An “army” of over 600 firms, including the sector’s top players, but also small independent roasters, ensured the huge success of SIC, the International Coffee Fair and the beating heart of HostMilano.
It is the star attraction of the Tea-Coffee-Bars-Coffee Makers-Vending Machine section, visitors to which were up 7% in 2017.
It offers in-depths insights into the entire sector, from the raw coffee bean to the bar equipment used to make coffee and tea, with all the best blends and mono-origins on display, something only HostMilano is able to showcase.
The macro-area that brings together Ice Cream and Pastry and SIC now accounts for 37.5% of the 2,165 firms present at the fair as a whole.
One of the clearest demonstrations of the great vitality the sector has been enjoying with each subsequent edition, is the increase in the number of concerns that deal – either exclusively or as part of their activities – with the vending side of the business, whether as manufacturers of vending machines, coffee roasters and providers of water treatment services, packaging, installations and snacks.
Here, there is a particularly strong Italian presence: 66%. But the numbers of exhibitors from foreign countries is also on the rise. The countries with the largest numbers at the 2017 edition were Germany, Spain, Switzerland, the USA, France, China, the Netherlands and the UK.
HostMilano is not just about companies, however: each edition breathes new life into the international network of firms, professionals, associations and stakeholders, all keen to give visitors the most up-to-date view of the sector, of market trends and indeed all the latest trends regarding “black gold”.
The next opportunity will be at the 2019 edition (18 to 22 October 2019), and in the meantime the focus shifts to HostMilano’s various channels, all set to intercept new trends, and to the other events the International Hospitality Exhibition takes part in over the course of the year.
Such as the recent, highly popular and highly intriguing Milano Coffee Festival.
