Specialty Food Magazine is the leading publication for retailers, manufacturers and foodservice professionals in the specialty food trade. It provides news, trends and business-building insights that help readers keep their businesses competitive.
Issue link: https://specialtyfoodmagazine.epubxp.com/i/802137
association news Message from President Phil Kafarakis As president of the Specialty Food Association, it's an honor to serve the artisans, purveyors, buyers, importers, and entrepreneurs involved in the industry. We're committed to your success. Over the past several months, the SFA's board of directors, councils, committees, and staff have been fine-tuning a long-term plan to better serve you. The resulting strategic plan will be a roadmap to a more engaged and engaging Association. Ultimately, we are evolving our mission to better meet the changing and growing expectations of our industry and the marketplace. The SFA legacy has always been to connect buyers and sellers, and we remain dedicated to that, as well as to developing and leveraging enhanced research projects, available technologies, and any and all other resources at our disposal. Obviously, our two annual Fancy Food Shows play a big role in our efforts. In January, we made improvements to the Winter Show, like extending education sessions to appeal to a host of buyers across different segments of retail, and adding a foodservice pitch competition. You'll see these changes and more reflected at the Summer Fancy Food Show in New York, June 25 – 27. At the Summer Show, we'll also be amping up our SFA master brand strategy, creating a more unified experience for attendees. The enhanced education sessions we offer will provide action-ready, business-building information. We'll be adding opportunities for Show exhibitors and attendees to network with one another. And we're honing our attendee registration process to ensure that exhibitors meet with verified buyers at their booths. It's our 65th anniversary this year, and we're eager to put our experience and expertise to work for you! Providing opportunities to connect buyers with sellers and to network with peers at the Fancy Food Show is one important way we do that. We hope to see you there. Phil Kafarakis President, Specialty Food Association Follow me @PresidentSFA Message from the President SPRING 2017 21