BONN, Germany – The European Vending & Coffee Service Association (EVA) together with the German Vending Association (BDV) organised EVEX-VendCon earlier this month in Bonn in order to combine the international flavour of EVEX with the high concentration of key industry players from the German speaking markets.
The Kameha Grand hotel, located along the Rhine in the former capital of West Germany, proved the perfect venue for this particular style of event, allowing new products to be showcased under the glass canopy during the full-day exhibition, while conferences and EVA and BDV annual meetings and the presentation programme could take place simultaneously and adjacently.
During the EVA Annual General Assembly (AGM), Members elected a new Executive Committee of 13 representatives for the three-year mandate of 2022-2025, with Paolo Ghidotti (Evoca Group) re-elected as EVA President, Mihai Ungureanu (O’Fresh) elected 1st Vice President, Jürgen Göbel (Ingenico) as Vice President and Maurits de Jong (Bravilor Bonamat) elected once again as Treasurer. Francesc Güell (ANEDA), Günter Maas (BDV), Michele Adt (CONFIDA) and Christian Mengus (NAVSA) were elected to represent their respective national vending association, Marco Baron (FAS International) as machine manufacturer representative, and Sergio Barbarisi (BWT Water+More), Davide Celin (Lavazza), Alberto Giavoni (Brita) and Antonio Tartaro (IVS) were elected as full company members. The EVA Secretariat looks forward to working with the new Board to implement its strategy over the coming years. The AGM also saw Members bid farewell through a special presentation to long-term EVA Executive Committee member and outgoing 1st Vice President, Javier Arquerons, who decided to step down after 9 years on the Board
EVEX-VendCon itself commenced in a jovial atmosphere on the evening of 7 November, where attendees were welcomed to a typical Bavarian style chalet to mingle and network with colleagues from the industry. The following day, the all-day exhibition enabled 37 exhibitors to present their latest innovations to the attendees, and we are pleased to report that early feedback indicates that this was a very much appreciated format which led to pretty bustling discussions.
The BDV General Assembly directly followed the EVA AGM before a wide range and diverse focus of sponsor presentations filled the majority of the afternoon. Live interpretation ensured all presentations could be perfectly understood by participants and helped demonstrate that language is no barrier to business opportunities.
The greatly anticipated keynote speech by Frank Busemann, an Olympic medal-winning former decathlete and current athletics pundit on German TV, did not disappoint. His entertaining and motivational speech ‘Just do it’ drew comparisons between the highs and lows of professional sport and daily business life. Aspects of how to deal with challenges and setbacks had indeed some useful takeaways for vending professionals, especially in the current business climate.
The official event programme concluded with a networking dinner featuring a live band.
The EVA would like to extend a special thank you to the BDV for co-organising EVEX-VendCon, as well as all the event sponsors, which can be found below. Without them the event could simply not have been the success it was.
The EVA is currently finalising options for EVEX 2023 and we will of course communicate the details in due course.
