From 4 to 7 April, Hostelco trade show returns to Fira de Barcelona’s Gran Via venue, as a large showroom of equipment, products, and solutions to boost the hospitality industry, with a special focus on improving the competitiveness of hotels, restaurants, collectivities, and foodservice. Technology, sustainability, business, design, and the generation of experiences mark this edition, which is held together with Alimentaria, and also includes spaces for knowledge and the dissemination of trends of great use to professionals in the horeca sector.
Hostelco, organised by Fira de Barcelona in partnership with the Spanish Federation of Associations of Machinery Manufacturers for Hospitality, Collectivities and Related Industries (FELAC), is the leading trade fair in Spain for Catering, Hotel and Collectivities Equipment, and one of the first in Europe in its speciality.
After a complex period marked by the pandemic, the president of Hostelco and FELAC, Rafael Olmos, stresses that the event “will help hotels, restaurants and collectivities to update and adapt their equipment and business strategies to the new consumer preferences, taking advantage of the synergies with food and gastronomy.”He adds: “Hostelco will inspire many of the investment decisions that will be made in the sector as it reflects the trends in the hotel and catering industry, which will undoubtedly include new technologies, sustainability, and personalised experiences,” he says.
600 exhibitor companies represented
Hostelco connects with the Restaurama trade show (catering and food services for out-of-home consumption) at the Alimentaria trade fair to facilitate the visit of professionals from the Horeca channel. Thus, Hostelco and Restaurama will bring together around 600 exhibiting companies in 20,000m2, which will be concentrated in the adjoining halls 4, 6 and 7.
Hostelco’s offer will be largely made up of the Fully Equipped sector, with equipment, machinery and accessories for the hospitality industry, the sector with the largest representation at the fair, Setting, the area devoted to kitchenware and table service, Moments, bringing together the proposals of products and equipment related to coffee, cake shops, bakeries, pizza and ice creams, and Tech, with a range of software, technological products and entertainment. Finally, with Atmosphere the event will renew its commitment to interior design items, decoration, textiles and furniture. Hostelco will also feature companies that have stocks of products to facilitate their distribution and sale.
With the aim of generating the maximum number of opportunities for its customers, the fair organises different business programmes for the exhibitors and invites key buyers on the domestic and international stages with specific purchasing projects. The professionals invited to visit the event include 1,400 strategic buyers, mostly importers, distributors, and purchasing managers from hotel and catering chains coming mainly from Europe, including Spain, Germany, the Netherlands, France, Italy and Portugal, among other countries.
The event will also be a platform for presenting the latest innovations in the sector, in which sustainability and energy efficiency will be the protagonists in new equipment and machinery, together with technology that, through artificial intelligence, big data, cybersecurity, and home automation, automates processes and improves the customer experience in hotels and restaurants.
Knowledge and experiences
In addition to the activities shared with Alimentaria, such as The Experience Live Gastronomy, dedicated to live gastronomy, which will include an important programme focused on collective catering, and “Food & Hospitality Startup Revolution”, Hostelco 2022 will also be a sectoral forum for the exchange of knowledge and the analysis of trends.
Thus, the show will erect the Hostelco Live Hotel, with the re-creation of different hotel spaces such as reception, the gym and guest rooms in various styles, new architectural concepts and integrating the latest in technology and connectivity. The Spanish Confederation of Hotels and Tourist Accommodation and its Hotel Technology Institute, CEHAT – ITH, are responsible for the design and equipment of the technology room and lobby.
Hostelco Live Arena, meanwhile, will be the space where debates, talks, and presentations will be held by more than 70 experts in catering and hospitality to address issues related to design, interiors, sustainability, new business concepts, the hyper-personalisation to generate unique experiences, and the use of disruptive technologies. The conference, which will be aimed at professionals from the catering, hotel and tourist accommodation sectors, will be divided into more than 20 sessions in partnership with CEHAT – ITH; the Spanish Hotel and Catering Industry, CEHE; and the consultancy firm Barra de Ideas, among others.
Likewise, coffee will take centre stage in an area dedicated to promoting the universe and the possibilities of the ‘star’ product of bars, catering and the Horeca channel. In addition to tastings and demonstrations on how to prepare and drink coffee, the space called “Hostelco Live Moments” will also include new food options and the latest trends in patisserie, ice cream, bakery, and cocktails, creating a ‘sweet’ and attractive space.
The trade fair will also feature a Speakers Corner, which will serve as a meeting point for manufacturers, distributors and technical services. Some thirty talks will cover new developments in equipment, maintenance processes, security, regulations and certifications.
Barcelona, 24 March 2022
Photographs of last year’s event here
Activity programme here
News from exhibitors here
Press releases here
Mª Gloria Dilluvio
93 233 21 72
gdilluvio@firabarcelona.com