

As the champagne flowed along with the conversation, the night seemed to speed past in a blur of good food, good company and quite a few bids on the charity auction, not to mention a hotly contested ‘Shirley or Tom’ (a new take on heads or tails) and some impressive ‘Dad dancing’ to the RPJ Band. Possibly the most poignant part of the evening however was hearing from two Springboard beneficiaries. With a difficult background Rocky has made-good and now works for Bartlett Mitchell, and having come through the Future Chef programme Ruth is now working at the Ritz no less! Inspiring stories which really demonstrated how Springboard makes a difference to people’s lives. After a fabulous evening all too soon it was time to do a Cinderella and depart for our carriages.

I suspect if you happen to be walking around the show on Wednesday you’ll see a few sore heads but be gentle, it was all in a good cause! To find our more about the great work Springboard do and how you can get involved visit http://springboard.uk.net/

jellybean is a leading foodservice pr agency. We help top brands with foodservice web design, pr, food service marketing, foodservice digital marketing and foodservice design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Susan Wickes

2nd March 2016

The Asian food trend that’s taking over my life

Foodservice Design - The Asian food trend that's taking over my life Did you know that Asian food is the UK’s fastest growing cuisine? With a market value of £3bn!* The rate of growth in popularity for this style of food is insane, but I can totally see why, because since I started experimenting with Asian ingredients (specifically Pan-Asian) I literally can’t stop.

It all came about when a few of my clients started manufacturing Pan-Asian ingredients and I began to research and find out more about this fascinating, absolutely delicious cuisine. I’ve always been a fan of a noodle broth but now I’m experimenting daily with more unusual (for me) ingredients. Edamame beans, miso, Sriracha, udon, rice wine vinegar, Gochujang, the list goes on.

And limes. I’m sure everyone agrees that limes literally make everything taste like a million dollars (but much less papery).

Next on my list to tackle – KIMCHI.

If you work as a caterer in the hospitality market I would massively encourage you to try Essential Cuisine’s new Asian range. So good. I never want my sample pots to end! Check them out here:

Photography by Essential Cuisine.

Source: Zest Quest Asia 2015

jellybean is a leading foodservice pr agency. We help top brands with foodservice web design, pr, food service marketing, foodservice digital marketing and foodservice design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Guest Blogger

2nd March 2016

How fast is your website?

Foodservice Design Agency - Speed Test As the leading Foodservice agency, we are always looking at how we can improve the user experience and usability of all our clients’ websites.

We all know that the design, functionality, layout and content is key to making a website great but are you overlooking one of the most important factors of usability and user experience, how fast your site and pages load.

Is page speed important?

The simple answer is yes, optimizing your page speed is more important now than ever before. Fast loading sites perform better on every front, better user experience, more engagement, higher conversions and even higher search rankings. Trust us, you would be surprised how much slow page speed can affect your search rankings. All search engines like Google want to provide their users with a great user experience and a fast site will improve the overall experience, site quality and increase the user’s satisfaction.

How fast is fast enough?

In our experience, and with lots of research, we find on average most users expect a site to load within 4 seconds or less. Some good guidelines to follow when checking your site’s page speed are: if your page loads in under 1 second, that is excellent; under 3 seconds, that is perfect; 3 to 7 seconds, this is average but you could have room for improvement; over 7 seconds, this is not great and you could be losing users and conversions.

Are you thinking about mobile users?

If not then you should be. With mobile internet usage expecting to overtake desktop usage, it’s never been more important to think about faster site loading times. Most mobile users will be using a slower connection and in most cases be out and about trying to access information fast.

Just imagine you’re in a hurry, trying to find a telephone number or an address for a hotel or restaurant and every page on their website is taking forever to load. How frustrating and annoying to the user would this be. They may even give up and look at a competitor’s site that is quicker to load and access this information.

Conclusion…

Remember, everybody deserves a fast web experience. Improving your site speed should always be a serious factor in your overall site optimisation. In turn, this will boost your user’s confidence and trust in your site.

