THAIFEX - HOREC Asia 2024 took place from March 6-8 at IMPACT, Muang Thong Thani, Bangkok, Thailand, attracting nearly 360 exhibitors and close to 16,000 trade attendees, with on-the-spot orders placed at the show amounting to over USD $10 million.
Co-organised by the Thai Department of International Trade Promotion (DITP), the Thai Chamber of Commerce (TCC), and Koelnmesse Pte. Ltd., THAIFEX - HOREC Asia 2024 offered visitors an immersive exploration of the future of the hotels, restaurants, and catering (HORECA) in Southeast Asia, with the aim of bringing in new investments and opportunities to the HORECA sector.
According to a press release issued by the event organisers, the three-day trade show attracted 359 exhibitors from 23 countries, and 15,851 unique trade attendees from 68 countries, making it one of the largest HORECA gatherings in the region. The show also hosted 391 handpicked buyers who participated in 1,636 meetings. Furthermore, projections have indicated that trade receipts generated from the show will amount to some USD $91 million in the upcoming year, while on-the-spot orders placed at the show amounted to over USD $10 million.
Mathias Kuepper, Managing Director and Vice President of KoelnMesse Asia Pacific, stated:
More than a trade show, THAIFEX - HOREC Asia 2024 has surpassed our expectations and become a catalyst for industry evolution. By bringing together the brightest minds and the latest innovations, the show is helping to shape the future of HORECA in the Asia Pacific region.
Shaping The Future Of The HORECA Sector In Southeast Asia
Expanding THAIFEX - Anuga Asia – More Than Just Foodservices
THAIFEX - HOREC Asia 2024 marked the trade show's first ever edition. The event was spun out of the already well-established THAIFEX - Anuga Asia, which has been held annually since 2004 and focuses on showcasing the best of food & beverage (F&B), foodservice technology, retail and franchise in Asia.
During a press conference held with three representatives of Koelnmesse on March 6, 2024, Wendy Lim, General Manager, explained that her company, in partnership with the Thai DITP and TCC, spent 20 years growing THAIFEX - Anuga Asia "from just four halls to 11 halls" at the IMPACT Exhibition & Convention Centre, after which the show could no longer be expanded any further. As a result, THAIFEX - HOREC Asia was built as a new show to cover the HORECA sector more broadly, past just foodservice.
"Of course, part of this show was already in THAIFEX - Anuga Asia, but we decided there's room to branch it out, and the whole idea behind it was really to have a dedicated event for the HORECA sector, for the non-food sector as well foodservice," Kuepper elaborated.
"HORECA is so much more than just foodservices, so we felt if we took it out [of THAIFEX - Anuga Asia], we could immediately add so much more to a show like this... it offered the opportunity to have an entire new show for an entire sector like HORECA... we've never had [the non-food side like] furniture, tech, decorations at THAIFEX - Anuga Asia, so I think that this was the opportunity to offer a much wider platform," he added.
The press conference also touched on how the organisers felt the post-COVID context offered the right timing for a new trade show of this scale focused specifically on HORECA, a sector that was hit particularly hard during the pandemic.
During COVID there were no investments into the hotel industry or the restaurant industry, it was not a good time to be in those industries, so I think now it's the time to renew, refresh, invest, upgrade, and there's a lot of new areas to explore like sustainability, going digital," said Kuepper.
"After COVID, the hospitality industry began to bounce back and there was a huge demand-effect, like a backlog of investment, which also played a role," added Sven Michael Schaefer, Project Director at Koelnmesse.
What Is THAIFEX - HOREC Asia's Main Target Market?
While the trade show seeks to broadly reflect the broader Southeast Asian region, the organisers explained that the main target markets for the first year of THAIFEX HOREC Asia were Thailand and the Indochina region (Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos).
"For all our supporting programs, including our hosted buyer program, we actually paid more attention to inviting buyers from Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos," shared Lim. "We invited, for example, three associations from Vietnam... and the Cambodia Hotel Association... and we hope next year, we can invite more buyers from those areas."
Kuepper added that the exhibition section of the show can be particularly useful for small and medium businesses.
"The exhibition is perfect for small and medium sized companies because, for them, there's no really other way to meet the 'big guys' in the business. [At THAIFEX - HOREC Asia], they can showcase themselves on a small scale. They may not have the means to invest into other forms of marketing like advertising and sales," Kuepper suggested.
Showcasing Innovations And Facilitating Connections In The HORECA Sector
The organisers stressed that a major focus of the trade show was to highlight new innovations and solutions in the market, with special focus given to sustainability and efficiency. Many of these innovations were showcased live at the HOREC Xperiental Zone.
We want visitors to see what new innovations are in the market, what type of new solutions are out there, what type of new equipment is available – that was our whole thing, to be a platform for innovation and new products. We want all visitors to go home and feel like, ah, this is how HORECA can look like in the future," said Schaefer.
He further elaborated that the showcased innovations and technologies were curated based on six trend topics: contactless services, digital guest experience, energy efficiency, food waste, plant-based menu, and sustainability.
"I guess it's also to give them the confidence to embrace change in the industry," added Lim. "From what they see here, they can basically get new ideas, see what the other countries are doing, or what innovative products and ideas are currently available in the market. It gives them the confidence to start embracing changes in their own organisations. That's what we are hoping to see as well."
"What we are also offering is solutions to also maybe run your business more efficiently, so to save costs, overheads and so on, that's a big part of what we're doing," said Kuepper. "If you come here and see solutions that can save you resources, save you manpower – this is all part of why visitors come to the show. I think there are industry pressures, you need to be competitive, and to gain this competitive edge, you need to invest [in new solutions] as well."
