Computers and the internet have put information at our fingertips. There’s often too much to process, which is what makes traveling to an event in person so rewarding. Operators who provide coffee service or those thinking about coffee service should take the opportunity to do just that at this year’s NAMA CoffeeTea&Water show in New Orleans, LA, happening Nov. 11 to Nov. 14.
The three-day event has a strong focus on education, all centered around the niche of coffee and related products and service. It is a targeted and lucrative segment of the overall vending, micro market and office coffee service industry and is projected to strengthen as the job market becomes more competitive causing companies to look for ways to stand apart from competitors and decision makers for more than standard hot coffee to offer in their breakrooms. This industry is changing rapidly, and CTW is the place to be if operators want to stay at the cutting-edge.
In-person session attendance
There are literally over a dozen sessions to choose from at this year’s CTW, with a broad range of presenters who can impart knowledge and answer questions. Learn about where coffee comes from and what impacts the green coffee market to how best to leverage technology in the OCS segment to grow profits. Being present at the sessions offers an opportunity to increase learning as well as ask specific questions of the subject matter experts.
One-on-one at the trade show
On Tuesday, Nov. 13, 2018, a little after noon, the trade show floor opens and it provides a unique opportunity for those present. Brewers, coffee suppliers, specialty packagers, allied products and more will be on display, in a smaller space than the larger NAMA Show in Spring. This is a perfect opportunity to meet suppliers and ask them about what’s selling, how they can help with marketing and what they have seen other OCS providers add that really grew business. Benefit from these interactions.
Networking is personal
Let’s not forget the all-important art of networking. Meeting others with a desire to learn more and expand OCS has an infinite return on investment, but can really only be done properly in person. Bring business cards and a winning smile to succeed in mingling with operators from around the county. They will be there to network as well, ready to discuss their challenges and experiences, both what has worked and what has not.
This fall take advantage what you can learn and achieve by attending the CTW in New Orleans. It’s an opportunity too hot to miss.
Tips For Trade Shows
Plan Goals & Appointments
Traveling to the show requires an investment. Ensure you make some goals for the show, including learning something new, meeting another service provider and answering a question about a piece of equipment you’ve heard about, but have not seen yet.
Attend networking sessions
Make the most of meeting non-competing operators by introducing yourself, asking about their thoughts on the topics presented at the sessions, broad coffee trends in their area and go from there. Bring a business card to exchange for follow up.
Analyze education sessions
While all sessions might sound interesting, focus on the ones that hold the greatest value for you. Read the description – is it background knowledge, trends, actionable items or informational? Who is speaking – have you heard them before and what’s their background?
Schedule
Monday, Nov. 12
10:00am – 12:00pm
NAMA Foundation Coffee Crawl - tour through the famous New Orleans French Quarter.
1:00pm – 2:00pm
Bean2Cup Strategies – Where Profitability and Sustainability Meet
• Klarc Snowden, Entrepreneur / Coffee Service Innovator / Director of National Accounts & Strategic Partnerships, De Jong DUKE
1:00pm – 2:00pm
Technology Trends in OCS
• Hannah Davies (Moderator), Greenhithe Software Solutions
• Bill Lockett, Director of Marketing, VendSys
• David Marler, Vice President of Sales & Marketing, LightSpeed Automation
1:00pm – 3:00pm
The Essence of Coffee Part 1 – Coffee Concepts
2:15pm – 3:15pm
What’s in the Cup: Trends in Flavors and Enhancements• Mark L. DiDomenico, Director, Customer Solutions, Datassential
3:30pm – 5:30pm
KEYNOTE: It’s Not About the Coffee
• Howard Behar, Former President of Starbucks Coffee, North America, Founding President of Starbucks International, Author, It’s Not About the Coffee
• Liz Williams (Moderator), Founder, President & CEO, National Food & Beverage Foundation
5:30pm – 7:00pm
Welcome Reception
Tuesday, Nov.13
7:00am – 8:30am
WIN: Power Yoga with Powerful Women
By invitation only
8:30am – 9:30am
Leveraging Technology to Enhance Your Business
• Jen Tonio (Moderator), Marketing Manager, 365 Retail Markets
8:30am – 9:30am
Green Coffee Market Update
• Everett Brown, Green Coffee Importer, Westfeldt Brothers Inc.
9:00am – 11:00am
The Essence of Coffee Part 2 – It’s In the Cup
9:45am – 10:45am
Water: The Foundation for the Perfect Cup
• Cortney Scharenberg, CCS, CWS, Technical Training Manager, Foodservice, Pentair
• David Emmens, Technical Training Manager, Pentair
9:45am – 10:45am
Flexible Packaging Innovations for Coffee, Tea and Water
• Ryan Balock (Moderator), Director of Marketing & Communications, Scholle IPN
• Randy Austin, Product Line Manager, Scholle IPN
• Erica Rios, Packaging Applications Engineer, Scholle IPN
11:00am – 12:00pm
The Alkaline Water Craze: Super Food or Super Fad
• Cathy Feely (Moderator), C.B.I. & Associates
• Janette Carter, National Sales Manager, Fixturelite
11:00am – 12:00pm
The Bean2Cup Movement: How it Supports a Culture of Sustainability
• Karalynn McDermott (Moderator), SVP, Market Development, BUNN
• Joe Simonovich, Chief Growth Officer, Corporate Essentials
12:15pm – 5:15pm
Trade Show Floor Open
6:30pm – 7:30pm
ELN in NOLA
By invitation only
Wednesday, Nov. 14
11:15am – 12:15pm
A Holistic View of the Consumer
• Jim Watson, Senior Beverage Analyst, Rabobank
New Essence Of Coffee Series Launching At CTW 2018
NAMA is kicking off state-of-the-art content, specifically tailored to help sales professionals, managers, route sales representatives and others who direct the growth of business be at the cutting edge of today’s coffee experience. The Essence of Coffee is a 4-module coffee education series designed to take participants on a journey starting with the origin of coffee to roasting, blending and creating the finished product. Learn about the coffee service industry’s evolution and explore new ways of growing sales and enhancing the customer experience.
Coffee Concepts, happening on Monday, Nov. 12 during the CTW show, will start with the origin of coffee from its history through roasting, blending and the finished product.
It’s in the Cup, is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 13, and gives attendees an opportunity to sample a variety of flavor profiles and blends and continue with an overview of brewing equipment and the experience offered to the customer.
Both sessions require registration. Cost is $195 per course; $295 for both Parts 1 and 2 for members, and $249/$395 for non-members.
Emily Refermat
Emily began covering the vending industry in 2006 and became editor of Automatic Merchandiser in 2012. Usually, Emily tries the new salted snack in the vending machine, unless she’s on deadline — then it’s a Snickers.
Emily resigned from Automatic Merchandiser and VendingMarketWatch.com in 2019 to pursue other opportunities.