If you want to find out more about how we can help you increase your site’s speed and performance, give us a call!

jellybean is a leading foodservice marketing and foodservice design agency. We help top brands with food service pr, food service marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Steve Skilton

1st March 2016

The Hotelympia 10k Run for Springboard

Foodservice Web Design - The Hotelympia 10k Run for Springboard When I was asked to run the Hotelympia 10k for Springboard I originally declined but I’m so glad the guys managed to convince me!

Although I’m a very sporty person and used to play football twice a week, I just couldn’t imagine myself running that sort of distance – it seemed too daunting. As I thought about it though, I decided that it would be something to help focus my training, and a great aim for a great cause. I loved the fact that we were running as a group – the Runner Beans – and this was what pushed me into committing to the run.

So that’s when the training began! I say training, Nick and I basically ran two 10k to Box Hill and back (great run, although pretty hilly), but I think that actually really help prepare me for the run. The first time absolutely killed me – I couldn’t walk the next day and maybe in hindsight I should have started out with a 5k and worked my way up but I don’t like to do things by halves.

The second training session seemed so much easier, maybe because there it was still light outside and I could see where I was running, or maybe my legs just got used to it, but we seemed to fly round. I think it’s definitely as much a mental challenge as it is physical and knowing what to expect and how your body will feel actually gets you through.

So then the big day arrived, Sunday 28^th February. Up at 7.30am, banana in hand, we headed to the ExCel in London. It was a very bitter day with a chilly wind, so we had to wrap up warm. As we were picking up our race numbers (and our free running t-shirts – thanks guys!) we were checking out the other runners, some of which looked pretty pro to me, like they do this on a weekly basis. I’m normally a very competitive person but looking at the calibre around me I didn’t think I could come any where near the front of the pack. “But it’s the taking part that counts” I chanted to myself.

11am was nearing and we were all huddled up outside, eager to get going as it was freezing outside by the Docklands. As it hit 11 we began, walking at first as there were too many people to start running straight away, but once past the official start line we were off! We started out at quite a fast pace, with all of us following fellow jellybeanNick. You couldn’t ask for a nicer route, running around the Docklands and ExCel – lovely and flat!

The first two laps were the easiest; I was just trying to keep a steady pace and used people around me as markers. It was really nice to see everyone around the track cheering us all on, it really kept me going and push through the pain so thank you to everyone that was there standing in the cold for us! The third and fourth lap is where the pain really started to kick in. You could see the front runners starting to lap you which just seemed insane. I lost Nick as he pushed on, with Clare and Laura also pushing past me but I was determined to keep a good pace until the last kilometre. As soon as I got to that point I sprinted like I was chasing down a through ball on the football pitch. I wasn’t going to give it up, I wanted to make sure I pushed myself as much as I could.

When you’re running that distance you think to yourself why did I agree to this, but I’m so happy we all ended up doing the race together. It’s such a big sense of achievement and I would definitely do another one in the future to beat my time (which was 53 mins and 35 secs)! The medal will definitely hang with pride in my house.

It was a pleasure to run for such a great cause and if you would like to find out more, visit them at www.springboard.uk.net. Not only that it was a great start to Hotelympia 2016, you can go visit the show at the ExCel now or online at www.hotelympia.com.

jellybean is a leading foodservice pr agency. We help top brands with foodservice web design, pr, food service marketing, foodservice digital marketing and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Luca Cicero

26th February 2016

Introducing Boyds Grill & Wine Bar

Foodservice Marketing Agency - Boyds Grill and Wine Bar It has to be said that as the leading foodservice agency we don’t do badly for eating out. Our social calendar is often peppered with nights out on Park Lane and alike, so it takes something that bit special to make an impression. This Wednesday saw such an event, as Boyds Brasserie relaunched as Boyds Grill & Wine Bar with a spectacular launch party at their central London location on Northumberland Avenue.

The new restaurant concept puts local artisanal ingredients at the heart of everything they do – there’s cheese from Brockley, Wagyu beef from Sussex, gin from Peckham and even beer from Norwood!

Having designed and built their shiny new website in time for the relaunch we were lucky enough to be invited for a fantastic meal as part of their soft launch the week prior, so we were expecting the grandeur and the impeccable service, not to mention the fabulous food and wine. However, the glittering launch night surpassed even our high expectations, as we were treated like royalty from start to finish and had a truly fabulous evening.

