Hostelco, the International Exhibition of Equipment for Restaurants, Hotels and Collectivities, which will be held from April 4 to 7, 2022 in the Gran Vía de Fira de Barcelona venue together with Alimentaria, will show the latest developments in innovative products, technologies and solutions that improve the sustainability, control, consumption and maintenance of the equipment to face the new challenges of an industry in full transformation and contribute to the reactivation of the sector.
The leading fair in Spain and a European benchmark in its specialty, organized by Fira de Barcelona and the Spanish Federation of Associations of Manufacturers of Machinery for the Hospitality Industry, Communities and Related Industries (Felac), will present the latest innovations in machinery and equipment for the Horeca channel, as a result of the investment in R&D&i of the supplier companies in a sector that needs increasingly efficient instruments as well as solutions that can be easily adapted to the needs of each client in terms of design, energy saving and remote management through the application of systems of IoT.
As was the case in its last edition, Hostelco will add synergies with Restaurama, the Alimentaria fair dedicated to Restaurants and Food Away from Home to form one of the largest international platforms of products and services for the Horeca channel, made up of the Proposals from nearly 600 direct and represented companies , including the leading equipment and Food Service firms that will occupy Halls 4, 6, and 7 of the Gran Via venue.
Hostelco’s offer will be made up largely of the ‘Fully Equipped’ sector, with equipment, machinery and accessories for the hospitality industry, the most representative sector of the show; for ‘Setting’ , the area dedicated to kitchenware and table service; ‘Moments’ where the proposals of products and equipment related to coffee, pastry, bakery, pizza and ice cream will be concentrated; ‘Tech’ with the offer of software, technological products and entertainment. Finally, with ‘Atmosphere’ the show will renew its commitment to interior design, decoration, textiles and furniture items. Hostelco will also highlight the companies that have stocks of products to facilitate their distribution and sale.
With the aim of generating the maximum number of opportunities for its clients, the fair develops different business programs that it places at the service of its exhibitors by inviting ‘key buyers’ with specific purchasing projects, both nationally and internationally. Among the professionals invited to visit Hostelco and Restaurama, 1,100 strategic buyers stand out, mostly importers, distributors and purchasing managers of hotel and restaurant chains, mainly from Europe, highlighting Spain, Germany, the Netherlands, France, Italy and Portugal , among other countries.
customer-oriented activities
Hostelco will host different exhibition, business, dissemination and debate spaces, with value proposals that will be added to the commercial offer, such as ‘Hostelco Live Hotel’, which will reproduce the main rooms of a hotel with the latest innovations in interior design and equipment, and ‘Hostelco Live Arena’, the area dedicated to knowledge and debate that will host presentations by experts from the hospitality industry.
They will participate as professional speakers from the Spanish Confederation of Hotels and Tourist Accommodations and the CEHAT-ITH Hotel Technological Institute , a collaborating entity of Hostelco, who will propose new approaches on key issues in the hotel industry, and others who will address content related to customer experience , specialized vocational training, sustainability, the boom in ‘delivery’, new marketing strategies or how technological innovation is transforming the management of services and establishments dedicated to tourism and catering. This space will also host B2B business meetings between clients and strategic buyers.
Another area intended for the dissemination of knowledge will be the ‘Speaker’s Corner’ , which will offer distributors and installers of equipment and machinery for the hotel industry a space where manufacturers and other specialists in the sector will discuss issues on technical maintenance, regulations and certifications related to the hotel industry , catering and collectivities (social and hospital catering).
More than 30 chefs at The Experience Live Gastronomy
Hostelco, Restaurama and Alimentaria will share some of the most outstanding initiatives that will take place within the framework of the fair, such as The Experience Live Gastronomy , dedicated to live gastronomy carried out by more than 30 highly prestigious chefs. The Experience will again host the finals of contests of great international relevance such as the Chef of the Year Contest and the Waiter of the Year Contest.
The Spanish equipment industry, on the way to recovery
According to the latest economic study prepared by the Spanish Federation of Associations of Manufacturers of Machinery for Hospitality, Collectives and Related Industries (Felac), in 2020, as a result of the health crisis, the turnover of the 130 companies integrated within this group reached 1,393 .50 million euros, which is 26% less than in 2019.
However, the hospitality sector began its recovery from the second quarter of 2021 ” at a double-digit rate thanks to the reactivation of demand,” declares Rafael Olmos, president of Felac and Hostelco. ” In an environment conditioned by the evolution of the pandemic and other factors, we hope to continue on the path of recovery throughout 2022 and return to pre-Covid figures as soon as possible .” In this context, he adds “the celebration of Hostelco and Alimentaria is doubly strategic since the sum of both will form the largest face-to-face business center in the country, facilitating commercial transactions, networking, the dissemination of innovation, training and sustainability to give the biggest boost to the sector”.
