If you are a regular reader of FE&S, you have heard me say that Zoomba Group is an original content creation company and that we see you, the reader, as our primary customer. Our business proposition is a pretty simple one: If we can give you a magazine that is worth reading, one that will give you insights and information that helps you do your job as a buyer, seller or specifier of foodservice equipment and supplies better, then we will create an environment in which advertisers want to be seen.
With that as our objective, it is perhaps not surprising that we frequently end up writing an answer to a straightforward but often unstated question: Where will the next sale or purchase, depending on your viewpoint, of foodservice equipment come from?
New units represent an obvious jumping off point. But equipment purchases are initiated for a lot of good reasons, such as the development of new foodservice venues, like groceraunts and food trucks, remodeling projects, concept rebranding or refurbishing an existing location. Less obvious but equally impactful reasons to replace existing pieces of equipment include wanting to enhance labor efficiency or to address environmental concerns and to reduce energy consumption.
The answer, of course, is that all of these factors will drive new equipment sales and we try to cover them regularly in the pages of FE&S and online with bloggers like Jerry Stiegler, who writes This Week in Foodservice, and FCSI member Juan Martinez, who writes Foodservice by Design.
In addition, some less obvious factors influence operators’ purchasing plans. Amelia Levin explores this idea with a feature in this issue on menu trends and their potential impact on foodservice equipment selection. I think you will enjoy the fresh perspective.
Over at our sister publication, restaurant development + design, we have an event known as Tour the Design Trends, which will happen June 12 in Chicago. We will take 60 designers and architects on a trolley tour of 4 of the hottest restaurant concepts in Chicago, highlighting the design features that our editors feel make these locations special. Check it out at tourthedesigntrends.com.