Some of the highlights included…
· Our Digital Director Andy achieving an ambition of a lifetime with a cocktail (including his tipple Bourbon) named after him – try it – you won’t be disappointed! Ask for ‘The Andy’ at the bar.
· Meeting some of the amazing suppliers of British and locally sourced produce which features on Boyds’ menu, as well as nibbling the odd sample – well it would be rude not to.
· Trying ‘Dragon’s Breath’ – a palette cleanser like no other you will have tried (think Puff the Magic Dragon but tastier and more refreshing).
· Sampling the most amazing ice creams from Head Chef Nate who talked us through each one in turn. Would you believe sweetcorn, Parmesan and bacon were amongst those we encountered, not to mention pea and mint. Heston eat your heart out!

With an impressive turn out for the evening, including the great and the good of the restaurant industry, we were in fabulous company and it was sad to see the evening come to a close. But we were seen off in style with a delicious goodie bag full of treats so we could continue the Boyds experience in not so sunny Surrey, which softened the blow somewhat.

Congratulations of course must go to Charles Boyd and his team on a wonderful launch and what is sure to be a hugely successful venture. My advice? Book now while you still can.

Susan Wickes

Industry News, Jellybean News

26th February 2016

The Casual Dining Show 2016

Foodservice Marketing - The Casual Dining Show 2016 The Casual Dining market has been the success story of the past few years with the sector thriving and branded concepts attracting the all-important millennial market. Little wonder therefore that the Islington Design Centre was buzzing with visitors at the Casual Dining Show this week. Buyers, owners, managers and chefs all descended on North London to see what was new and network with colleagues and contacts. With four of our clients exhibiting it was a busy time for us as well, with journalists to host, press releases to draft and of course, the stand design and management to top it all off. But as we took to the aisles to take-in the show it was clear that all the hard work was well worth it. From sampling delicious smoothies and fat free frozen yogurt at the Coolicious* stand, to treating ourselves to a sweet potato fry (or two) at Aviko’s diner themed stand, not to mention trying the delicious new Chicken Ballotine from Moy Park’s new casual dining range on their street food inspired stand and of course catching up with the guys at Essential Cuisine – frankly there was hardly time to draw breath, let alone take in the rest of the stands and catch-up with the familiar faces that seemed to be around every corner. But as the leading foodservice agency we did of course scout the show for some interesting new products and brands. So what did we find? Top of my list was Twinings Super Fruity infusion which was very refreshing indeed, the new LOVO low cal Vodka RTD concept with coconut water (yum) and last, but far from least, the Sechuan Button which has to be tasted to be believed, as this seemingly innocuous looking little yellow flower can do things to your mouth you cannot imagine – I dare you to try one from Koppert Cress – it’s quite a taste sensation!

As well as sampling the myriad products on offer at the show there was also the inaugural Casual Dining Restaurant & Pub Awards and the National Burger Awards. Driven by our love of the dirty burger we headed to the Islington Metal Works for possibly the most edgy awards night of the year as this industrial venue hosted a burger grill corner and a street food van open bar, both of which were very well received. The show and the awards were both winners for us, but of course congratulations must go to the real winners of the evening – the results for both of which you can find here:

Casual Dining Restaurant and Pub Award Winners
National Burger Award Winners

Well done to Diversify on the show and the first year of their Casual Dining Awards and to H2O’s Casual Dining Magazine on the second successful National Burger Awards – I for one will be beating a path back to both next year. But that’s enough about Casual Dining, as this week draws to a close the biennial goliath of a show that is Hotelympia is soon to be upon us and I must rest my weary feet in preparation, as our PR team gird their loins to run the press office and social media at the show for what is sure to be a fun if hectic four days!

*Finalists in the Casual Dining Show Innovation Awards

jellybean is a leading foodservice marketing agency. We help top brands with foodservice web design, pr, food service marketing, foodservice digital marketing and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Susan Wickes

19th February 2016

Zest Quest Asia 2016

Foodservice Marketing Agency - Mark Lyddy and Cyrus Todiwala - Zest Quest Asia 2016 Now in its third year, Zest Quest Asia is always a popular awards ‘do’ with Jellybeans and with Cyrus Todiwala at the helm preparing the menu, it is easy to understand why.

