MEDIA PARTNER

Our media partner for Hostex 2011 is Hotel and Restaurant magazine.

GENERAL NEWS

HOSTEX 2009

Hostex Gauteng , South Africa’s International Hospitality and Catering Exhibition, the largest and longest running trade exhibition of its kind in Africa more than fulfilled its promise to be the most exciting and interactive in the exhibition’s prestigious history when it recently ran at the Sandton Convention Centre between 15 and 18 March.

Exhibitors and visitors alike were unanimous in declaring the sold-out show an undisputed success.

Despite the current depressed economic climate visitor numbers remained steady with 11325 qualified buyers taking time out of their valuable schedules to utilise this unrivalled resource of 250 exhibitors showing the latest trends and innovations to cater for all industry requirements.

"The 2009 show has proven to be an invaluable tool to meet the requirements of industry specialists ahead of 2010” says Exhibition Director, Lynn Chamier. The show was not only sold out but a waiting list had to be created – thus reinforcing the reputation of this exhibition as being in touch with the diverse needs of this volatile industry sector.”

Traditionally a hive of activity the South African Chef’s Association (SACA) Village held a host of demonstrations, competitions and regional finals. This year was no exception and crowds of visitors benefited daily from the busy schedule which proved to be both entertaining and educational.

Says Stephen Billingham, SACA Vice President “We appreciate the opportunity given to us by Hostex to pay back our sponsors and thank the industry for the support it gives us.”

“Hostex provides us with a platform to establish ourselves as the authority on food as well as highlighting our educational role. Youth development is important to us and we set challenges to our students and demonstrate the continually rising standards expected by participants this industry. The number of entrants in our competitions doubled which is testament to the enthusiasm of chefs to work to the highest possible standards.”

1500 students who attended this year’s exhibition benefited directly from the opportunity to watch top local and overseas chefs in action.

The show which had two jam-packed halls of solutions to fulfill any possible hospitality and catering requirement. Offerings included beds and bedding, catering and bakery equipment, cutlery, crockery and glassware, food and beverage products, furniture and furnishings, guest amenities, laundry equipment, packaging and container ware, point of sale, refrigeration, uniforms, vending equipment and much, much more.

“Tana Rose” brought a delegation of five German companies to their first Hostex. Making a very successful debut visitors were introduced to their linen products including micro fibre duvets, bathrobes, curtains and curtain material.

“We used Hostex as a platform to launch new ranges of products for hotels, care facilities and hospitals” said Petra Illing from Tana Rose. ‘Our products utilise material specifically designed to meet industry requirements. People do not treat hotel rooms etc. with the respect they would at home so long lasting, durable material is required. The products are easy to wash which is not generally the case at the moment.” “Not only were we were looking for customers but we also wanted to meet industry suppliers we could interact with in order to manufacture and produce our lines locally. Hostex provided the perfect vehicle to do this. We are delighted with the response and exposure we have had. We are particularly impressed by the calibre of visitor the show attracted. We will definitely be coming to Hostex Cape in 2010” she concludes.

Oscar SA, in the Home Grown SME Village, took the opportunity to launch their HACO range of desserts and salad dressing mixes. “Hostex is the only platform we considered to launch this fully Halal range to the catering trade and our expectations were more than exceeded. We were busy during the entire show with quality visitors” said part-owner Peter Davis. “We were also extremely impressed with the exceptional organisation of this year’s show.”

The Home Grown SME Village provided a diverse range of delightful locally made products at cost effective prices. This dedicated section enabled companies to showcase their unique products and services and has grown steadily year on year.

Chilla successful launched a new fruit smoothie with “real” fruit. Says Chilla’s Allison Longstaff “We had great leads and met with quality visitors who were genuinely here to do business.”

Visitors to Hostex were full of enthusiasm after their visit.

“I sourced new suppliers and consolidated relationships with existing ones” said Natasha Tetluk from Cater Warehouse. “I also found new and exciting products which I will definitely introduce into our product range. The time I invested in my visit will more than pay dividends and improve our business.”

Lindsay Santana from Procurement People reinforced this sentiment. “Hostex is an invaluable industry resource for us and enables us to meet the diverse requirements of our customer base who include bush lodges, hotels and guest houses. Hostex provides us with access to a host of suppliers across the board for both current and future demands. The man hours saved by the investment of a day at Hostex is undisputed - we have sourced quality products at the keenest prices.”

Congratulations go to Odette Williams from Sodwana Bay who emerged the overall winner of the Global Pizza Challenge. 40 entrants competed in cook-offs during the course of Hostex and were whittled down to 5 finalists from which Odette emerged as overall winner. She will now travel to Asia at the end of 2009/2010 to represent South Africa in the world finals.

The exhibition moves to Cape Town in time for the expected influx of tourists and will take place between 8 and 10 March at the Cape Town International Convention Centre.