Give them a break!

A good coffee will draw visitors to an exhibition stand. Skilfully employed, the espresso bar becomes a communicative centre of exhibition activity and guarantees refreshing conference breaks.

Have you ever felt really like a coffee? After three hours touring a trade fair in loud halls and a parching atmosphere, a coffee break holds out the prospect of relaxation and regeneration. How dreadful, then, when someone - either at an exhibition stand or a catering station - comes along with a tepid brew from a thermos flask. Made in the morning and still doing the rounds in the afternoon - that kind of coffee catastrophe is thankfully a thing of the past at many stands, to the delight of fans of the brown bean. Sophisticated and transportable catering systems provide delectable coffee to stimulate business talks and entice visitors with its aroma. Properly used and manned by trained staff, the coffee bar can be a communicative meeting point and the focus of an exhibition appearance. And the good thing is that coffee always goes down well. Whether the exhibitor is a mechanical engineering company or a purveyor of fashion is secondary.
At exhibition-congresses, too, which are frequently short on space in front of the halls, a little coffee bar can work wonders to liven up flagging delegates.
It doesn't matter where, the important thing is to satisfy customers and visitors expectations by keeping body and soul together as well as showcasing products.
Of this Michael Ortner is very well aware. The managing director of the Cologne-based catering and exhibition service Dahmen has produced a neat little espresso primer encouraging the users of his equipment to treat the bean with the care it merits. After all, it's not everyone who knows the difference between a delicious café crème and an espresso. A rundown on the various types of coffee and ways of preparation is equally a part of the booklet as the range of equipment for brewing the luscious liquid. Even the German coffee association in Hamburg finds words of praise: "The art of coffee - the primer for espresso culture", saying the pamphlet offers important tips on how to prepare the Germans favourite drink. Ortner is convinced: "With our Capo Nero and Capo Rosso series we have developed a coffee concept making a major contribution to our clients success." In addition to the primer, Ortner has now even developed his own training concept to put non-food technology into the proper light as an important part of event and exhibition catering. This conveys basic skills in equipment and application techniques, tested out in real exhibition catering projects. It all began at Ravensburg University of Corporate Education, where Michael Ortner now also holds lectures.

m+a report Nr.6 / 2005 vom 23.09.2005
m+a report vom 23. September 2005