With Chinese and Asian-style food valued at almost a £3bn market in the UK and 70-80%* of people who eat Asian food, eating it out of home, Zest Quest Asia does a great job of encouraging young chefs to create pan-Asian dishes good enough to bag a place in this competition. During the day of the awards, six colleges from across the UK were tasked with preparing and cooking a 4-course pan-Asian menu in just 2½ hours for a team of esteemed judges, including Andrew Bennett MBE, Director of Food & Beverage at The Park Lane Hilton; Steve Munkley, Executive Chef at The Royal Garden Hotel and Cyrus Todiwala OBE, to study, taste and mark. The judges and teams then had just enough time to get dressed for the drinks reception and gala dinner, which is when we arrived!

Guests of long-standing clients Tilda (and one of the main sponsors, who has been behind the event since its inception), we were greeted by espresso martinis and some of the tastiest (and substantial) canapes we’d come across, these were made courtesy of 2015 Zest Quest Winners, Farnborough College and we have one of the delicious recipes (Aromatic Hoi Sin Duck & Jasmine Rice Spring Roll), if you want to try your hand at some pan-Asian cooking.

Dinner was called and we didn’t have to wait very long to find out the 2016 champions, for the second year running, a local college took the crown, this time Milton Keynes College. It’s always great to see the smiling faces of the winners, but it was also nice to see the other colleges who had narrowly missed out, congratulating them on stage. The winning grins broadened further when it was announced the prize was an educational trip to Bangkok, Thailand – the ‘land of smiles’ itself!

Dish after delightful dish was served alongside Tilda’s infamous ‘Grains of Truth’ game and generous helpings of prize draws and raffles. The evening was rounded-up with a stunning dessert, which looked (almost) too good to eat and a standing ovation for the team of chefs at T5’s Hilton.

We’re already looking forward to 2017’s Zest Quest Asia event!
*Source: Wing Yip Oriental Food Report 2016

jellybean is a leading foodservice marketing agency. We help top brands with foodservice web design, pr, food service marketing, foodservice digital marketing and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Guest Blogger

16th February 2016

An Ode to Homemade Bread

Foodservice Digital Marketing - An Ode to Homemade Bread I started baking bread about 3 or 4 years ago. I already loved baking, and at first it fed my need to bake and create without consuming my own weight in sugar, but it soon became an obsession on its own, overtaking my love of baking sweet treats.

Due to living in a shared house, bread making took a pause for the last year or so – a kitchen covered in flour all the time doesn’t make you a popular housemate. However, having jumped on the property ladder last December, now it’s just my boyfriend who is bribed with fresh bread in turn for ignoring the heavy dusting of flour that covers the counter tops. Over January alone I baked; multiple batches of Fougasse, currently par-baked and filling up my freezer ready to grab and warm up; naan breads; pizza dough for some stonkingly good homemade pizzas; Foccaccia ; Bagels (always a tricky beast – did you know they are boiled before baking?); and a weekly white loaf from James Morton’s ‘Brilliant Bread’ (recipe below).Yes, I am obsessed. There is something fascinating about the process of yeast coming alive and feeding on the flour, and its temperamental nature – the fact that a heat or pressure change can be the difference between a lovely loaf or one as flat as a pancake.

Whatever the reason for my obsession, there’s little doubt that homemade bread is superior to any store bought sliced white. Four things go into a homemade loaf – Flour, Salt, Yeast and Water. A manufactured loaf from a supermarket could have any number of additions to those, including flour proteins, vinegar, dextrose, fructose, soya flour, re-hydrogenated vegetable fat, preservatives, E472e emulsifier, E300 flour treatment agents… none of that sounds particularly appetising, plus it ups the calories, sugar and fat in your sandwich. An additional benefit is the crust on homemade loaves. All that chewing through the thick tasty crust builds saliva which helps the bread digests in the stomach. As for the consistency of store bought bread, one of the key signifiers of an under baked loaf is when you squeeze it it turns back to dough (you may have seen Paul Hollywood wrench the middle of a loaf out in search of such a cardinal sin on The Great British Bake Off). Most manufactured loaves do just that and all that under baked dough is enough to make anyone feel bloated.

