The International Restaurant & Foodservice Show of New York (IRFSNY) is a highly anticipated annual event that attracts thousands of industry professionals.
At Modalita, as every year, we participated at the last edition of the event, which took place from March 5th to 7th. The Show is always held at New York’s Javits Center, an impressive building that hosts some of the most important trade shows of the international food business scenario.
And as every year, by attending the event we got a generous handful of market insights and a better understanding of the latest trends and innovations.
The IRFS is the East Coast’s premier industry event that draws significant attendance from restaurant and foodservice operations from all over the country. During the last edition, thousands of registered attendees brought their expertise and products from 47 different States, and most of them announced their will to join the Show again the next year.
As a matter of fact, it’s anything but hard to understand the reasons behind this recurring success.
3 reasons why you should attend the International Restaurant & Foodservice Show
IRFS is for sure a unique opportunity to connect with industry professionals, discover new products and trends, and gain insights into the latest innovations in the industry.
Basically because there are 3 more specific and unique reasons that make this Show an unmissable event.
1) It’s the FIRST calendar major event of the year for the East Coast.
Always scheduled in March, being the first major event in the food business makes it the perfect stage to launch new products.
Introducing a new product or service at the Show allows your business to gain exposure and valuable feedback from an engaged audience. And basically this is a double-faced advantage.
Firstly, because it helps you during the go-to-market phase. With such a vast audience of B2B potential partners, you can get a huge number of leads at the Show, thus boosting your new product or service’s awareness.
Secondly, you can use the event to validate your product before the official launch. From the feedback you get, you can understand whether your latest offer is ready to market or you still have some adjustments to make.
2) It takes place in a strategic location.
New York City is not a random, casual location. You may have any personal opinion about the Big Apple, but what’s sure is that attending such an event in such a location is a huge boost to your brand image and authority.
NYC is the world’s nerve center and beating heart of the food industry and hospitality sector. Every year it gathers professionals, investors and stakeholders from all over the globe and grants an unmatchable visibility to any related business.
But this isn’t just a matter of networking. It’s also a great chance for your brand to establish a strong marketing positioning. Just by attending such an event in a location like the Javits Center provides you with a strong brand authority. Indeed, the Javits Center is also widely famous for hosting the incredible Fancy Food Show in June, another hard-to-miss event in the industry.
3) It’s perfect for businesses of any size.
Differently from many other B2B events in the food industry, the International Restaurant Foodservice Show is ideal for businesses of any size.
This is due to the nature of the professionals but also to the types of attending packages and options available. Among the hundreds of exhibitors, there are many kinds of businesses, from small ones to big dealers and distributors.
How to participate at the Restaurant Show in New York?
Whether you’re willing to attend the International Restaurant Foodservice Show for education purposes or to showcase your products and services, you can find different packages to participate.
– Booth Space Only
Space Only booth participation includes:
Company listing (with short profile description) on the online floor plan
Option to include company listing in 5 Star Buyer networking portal
(must opt-in)
7 exhibitor badges per 100 sq. ft.
3ft. side drapes (except adjacent to the aisle), 8 ft. high back wall drape (inline spaces only)
Raw sq. ft. exhibit space must be decorated
PRICE = $50 per square ft. | Corners $525 per corner
– Three Star Exhibit Package
Three Star Exhibiting Package Includes:
6’ draped table, standard carpet,
2 side chairs, wastebasket,
500 watt standard electrical outlet
One lead retrieval app activation.
Upgrade to Silver Company Listing on Website and Mobile App, includes:
E-booth listing with 750 character company description (upgrade from 500 for basic)
2 press release uploads
2 show specials uploads
3 featured products uploads
Option for $250 upgrade to unlock video upload capabilities and expanded product and show special upload limits (costs $750 without three star package)
PRICE = $51.50 per sq. ft. | Corners $525 per corner
– Food Sampling Package
Requirements for purchase eligibility:
Exhibitor’s product must be food ingredient or finished food product
Must be cooking/preparing and offering the audience food samples from your exhibit
Includes 10×10 foot area outfitted with the following:
8′ high black back drape
3′ high black side drape
Two 6′ x 42″ high black draped tables (one in the back for prep, one in front for serving)
One stool
One wastebasket
One 7″ x 44″ one-line identification sign
Gray booth carpet
5 amp / 500 watt electrical outlet
List of badge scans from all scanned attendees entering this aisle, including contact details
PRICE = $4000 per 10×10 *Only available to food companies who are sampling at the show
– Bar Innovations – Beverage Sampling Package
Spirit, Wine, Beer, and Mixer Suppliers… this is for you!
Each 10×40 Beverage Tasting Area Fits 6 Sponsors
Must be a manufacturer or distributor of alcohol product being sampled.
Sponsors receive:
Product will be sampled in a bar in the center of the 10×40 space (non-sampling sizes will incur a buyout fee)
6 ft. skirted table
Opportunity to place meter board or similar signage behind table against 8 ft. back drape
Logo and product being sampled are listed on a 22×28 sign next to the bar
Inclusion in bar promotions to attendees
QR Code Sign on Table for Attendees to Scan
Receiving, Handling and Storage of Alcohol Products is the responsibility of the Customer ($250 one-time handling fee, $150 per cold/dry storage pallet, $50 per booth delivery, can be avoided if items can be hand-carried)
PRICE = $2150 per sponsor
In addition, it’s possible to apply for specific sponsorships to earn more visibility from crowds of potential customers.
You can find more info about all your participation options at the International Restaurant & Foodservice Show here.
Always be careful to check the year’s updated prices and conditions into the official website of the event!
Our experience at the New York Restaurant Show
Overall, the International Restaurant & Foodservice Show is a must-attend event for any ambitious business in the US food and beverage industry. If you’re looking to stay ahead of the curve and drive your business forward, for all the reasons listed above we highly recommend you to participate.
Our experience at the Show this year has been quite positive. The affluence was pretty high, and we managed to showcase some of the very best pieces of equipment from our brands at our booth number 1758.
Among them, we helped our partners by highlighting their masterpieces such as Tekné Italia’s carts, BRAVO’s top-notch machines, the outstanding Moretti Forni’s Neapolis and IFI’s Jolly gelato visual display.
If you’re planning on attending New York Restaurant Show next year, don’t forget to reach out! We’ll be waiting for you at our booth to help you skyrocket your business!
In the meantime, if you need advice or a quote for the best equipment available on the market, get in touch with us by filling out the form here.