With just few days to go before the event, TUTTOFOOD is set to promote a lively schedule shining a spotlight on innovation and excellence across the agri-food system, with the show’s Retail Plaza feature and Better Future Awards not to be missed. 

A rich schedule is set to enliven the four-day TUTTOFOOD – the internationally renowned B2B exhibition for the entire agri-food ecosystem – which returns to Milan, Italy’s bustling business metropolis, from 8–11 May. 

 

Not to be missed is the Retail Plaza format, highlighting trends in new business and modern retail models. Another key feature of the show, returning this year for its second edition, is the Better Future Award – a prestigious series of accolades that showcase food innovation excellence from the companies at the show.

Retail Plaza: Shaping the future of retail

Retail Plaza is TUTTOFOOD’s event format for analysing the ever-evolving business models and dynamics surrounding modern retail – in a unique networking setting, and with a strong emphasis on case studies. Emerging trends that directly and indirectly affect all stakeholders in the food value chain – namely producers, retailers and consumers – can today be summarised under the following three macro themes: Supply chain sustainability; Value chain innovation; and Changes in culture and consumer buying trends.

Such macro-themes will inform the myriad insights set to enliven dialogue in the Retail Plaza, where retailers, manufacturers, companies and experts will discuss new approaches and evolutionary lines of modern retail, alongside new operational realities for players in this segment. Indeed, innovation across the supply chain has been turbo-charged in recent years in response to the disruptions triggered from the pandemic and geo-political crisis, alongside a boom in the adoption of smart technologies by both consumer and company alike. 

The schedule of meetings and talks includes several events that will alternate during the exhibition days, led by some prominent personalities including: Professor Giuseppe Stigliano (Global CEO, Spring Studios and Lecturer in Retail Marketing Innovation at IULM Milan); Massimo Visconti (Value Chain Innovation Strategist and Partner); Giorgio Santambrogio (CEO, VèGè Group and Vice President of Federdistribuzione); Cris Nulli (Founder of Appetite for Disruption); and Alberto Miraglia (GM of the Retail Institute Italy). 


Also worth marking on the agenda are a talk by Giuliano Noci – Full Professor of Strategy & Marketing and Pro-rector Chinese Territorial Campus, Polytechnic University of Milan – featuring some interesting realities such as Signorvino, Easycoop (Coop's online platform), Glovo, and Lidl. The meeting will also feature Franco Fassio – Associate Professor of Systemic Design, EcoDesign, and the Circular Economy for Food, of the University of Gastronomic Sciences in Pollenzo, Italy – alongside Consorzio Parmigiano Reggiano, who will be identifying sustainable nutrition strategies.

The contribution of the most relevant Italian and international chains will be of great importance, and they will also talk about sustainability and how modern retail can address this, both in Italy and abroad.

Collaboration with the Retail Institute will specifically address the issues of Green retail and Sustainable Food. Additional appointments will involve startups, new evolved omnichannel players, companies involved in the digital transformation of HoReCa, and much more. In the post-pandemic era, getting the right balance between online sales, in-store sales and the use of digital tools from a drive-to-store perspective is becoming increasingly essential. Inevitably, the acceleration of change will be strongly influenced by the new buying patterns of new consumer generations (Gen Z) and a new systemic vision of all supply chain stakeholders.

Better Future Award 2023: the red carpet where excellence shines

Gdoweek and Mark Up, in collaboration with TUTTOFOOD, present the second edition of the Better Future Award, the award highlighting food and beverage excellence of the companies present at the event and nominated. 

The three award categories will be: Innovation, Ethics and Sustainability, and Packaging.

Now more than ever, a brand's strength is represented by its ability to develop innovative, qualitative and sustainable content when it comes to products, services and projects. Indeed, TUTTOFOOD’s organisers are seeing a strong expansion of functional foods associated with sports, especially amongst younger consumers and with a keen focus on high protein content – an expanding offer that parallels the expanding consumption of traditional protein sources like meat, eggs or cheese. The demand for alternative protein sources is also associated with the boom in demand for plant-based products – currently a segment characterised by fierce competition.

The widespread cost of living crisis has accelerated the rise of the discount format, which is today expanding at a rate of double digits. Indeed, the number of such outlets throughout Italy is increasing, and retailers are increasingly redefining their offerings through innovative means. Today, many consumers comfortably navigate a multi-channel reality when it comes to food & beverage purchases, choosing the most convenient format for the type of product they are looking for. So, while price remains the driving factor, renewed brand strength is nonetheless crucial – based on values that go beyond the concept of quality.

Innovation and insight vital to success in future F&B landscape

To really understand where the market of the future is heading, companies must focus on the needs of future consumer demographics – younger target customers who are more keenly focused on sustainability, amongst other issues, according to TUTTOFOOD’s organisers. To meet this need in the coming years, companies – both large-scale retail and SMEs alike – will require new expertise. Therefore, it is not only a matter of developing innovative products or new processes, but also new professional skills. 

Green, organic and natural products continue to gain ground in terms of their performance in the market, even as more traditional segments are less dynamic. Nor should the expansion of the private label or ‘white brand’ into these ranges be seen as a threat, but rather as an opportunity: finding product lines on which to collaborate with brands – who, in turn, bring their knowhow and have their hand firmly fixed on the real demands of consumers – will only nurture a greater level of innovation and generate positive spillovers throughout the company's business. After all, in recent years there have been numerous cases of companies that started out primarily as suppliers of private brands, then went on to establish their own successful brand, capitalising on the experience gained. “The Better Future Award aims to recognise companies that have distinguished themselves in the development of new products or solutions capable of ensuring a certain competitive differential, or in the improvement of those already on the market,” noted TUTTOFOOD’s organisers in a statement.


TUTTOFOOD is the international platform for the entire food and beverage sector that will bring together the world of F&B and retail elites when it returns to fieramilano from 8–11 May 2023.

For up-to-date information, and or to register to attend TUTTOFOOD, visit: http://www.tuttofood.it or follow the event on the socials  (@TuttoFoodMilano).