Ok, so I may be getting a bit preachy, and I know not everyone is like me, reading bread cookbooks like study books with my highlighter pen and a note pad, but it sure is enough reason to go buy proper bread from a baker rather than heading to the usual sliced store-bought manufactured loaf.

If making a homemade loaf does appeal, this recipe for a ‘No-Knead’ white loaf from former Great British Bake Off Finalist James Morton is a great way to start. Even alongside trying all those fancy breads, I still return to this simple no fuss recipe for my regular loaf as I can spend a total of about 20 minutes in the kitchen and still come out with something delicious.

Basic White Bread

500g Flour

10g salt

7g yeast

350g water (I weigh my water rather than use ml as you get more exact measurements that way)

Put the flour in a bowl, adding the salt to one side of the bowl and the yeast to the other (the two touching can stop the yeast working).
Add the water and mix together with your hands. When everything has come together into dough, cover the bowl with a tea towel of cling film and leave in a warm place for 30 – 40 minutes. It should noticeably increase in size in that time.
Wet the fingertips of one hand and slide between the bowl and the dough, and then fold the dough in half. Turn the bowl and fold again. Keep doing this until you have knocked the air out of it and the dough is smoother (although I have left it looking not so smooth and it still comes out great). Cover again and rest for an hour where it will rise again.
Scrape the dough onto a lightly floured surface, flour your hands and shape into a ball (there are tons of YouTube guides for how to do this – this one shows you how from 3:25 – 3:48 – ).
Place onto a heavily floured surface like upside down baking tray or chopping board and loosely cover (I usually use an oiled piece of cling film) and leave for another hour to rise again. Preheat the oven to 220°C, at least 20 minutes before you want to bake (with a pizza stone in the oven if you have one).
Give the loaf some shallow slashes on top with a serrated knife (I usually do four lines on the top in a noughts and crosses pattern). Slide off the floured surface onto pizza stone, or bake on a lightly oiled baking tray for 30-40 minutes until deep golden brown.

The way to know if you bread is done is by turning the loaf upside down and knocking on the bottom of it. If it sounds hollow, it’s done. This is because if it’s all light and fluffy and baked inside, the sound can travel from your knock, to the other side of the crust and back creating the noise. If it’s still stodgy and under baked, the sound can’t travel so you won’t get that lovely hollow sound!

Not everyone will share my bread obsession, but I can assure you that a homemade loaf is well worth the time. Next for me – it’s time to return to potentially the most temperamental of breads, but absolutely my favourite, Sourdough. To be continued.

jellybean is a leading foodservice marketing agency. We help top brands with foodservice web design, pr, food service marketing, foodservice digital marketing and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Guest Blogger

12th February 2016

Food on the Go Conference 2016 – Top Ten Take-outs

Foodservice Marketing Agency - Food on the Go Conference 2016 - Top Ten Take-outs With a jam-packed agenda for the day it’s quite a challenge to cram all the key take-outs from M&C Allegra’s Food on the Go conference into one blog, but as the leading foodservice agency we’ll do our best!

1) Currently the on the go market is possibly the most innovative, dynamic and competitive sector of the out of home market. Growing an impressive 5.4%, it’s outstripping the rest of the market by some way, as food bought to eat off premise (the definition of on the go) accounts for 1 in 4 of every pound spent out of home! With lunch hours now around 27 minutes (dropping from 36 minutes in 2000) the pressure is on for operators to deliver great food, fast!

2) Highly fragmented, the top ten players account for only 33% of the market with large retailers dominating at the top due to their proliferation of sites. C-stores are gaining share but suffer from a lack of innovation and often limited offer due to the independent family run nature of the business.

3) Street food is still on the increase and millennials are driving the market with their demand for high quality, good value food on the go. As for the recipe for success? Well, according to M&C Allegra it’s simple – fresher, faster & hotter!

