A quintessentially British show and a melting pot for new products. That's how the organisers of the Speciality & Fine Food Fair see their 12th annual event.
Over the years it has provided the perfect platform for artisanal producers keen to make a splash, and this year, with 7,500 buyers expected, is no exception. "The Fair gives suppliers a unique opportunity to meet with key players. We are used to seeing buyers coming here to source new products," says event manager Soraya Gadelrab.
Among the most innovative British exhibitors to be found there this year is Dorset-based Pink's Organics. Mezze, tapenade and antipasti don't sound particularly British, but the success of Pink's range, made by hand in open pans at a site outside Dorchester, is evidence of an appetite for foreign products with a home-grown twist. Their tapenade, for instance, is tomato rather than olive-based.
Pink's Organics co-owner Fiona Pink is attending the Fair to promote her products across Britain: "The Fair is an ideal vehicle for independent companies such as ours to meet buyers and distributors."
Pink's will be exhibiting in the Fair's Small Producers area. New this year, it "is dedicated to smaller independent producers, many of them exhibiting at a trade show for the first time", says Gadelrab.
Also exhibiting in the Small Producers area is Naomi Darbishire of Cumbrian oil and vinegar producer Agnes Rose. This is her second visit to the Fair. "We're launching four new products two balsamic vinegars, one cider vinegar and one chilli smoked oil so the Fair comes at the perfect time for us," she says. "It's a great networking opportunity, too."
Small producers will benefit from the Fair's Small Business Forum, which offers practical tips on everything from point of sale to social media. Belvoir Fruit Farms MD Pev Manners says attending the Fair offers the brand a number of different benefits. "Our original customer base was fine food shops, delicatessens and farm shops and these customers are still very important to us, accounting for a very sizable proportion of our sales. The Fair is a useful opportunity to catch up with them and also to forge links with new customers.
"It's great to be able to let them try new products there this year we'll be showcasing our Mulled Winter Punch."
Chocolate is one of the main themes this year. The Speciality Chocolate Fair will be the largest yet and the Speciality Chocolate Live demonstration theatre, new for 2011, will showcase techniques, flavour ideas and tastings. British chocolate makers will be out in force, including Amelia Rope of the eponymous Amelia Rope Chocolates, who will be launching her new chocolate bundles at the Fair. For such a new brand, founded just last year, this is the ideal place to win the attention of buyers. "I am attending the Fair to raise my profile and launch my products to retailers not yet aware of them," she says.
British innovation is about more than new companies, however. Scottish cake brand Ashers, founded in 1877, has returned to the Fair after some years, bringing with it a range of new liqueur cakes in Chocolate & Grand Marnier, Apricot & Peach Schnapps and Irish Coffee flavours.
"We haven't been to the Fair since September 2001, having concentrated more on gift shows. We're in the process of expanding our range, however, and feel this event will deliver the type of potential customers we're looking for," says managing director Alister Asher.
Producers of all sizes will visit the Fair to meet peers and benchmark their own products against those of the competitors. "We are attending the Fair to exhibit our 2012 ranges, meet new customers and network with other food businesses," says Kate Poole, founder of Hampshire artisan biscuit makers Little Rose Bakery (see left).
Of the 800 products on show at this year's Fair, more than 250 are British and newly launched in 2011, a clear indication that, despite the economic downturn, suppliers are working to satisfy a growing national appetite for quality, innovative food.
"We have seen an increase in the number of brand new companies exhibiting at the Fair," says Gadelrab. "We may well look back and see that some of the UK's most innovative businesses were born out of the recession."
Focus On Speciality & Fine Foods
Over the years it has provided the perfect platform for artisanal producers keen to make a splash, and this year, with 7,500 buyers expected, is no exception. "The Fair gives suppliers a unique opportunity to meet with key players. We are used to seeing buyers coming here to source new products," says event manager Soraya Gadelrab.
Among the most innovative British exhibitors to be found there this year is Dorset-based Pink's Organics. Mezze, tapenade and antipasti don't sound particularly British, but the success of Pink's range, made by hand in open pans at a site outside Dorchester, is evidence of an appetite for foreign products with a home-grown twist. Their tapenade, for instance, is tomato rather than olive-based.
Pink's Organics co-owner Fiona Pink is attending the Fair to promote her products across Britain: "The Fair is an ideal vehicle for independent companies such as ours to meet buyers and distributors."
Pink's will be exhibiting in the Fair's Small Producers area. New this year, it "is dedicated to smaller independent producers, many of them exhibiting at a trade show for the first time", says Gadelrab.
Also exhibiting in the Small Producers area is Naomi Darbishire of Cumbrian oil and vinegar producer Agnes Rose. This is her second visit to the Fair. "We're launching four new products two balsamic vinegars, one cider vinegar and one chilli smoked oil so the Fair comes at the perfect time for us," she says. "It's a great networking opportunity, too."
Small producers will benefit from the Fair's Small Business Forum, which offers practical tips on everything from point of sale to social media. Belvoir Fruit Farms MD Pev Manners says attending the Fair offers the brand a number of different benefits. "Our original customer base was fine food shops, delicatessens and farm shops and these customers are still very important to us, accounting for a very sizable proportion of our sales. The Fair is a useful opportunity to catch up with them and also to forge links with new customers.
"It's great to be able to let them try new products there this year we'll be showcasing our Mulled Winter Punch."
Chocolate is one of the main themes this year. The Speciality Chocolate Fair will be the largest yet and the Speciality Chocolate Live demonstration theatre, new for 2011, will showcase techniques, flavour ideas and tastings. British chocolate makers will be out in force, including Amelia Rope of the eponymous Amelia Rope Chocolates, who will be launching her new chocolate bundles at the Fair. For such a new brand, founded just last year, this is the ideal place to win the attention of buyers. "I am attending the Fair to raise my profile and launch my products to retailers not yet aware of them," she says.
British innovation is about more than new companies, however. Scottish cake brand Ashers, founded in 1877, has returned to the Fair after some years, bringing with it a range of new liqueur cakes in Chocolate & Grand Marnier, Apricot & Peach Schnapps and Irish Coffee flavours.
"We haven't been to the Fair since September 2001, having concentrated more on gift shows. We're in the process of expanding our range, however, and feel this event will deliver the type of potential customers we're looking for," says managing director Alister Asher.
Producers of all sizes will visit the Fair to meet peers and benchmark their own products against those of the competitors. "We are attending the Fair to exhibit our 2012 ranges, meet new customers and network with other food businesses," says Kate Poole, founder of Hampshire artisan biscuit makers Little Rose Bakery (see left).
Of the 800 products on show at this year's Fair, more than 250 are British and newly launched in 2011, a clear indication that, despite the economic downturn, suppliers are working to satisfy a growing national appetite for quality, innovative food.
"We have seen an increase in the number of brand new companies exhibiting at the Fair," says Gadelrab. "We may well look back and see that some of the UK's most innovative businesses were born out of the recession."
Focus On Speciality & Fine Foods
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