Elaborating more on the hosted buyer program and how the trade show sought to enhance networking opportunities between businesses, Lim described a special pre-show matching platform that was used to help buyers and sellers become acquainted online before arranging to meet in person.
"This year, we actually hosted about 391 hosted buyers, handpicked and invited by us to come and visit the show. What we also did, on the technology side, was we had an AI matching pre-event, to help save them a bit of time. Pre-show, they basically could browse all the suppliers and look at all the products available. And when they went on the [matching] platform, it would make pre-matches for them, recommending a list of suppliers that are relevant for their business and their sourcing needs," said Lim.
"Maybe in the past, buyers would need to spend all three days visiting the show but now they can actually spend more time more effectively. And for our exhibitors, I think they feel that what we are doing here is not just selling them a booth, because we also put together quite a lot of fringe events to enhance the networking experience and business opportunity they can get at the show. The hosted buyer program is just one of them," she added.
Hosted buyers hailed from key Southeast Asian associations including, the previously mentioned, Cambodia Hotel Association, the Vietnam Hotel Association, the Restaurant Association of Vietnam, Vietnam Executive Housekeepers Association (VEHA), and Danang Hotel Associations. Other notable organisations like AWC, Dusit International, and the Minor Group also participated in the program.
Key Event Highlights From THAIFEX - HOREC Asia
The Exhibition Space
The THAIFEX - HOREC Asia exhibition featured nine product categories and showcased six current trends in the sector.
Vanda Dechasmity, Managing Director of VJ Supply, distributor of Thermomix in Thailand, shared her experience as an exhibitor and stated that she was very happy with the event as she was able to sell several units at the show and also meet new buyers from hotels and franchises who wished to discuss bulk purchase deals.
Another exhibitor, Kuah Soo Shang, Regional Manager for UNOX, also added, “This show has been very, very good for us. We are meeting the right kind of buyers—ones we’ve never met before—and we are making a lot of appointments as we have a lot of potential deals to work on immediately after the event."
“The number of people is a lot more than I was expecting and we’ve met so many potential customers," shared Nuttasak Sopajaroen, Senior Strategic Marketing Manager for Boncafe Thailand, who said they had attracted at least 100 leads per day in B2B sales. "We already have 60 to 70 per cent of conversions. We are happy that the show has split from THAIFEX - Anuga Asia because the HORECA buyers are far more focused on our business needs.”
Innovative Technological Solutions And Product Debuts
A number of brands like UNOX, Merrychef, Cimbali Group, and HOBART, showcased advanced technologies for efficient and sustainable food preparation and storage.
The inaugural THAIFEX - HOREC Innovation Awards was also held at the show to recognise exhibitors who are pioneering new solutions in HORECA operations. The submissions culminated in nine winners and 27 finalists emerging from a pool of 350+ entries.
The HOREC Xperiential Zone was a unique aspect of the trade show, featuring a showcase of 60 curated innovations available on the market today, including products that were recognised by the Innovation Awards.
Several brands also took the opportunity to launch new products at the show, such as:
- The debut of HOBART’s FX and FP series ‘cutlery premium’ feature for dishwashers;
- Australian startup, Scentible, launched a range of scents designed to teach baristas how to identify coffee bean aromas or defects in coffee;
- Italian company, Elmeco Srl, debuted the Elmeco Matrix, a new self-service slushie machine that has an easy interface for consumers, portion control, and connectivity.
All three of these solutions were recognised by the Innovation Awards.
Knowledge Sharing At THAIFEX - HOREC Academy And Recognising ASEAN's Best
With approximately 800 participants in attendance, THAIFEX - HOREC Academy featured a comprehensive program delivered by 69 industry experts. Over the course of three days, they conducted 36 live sessions and 13 live demos, with the primary goal of highlighting the sector's trends and best practices.
B2B Cambodia had the chance to conduct exclusive one-on-one interviews with a handful of HORECA experts while attending the trade show, all of which will be published soon on our channels.
The trade show's inaugural edition also featured the 2024 ASEAN Barista Team Championship, hosted by the ASEAN Coffee Federation, with Team The Singa Crew from Singapore coming out on top. The Thailand Ultimate Housekeeping Challenge also saw 100 of Thailand's most-skilled hotel housekeepers engaged in a fierce competition.
Top Trends And Insights From THAIFEX - HOREC Asia 2024
A press release issued by the event organisers broke down a number of key statistics and insights from the three-day trade show, as described below.
- A Significant Focus On Sustainability: Nearly 40 per cent of exhibitors presented "sustainable solutions", from energy-efficient appliances to innovative applications or management systems for food waste, reflecting a growing trend and broader commitment to minimising environmental impact.
- Global and Local Participation: There was significant international and local company participation at the trade show, with 359 exhibitors from 23 countries across a 27,000 sqm exhibition space.
- Digital and Contactless Innovations: Featuring digital guest experience and contactless services, THAIFEX - HOREC Asia 2024 showcased technologies that enhance operational efficiency and customer satisfaction.
- Plant-Based and Wellness Trends: With the rise of health-conscious and environmentally aware consumers, exhibitors displayed the latest products and solutions for plant-based menus and wellness solutions, like alternative milks for use by baristas, or tools and equipment to measure and enhance fitness and body composition.
To participate in future editions, please visit http://thaifex-horec.asia/.
Parts of this article were adapted from a supplied press release.
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