4) What does the on the go consumer look like (versus the general outing out consumer)? Research findings from M&C Allegra indicates the following: 53% Male (vs. 49% of total Eating Out participants), 66% Under 50 (vs. 51%), 17% London (vs. 13%), 67% Full-time workers (vs. 56%), 36% Earn £40k+ (vs. 31%). What consumers want when it comes to food on the go is pretty simple – fast service, close to work, product freshness and healthier options. Queuing, unsurprisingly, is the biggest frustration, joined by lack of choice and over pricing. Whilst promotions definitely drive sales with 65% of consumers using promotions and 1 in 6 consumers stating they would choose to go elsewhere if a promotion was removed. As for what people are buying on the go, sandwiches and cola are key purchases, as is bottled water, but the popularity of sandwiches is in decline as the rise of other bread carriers and salad options increases.

5) The rising trends in on the go food include: Pan-Asian, gluten-free, vegetarian, healthier, hot product, Americana, premiumisation and hotter sauces. And if you’re looking to be inspired by some new and different food to go concepts it’s worth visiting: Wolf Street Italian, The Bowler, Hai Street Kitchen, HOP (exciting Vietnamese concept), ŰGOT (too cool for school, clean eating concept set up by an unfeasibly precocious (in a good way!) gluten avoider instead of a frozen yogurt bar), Friska (with a real vision to ‘refine expectations within our industry from the inside out’), Coco di Mama (owned by Azzuri who also own ZiZi and Ask), Crussh Juice Bars (so much more than just food!), Hackney Eat 17 (a Spar convenience store!) and Vital Ingredient (defining healthy on the go).

6) Transport hubs are of course a key focus of food on the go and Tom Dobson from Network Rail is responsible for the 18 largest stations in the UK and their F&B offering. In 2020 he predicts 1 billion people will visit these stations and this will generate 1 billion in F&B revenue – impressive stuff. In 2015 alone they experienced 900 million visits to these top 18 stations, an increase of 7%, with like for like sales growing at 6% last year, so food to go concepts looking for a sure bet could do worse than consider key stations for their next opening it would seem.

7) McDonald’s is the goliath in the food to go market and also boasts some impressive stats….90% of people visit McDonald’s, they have seen 39 consecutive quarters of sales growth, from their research with 5,000 consumers they know that 17-24 year olds want more spice on the menu and don’t feel that McDonald’s is contemporary enough. This is something the company is addressing with its roll-out of new concept stores, which include: a signature range of more thicker, more premium burgers, customisation, a new look including a new style uniform and convenient touch screen ordering points. Keep an eye out for these new and improved stores coming soon! The bad news, unlike the US they won’t be doing all day breakfast (sad times).

8) The challenges and opportunities common to operators big and small consist of – the crazy London property market with exorbitant rents and unreasonable contracts, minimising queue times, getting and keeping good people, competition, standing out in the market, creating an emotional engagement to their brand which keeps customers loyal and delivering consistently high quality food to a highly discerning and increasingly impatient customer base. Whilst opportunities include: focusing on what they do well rather than becoming a jack of all trades, the use of technology around payment and pre-ordering both in store and pre-store visit, social media engagement and use as a real time customer relations and service tool, expansion into other locations and even countries, partnering up with other operators (e.g. Starbucks and Pod / Costa and Chop’d), understanding consumer behaviour around food on the go, the rise of Pan Asian, Middle Eastern and free from.

9) In at nine and more of an observation than a take-out, it would seem that the majority of food on the go start-ups are run by ex-bankers who obsess about their lunch for years from the confines of the city before taking the plunge and leaving the trading floors, boardrooms and city bonuses behind to make lunchtimes more enjoyable for the rest of us!

10) Finally and possibly the key take-out for the day – if you stack two keep cups from Friska they are the same height as a groundhog! Good to know.

