|
|
|
|
|
|
U.S. Healthy Foods Wow Hong Kong Buyers at Showcase
by Sam K.Y. Lee
U.S. companies recently had the chance to exhibit healthy food products to Hong Kong importers, wholesalers, retailers and food service operators. And by all accounts, Hong Kong's first-ever U.S. Healthy Food Showcase made a big hit with the local trade.
The Hong Kong Agricultural Trade Office (ATO) of the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) developed and staged the showcase to display high-quality, healthy U.S. food products, with cooperation and partial funding from four regional trade associations: the Eastern U.S. Agricultural and Food Export Council, Inc. (EUSAFEC), the Mid-America International Agri-Trade Council (MIATCO), the Southern United States Trade Association and the Western U.S. Agricultural Trade Association. Staff from EUSAFEC and MIATCO assisted with show coordination and management.
On With the Show
Representatives from Hong Kong's major food trading, wholesaling and retailing sectors turned out in force to participate in the U.S. Healthy Food Showcase. Each attendee was given an exclusive time slot to examine and evaluate the products on display.
ATO Hong Kong staff escorted attendees through the displays to review and sample products, collect product literature and exchange contact information. The show's format allowed ATO staff to talk to major food buyers on an individual basis and gain a deeper understanding of what they look for in specialty and other food products. Three U.S. companies sent representatives to exhibit their products; two others arranged for local agents to represent them.
Products exhibited at the show included a wide variety of fresh fruits and vegetables, salads, dried fruits, fat-free potato chips, reduced-fat crackers, lowfat cookies, protein and energy bars, lowfat tortillas, lowfat ice cream, frozen yogurt, dairy-free cheese, healthy beverages, sauces and salad dressings. Local retail merchandisers arranged the products into attractive displays in a large function room in the Ritz-Carlton Hotel.
During the show, trade attendees expressed keen interest in importing healthy foods--and of course Hong Kong is always a ready market for new taste sensations. They also said that the U.S. Healthy Food Showcase gave them an excellent opportunity to find sources of new and promising healthy food products.
Trade attendees were invited to assess the sales potential of specific products in the Hong Kong market. All reviews, comments and contact information from interested buyers were assembled into individual reports for each of the exhibiting companies. This extra service should help exporters refine their marketing techniques and increase their sales.
Additional Learning Experiences
ATO Hong Kong also held a Healthy Food Seminar as part of the showcase. The seminar highlighted the growing emphasis on healthy food consumption over the last 20 years, and the nearly 70,000 new food products to reach U.S. supermarket shelves since 1991. The seminar also provided a number of common definitions of healthy foods, information that received a very favorable reception.
At the conclusion of the 2-day show and seminar, ATO Hong Kong hosted a reception for traders, media representatives, exhibitors and other show participants. The reception contributed markedly to the success of the showcase because it gave Hong Kong importers, wholesalers, retailers and food service operators another chance to study the U.S. healthy food products on exhibit.
The reception also forged stronger relationships among the participants. ATO Hong Kong staff held in-depth conversations with all the trade attendees and thereby gained a better understanding of the products they seek, individual company development plans and market trends. Trade attendees got a much clearer grasp of the services provided by ATO Hong Kong and the regional trade associations.
Showing Results
The organizers set out a number of goals for the U.S. Healthy Food Showcase:
Both quantitatively and qualitatively, the showcase surpassed these goals--and all for the nominal cost of $8,591.
For example, 55 Hong Kong trade representatives visited the show, and another 42 attended the seminar and reception. In fact, so many traders wished to participate that ATO Hong Kong couldn't accommodate them all. Twenty-five U.S. companies sent literature and samples of 150 products for exhibition.
Immediately after the showcase, ATO Hong Kong received a number of calls from some of Hong Kong's largest food traders expressing interest in importing some of the products presented at the showcase. U.S. exhibitors pegged sales as a result of the show at $350,000.
So great was the appeal of the U.S. Healthy Food Showcase that several trade contacts asked whether ATO Hong Kong planned to stage similar events for other types of U.S. foods, such as salty snacks or beverages. Overall, the U.S. Healthy Food Showcase plowed new turf for an up-and-coming category of U.S. food products in a mature, sophisticated market.
Tips for Show Success
When planning a show such as the U.S. Healthy Food Showcase, detailed product descriptions and information must be sent to the participating FAS post well before the show to allow sufficient time for catalog preparation and display design.
Product information must be clear, complete and concise for a showcase where company representatives may not be present to provide explanations and answer questions for trade attendees.
Companies should supply enough product samples for trade visitors not only to taste, but also to take with them.
The show's unusual scheduling approach--attendance by appointment only and designation of an exclusive time slot for each attendee--proved to be extremely effective and warmly welcomed by trade visitors. ATO Hong Kong plans to use this approach for future small-scale shows because it eliminates the crowding, distractions and arduous pace of many trade shows.
The author is an agricultural specialist with FAS' Hong Kong Agricultural Trade Office. Phone: 011 852-2841-2350; fax: 011 852-2845-0943.
|
|