Exclusive: INTERNORGA Hails Bakers and Confectioners with New Events, Programs and Awards
INTERNORGA debuts on Friday, March 17, in Hamburg, Germany, and features business and training opportunities for all categories of bakers, from young talents to master bakers, outlet managers and CEOs.
To find out more on the opportunities for bakers at Internorga 2017, WorldBakers interviewed Claudia Johannsen (pictured), business unit
director Hamburg Messe und Congress GmbH.
WorldBakers (WB): What are some of the specifics of the bakery/ confectionery markets at Internorga 2017?
Claudia Johannsen (CJ): INTERNORGA (…) has always maintained a close relationship with traditional artisan bakery and confectionery. This leading trade show gives industry representatives a unique platform to present themselves to a wide audience and to find out about innovations for more sales opportunities. They can expect not only a general overview of the specific products available for bakeries, but also look beyond their immediate product range – for sales-boosting snacks, hot and cold beverages, ice cream, and much more. The competitions and specials also give them new inputs, with discussions of current topics and trends in the industry, and information on new fields of growth for their own business.
WB: What can baking professionals expect from the program of this edition, which are some of the highlights?
CJ: INTERNORGA 2017 gives trade visitors concentrated bakery information in Halls B6 and B6.1. More than 200 exhibitors in these halls present their products and current trends. This will be complemented by lots of demonstrations, creative competitions and inspiring expert panel discussions. For example, industry experts at the Baker’s Blue Box show how to identify trends, make use of new sales opportunities, and gain the long-term interest of customers. The BACK Stage is the confectioners’ and pastry cooks’ showcase, where they will demonstrate their skills. Using sweet ingredients like sugar, chocolate and marzipan, they make tempting delicacies, inspiring new creations and future big sellers. This is complemented by the “Confectionery Art” competition, giving prizes to creative confectioners’ artworks.
WB: What will be some of the main topics/speakers of the conference and especially at the Baker’s Blue Box?
CJ: The popular Baker’s Blue Box format is a center for experts and young talents in the bakery sector. In cooperation with the expert editors of Back Journal, DBZ magazine and Filialmanagement, INTERNORGA will hold sessions in the Baker’s Blue Box on how to identify trends, make use of new sales opportunities and gain the interest of customers. This year’s presentations at the Baker’s Blue Box will include cashless payments, location criteria, shopfitting trends, outlet organization, and product range and variety. The panel discussion “Bakers’ Straight Talk” is a highlight every year, with passionate discussion of the topics important to the industry. It gives expert insights for businesses of all kinds, from small individual shops to big chains. The forum is a great opportunity for networking, giving bakers a useful mix of ingredients for their future projects.
WB: What are some of the main trends you can anticipate for the bakery industry, on the long term? If you were to single out one game-changing trend, what would that be?
CJ: Food and beverage will play an increasing role in the economics of bakers’ shops. That is demonstrated by the current figures for the last 15 years at German bakers’ outlets, with food and beverage sales rising from EUR1.78bn in 2000 to about EUR2.9bn in 2015. That shows the growing importance of out-of-home sales. The key to future success for bakers is a balanced mix of fast, convenient snacks and high-quality specialties, and variation of product range to suit the time of day. The focus will be on breakfast products and a varied range of products at lunchtime. Digitization will also become more and more relevant, an indispensable factor for the future – from cash register systems to sourcing and goods management, to customer loyalty and the right online presentation.
WB: What is the profile of the bakery/ confectionery professional visitor?
CJ: Professional visitors to INTERNORGA come from all levels and areas – from young talents to master bakers, outlet managers and CEOs. And it is this bandwidth which makes mutual exchanges so fascinating. Different talents, different experience and new ideas promise interesting discussions among the real insiders of the business.
WB: Internorga will have a special focus on pizza this year. Can you tell us some of the main trends in industry? Please detail on European Pizza Championship.
CJ: This is now the fourth time that the grand final of the Giropizza d’Europa, the European Pizza Championship, will be held at INTERNORGA. That can be seen live at the fairground on Monday, March 20. Contestants from Rome, Rimini, Paris, Budapest, Amsterdam, Massa Carrara and Riva del Garda have qualified for the finals by their performance in the previous rounds. It will be the international judges who finally decide which country has Europe’s best pizza bakers. So the competition is still wide open – this is always a thrilling event, and a real highlight for INTERNORGA visitors, with tasting and inspiration for restaurants and food service. The European Championship will be complemented by workshops that reveal the secrets of the perfect pizza dough.
INTERNORGA takes place in March every year, with more than 1,300 exhibitors from Germany and abroad displaying their innovations, trends and complete solutions for the whole of the foodservice and hospitality market. In addition to the exhibitors’ presentations, there is a big program of supporting events, international conferences, award presentations, and innovative side-event concepts.