Trading up?

March 12, 2009 – If you haven’t voted in our new poll that went up last week, please take a moment to do so. With the season for food-industry trade shows getting under way, I thought it would be a good time to see what you think about the value, or lack thereof, of attending and/or exhibiting at trade shows in a recession.

Bakers Journal, along with our sister publications Canadian Pizza and Canadian Vending, set up shop at the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Show in Toronto from March 8 to 10. We noticed a few empty booths here and there, but the attendance on all three days of the show was nothing short of impressive, and we look forward to the official CRFA figures when they’re released. Attendance at the 2008 edition of CRFA, which combined the Food & Beverage Show and Hostex, was a robust 11,728, and as someone who attended the 2009 show every day from start to finish, I would be shocked if this year’s numbers were down.

To everyone who attended the CRFA Show and stopped by our booth to sign up for a subscription, or just to chat, thank you – we thoroughly enjoyed seeing you.