It’s never enough to know how to produce a quality pizza and understand your customers’ needs to grow your pizzeria. Attending an industry trade show – even during economic slow down – can be the best vehicle to obtain new knowledge, insight and ideas that can help you position your product and pizzeria for future growth.
Another good reason to attend International Pizza Expo® is this: as an independent pizzeria owner, you may be under pressure and worried about how you’re going to survive in a less than favorable economy. The fact is, you may need to slow down in order to speed up your business. You may need to do some creative thinking to come up with some innovative ideas to boost your business. Attending Pizza Expo® can stimulate that creativity and provide the momentum you need to move your business forward.

Below are a few tips that will help you get the most out of your trade show experience:

• Time is at a premium. Plan in advance; pre-register to save time and money. Schedule appointments with people you want to meet with. Make a list of what you want to learn and see while at Expo. Review what’s being offered at the pre-show workshops, as well as the general program to determine which ones would have the greatest impact on you and your business.
• Take charge! You may want to arrange a meeting with other pizzeria operators and suppliers to see what they are doing and what they see happening in the future. Or better yet, just make plans to attend the Beer & Bull® Idea Exchange.
• Take time to walk the show thoroughly and completely, so you’ll get the biggest bang for the buck. Jot down the products, companies and booth numbers that grab your interest in a small note pad. Take as many notes as possible.
• Knowledge is Pizza Power. Gather as much information as you can while at the show. Find out what products, services and techniques are available to you to improve your product, productivity and profitability.
• Talk to industry consultants and experts to find out what they’re thinking and doing. What are the new trends?
• Last but not least, are you looking to make purchases while at the show? The fact of the matter is that no one wants to take their equipment and products back to the warehouse. Take advantage of the great show specials and discounts being offered by our exhibiting partners. You won’t have this opportunity again for another year.

After the show, ask yourself these questions:

• What is the competition doing and how does your pizzeria compare?
• Can you leverage vendor/supplier expertise?
• Is there an opportunity to expand your menu?
• What can you do differently to outshine and outperform your competition?
• Finally, write down what you learned at the show and rethink or analyze your business strategy and philosophy. How can you grow your pizzeria? What great idea(s) can you implement to achieve your goals?

There will always be winners and losers, but only those pizzeria owners and operators that arm themselves with industry knowledge and are willing to take action towards positive change will have the ability to position their business for future growth and success. If you want to increase your ability to compete and win, you should make plans now to attend International Pizza Expo®. It’s the ideal trade show to obtain the knowledge that you need to help you strategize, improve operations and make the right decisions for you to compete and win.

Save time and money by pre-registering now at www.PizzaExpo.com.
We Mean Business!