Thankfully having been to the 2015 Food on the Go conference, I can say without a doubt that this year’s was far from a groundhog day (see what I did there!) as it brought together all players in the food to go market from the big boys like McDonald’s, Starbucks, Leon, Wild Bean Café and Pret to new innovative start-ups like Friska, Hop and ŰGOT offering up the latest market data and insights to keep everything aptly fresh. Well done to the team at M&C Allegra on another great event. To find out more about M&C Allegra visit http://www.mcallegra-fs.com/

jellybean is a leading foodservice marketing agency. We help top brands with foodservice web design, pr, food service marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Susan Wickes

4th February 2016

Ferrero launches Nutella® Breakfast Club

nutella-breakfast-club As the leading foodservice agency we love to help brands succeed in the out of home market by applying our sweet spot model and it doesn’t get much sweeter than working with Ferrero to firmly establishing Nutella® as part of the breakfast offering OOH.

This year to celebrate Breakfast Week (24^th– 30^th January 2016) Ferrero has launched the Nutella® Breakfast Club, created to support caterers looking to target the 21% of consumers who eat breakfast out-of-home (Allegra) and sweeten their profits using the UK’s number one spread brand*.

With independent research carried out by jellybeanrevealing that 73% of 26-35 year olds expect to see Nutella® on menus and 81% would pay more for a branded spread (Toluna), the Italian family-owned confectionery company is encouraging caterers to visit www.NutellaBreakfastClub.co.uk and sign up to the club to get their FREE pack as part of the week-long celebration.

The limited edition packs⁺ include a 3Kg tub of Nutella® for back-of-house, a Nutella® breakfast booklet with recipes such as waffles and breakfast pizzas, plus high impact point-of-sale materials to promote Nutella®’s superbrand status to consumers.

With the breakfast ‘bar’ firmly raised, as consumers look for wow-factor dishes with a difference, Ferrero is giving caterers the tools they need to boost profits and set themselves apart from the competition. So what are you waiting for, join the Nutella® Breakfast Club today!

* Source: Nielsen – MAT w/e 10/10 ^ Toluna November 2014, consumer panel 300. ⁺ There are 20 packs available to claim

www.NutellaBreakfastClub.co.uk

jellybean is a leading foodservice pr agency. We help top brands with foodservice web design, pr, food service marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Gemma Felstead

2nd February 2016

The Grumpy Mole

The Grumpy Mole - The jellybeanBlog - Foodservice PR Agency Finding any reason to return to the Grumpy Mole in Tadworth, my family and I decided that another birthday was the perfect excuse. Deciding to head there on a Sunday, we made sure we booked in advance and I’d even Googled their menu to prepare myself for the dish I was going for!

Having been before on various occasions including popping for a drink and sharing a ploughmans lunch outside in the summer, an evening meal and even their afternoon tea…I can confirm it’s all simply delicious! However it was a Sunday and this meant one thing…roast dinners all round! With most of us opting for lamb and a couple for beef, I felt it was only right to order my favourite ‘Piri-Piri Chicken Stir-Fry’ and help the younger ones finish their roast dinners (tactical!).

Once our main courses had been devoured, we decided it was only fair to enjoy a pudding to round off our weekends. I ordered the ‘Homemade Squidgy Meringue with Red Berries, Fruit Coulis and Clotted Cream’ whilst my boyfriend ordered the ‘Warm Sticky Toffee Pudding with Vanilla Bean Ice Cream’, they were both sensational!

I would highly advise anybody in Surrey to take a trip to their nearest Grumpy Mole (Tadworth, Brockham or Cheam) as it really is a true delight for any occasion but be sure to book in advance!

For more information visit their website here.

jellybean is a leading foodservice pr agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, food service marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Guest Blogger

29th January 2016

jellybeanChristmas Party 2015

Foodservice PR Agency - jellybeanChristmas Party 2015 Never satisfied by doing anything that might be conventional or obvious, our 2015 Christmas party took place in 2016. January 2016 to be precise.

We eschewed the typical party hats, turkey and crackers and instead decided that as die-hard foodies we ought to make our evening one of culinary adventure and discovery. With that in mind, we boarded the train and headed for Covent Garden and the little corner that after dark offers hungry Londoners a slice of Catalonia.

Barrafina on Adelaide Street ushered us downstairs to their private dining room which is lined on all sides with dusty bottles of Spanish wine, sherry and ports. To help us thaw out we were poured a schooner of Manzanilla upon arrival, and this dangerous precedent continued for an hour or so as the kitchen staff peered through the door at the worrying numbers of hungrey people they were soon required to feed.

