Attendance Soars For Hotelex

It was another big, big year for Hotelex/FineFood Shanghai Expo. The annual show, held March 29-April 1 at Shanghai New Int’l. Expo Centre, marked its 25th year with record attendance. More than 120,000 visitors journeyed to Shanghai from 116 countries and regions, as did close to 2,800 exhibitors—up from 101,500 visitors and 2,082 exhibitors in ’15, according to show organizer Shanghai UBM Sinoexpo.

Size-wise, the show expanded by 30% compared to the previous year, covering 280,000 sq. meters—the equivalent of 53 football fields. Electric shuttles ferried attendees between the three main entrance points, where arriving attendees used smartphones to register using China’s top messaging app, WeChat.

During its four-day span, Hotelex brought together 15 hospitality and catering industry sectors, including catering equipment supply, tableware, appliance amenities, textile, IT and security, fitness and leisure, food and beverage, coffee and tea, bakery and ice cream, wine and spirits, hotel building, hotel engineering, hotel design, hotel cleaning and hotel furniture.

More than 30 onsite tournaments brought masters from around the world to compete in such events as the China Master Bartender Competition, Shanghai Pizza Master Competition, China Gelato Championship and ‘Rising Star’ Chef Competition, to name a few. Coffee, one of the fastest-growing segments in Chinese foodservice, netted six intense competitions, covering Baristas, Brewing, Roasting, Latte Art, Tasting and ‘Coffee in Good Spirits.’