FMI Postpones 2017 Trade Show

The Food Marketing Institute announced it will refocus its strategy.

September 29, 2016

WASHINGTON – The Food Marketing Institute (FMI) announced yesterday that it will not hold its 2017 FMI Show, known as FMI Connect, originally scheduled for June in Chicago.

“At FMI we continue to believe that events designed to bring together the entire food retail industry and their partners for meaningful conversation, education, exploration and networking are desired and needed, but we have concluded these gatherings should occur in a framework that differs from the current FMI Connect design,” said FMI CEO Leslie Sarasin. 

“We also recognize that in recent years this event has fallen short of achieving the precise formula necessary for meeting today’s industry needs, particularly as the industry continues to change and evolve so quickly,” Sarasin said, noting that organization “must design new occasions more appropriate to the faster paced rhythms of food retail, and in unique formats more attuned to the specific needs of our industry.”

By eliminating the need to “fill football fields’ worth of space as ‘The Show’ configuration required, FMI will be liberated to explore new, focused and more flexible events,” she said.

United Fresh President and CEO Tom Stenzel, company partner at FMI Connect, commented that in recent years it has become “abundantly clear that fresh produce and fresh foods are driving so much of the consumer experience in retail, restaurants and multiple new delivery channels.”

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