As the sherry worked its magic we lined up the first playlist of the evenining, a mix of ‘Hispanic, Funk, Soul and Dub’, possibily the only people on planet earth to be pairing those styles at that time. As the soundscapes of Barcelona and Kingston Town blended, we were then presented with a blur of starters – from chilli scallops, roasted peppers, soft shell crab, roasted artichokes and many many more – all of which were picked clean within minutes of reaching the table.

And if the free-flowing alcohol wasn’t enough to encourage embarrassment amongst us all, then the party games were sure to do that. If it wasn’t a dance off competition, it was picking up Maltesers through a straw – I think there was a drawing competition also, but to be honest the evening is something of a blur to me at this point. I know there was laughter, excellent tunes (can you tell it was me that did the playlist?) and a lot of very fine food.

So, some knowledge. Where do we get ‘tapas’ from? Well I’m glad you asked. Because I’ve literally just looked it up on Wikipedia. Tapas comes from the Spanish word ‘tapa’ meaning ‘cover’ or ‘lid’ – this was because in times gone by, customers in Spanish ‘bodegas’ would ‘cover’ their glasses of sherry with chorizo or bread to prevent those pesky fruit flies from getting at the good stuff.

So now you know. Thank you Barrafina for some very fine lids.

jellybean is a leading foodservice pr agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, food service marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Andy Wickes

28th January 2016

Hotelympia Hype

Food Service Marketing - Hotelympia Hype It was only in September that as a very nervous bean in my first week of work, I got the chance to go along to the filming of the Hotelympia launch video to (try) to help in any way possible. Little did I know that by the end of the day I would have ‘helped’ by featuring in it myself!

Fast-forward four months, and not only have I seen my acting skills come to life, but I have also been able to experience how such a renowned and large-scale exhibition like Hotelympia, comes together. It is now just over a month until the ExCeL opens its doors to some of the largest and well-respected names in the world of hospitality as well as almost 1,000 exhibitors. As a first time visitor, I cannot wait to experience all that it has to offer and, not wanting to miss any of its highlights, here are my top five ‘not to be missed’:

The Staff Canteen Live
Featuring an incredible line-up of chefs, including Clare Smyth and Tom Kerridge, Staff Canteen Live is an opportunity for visitors to experience cooking with some of the best in the business. Interactive cooking displays galore, this is the place to be for a glimpse of the pros at work.
Walk-In Immersive Experience
Designed by digital developers Soluis, a ‘virtual’ visit to some of the newest openings in the capital is in store for everyone who goes along to the walk-in immersive experience. Explore some of the most exciting design projects in London (and marvel at the technology that allows you to while you’re at it).
Salon Display
As a (very) amateur baker, I am particularly excited to see some of the sugarcraft creations that come out of Salon Display. Anyone wanting to be wowed or maybe even looking for inspiration should head to the display by the Auditorium entrance, which showcases some of the amazing skills within the industry. The expo also includes works hand-crafted out of chocolate, pastillage and fat.
Innovation Awards
Revealing the best in Design, Technology and Equipment, head to this year’s Innovation Awards if you’re looking for the very best in modern products. Solutions and suggestions set to revolutionise the way the industry works have been entered – prepare to be amazed by temperature changing plates, a chef specific job search app and more.
The Stage
Over the course of the exhibition, a whole host of high-profile speakers will take to The Stage to give advice and share experiences of the hospitality industry. Want to hear the latest recommendations about crowdfunding? Need some advice to improve service? Whatever your question, someone on The Stage will have the answer.

These are just the tip of the iceberg, and, once I’ve made a beeline for the above, my biggest problem will be where to turn next! Don’t miss out on the best opportunity for everything you need in the hospitality industry. Register now to visit and see you there!

https://www.livebuzzreg.co.uk/2016/hot16/

jellybean is a leading foodservice marketing and food service design agency. We help top brands with foodservice pr, food service marketing, digital and design. If you feel we could help you with your marcomms, strategy, public relations, creative or digital then drop us a line today.

Clare Fellowes-Freeman