Expo showcased products/technologies from over 70 exhibitors with Govt Pavilions from India, Sri Lanka and Nepal attracting 3700+ visitors.
Reiterating its position as India’s only truly international trade fair dedicated to Tea, Coffee & Allied sectors, the fifth edition of the World Tea & Coffee Expo or WTCE concluded successfully on November 18 2017 at Mumbai. This year too, the 3-day trade fair witnessed some major networking among business community in the form of bulk deals, joint ventures and alliances, franchise enquiries, appointment of agents and generation of versatile business leads.
This year’s event, organised by Sentinel Exhibitions Asia Pvt Ltd, was inaugurated by Her Excellency Ms Saroja Sirisena, Consul General of Sri Lanka in Mumbai and Mr Saud Salim Al Mazrouei, Director, Sharjah Airport International Free Zone (SAIF Zone), Government of Sharjah, United Arab Emirates. Since its inception, the annual event has emerged as the only business expansion and ideas exchange platform in India for the Hot Beverages sector. This year, the expo saw over 70 exhibitors from 5 countries – including 3 country Pavilions – showcasing latest innovative products, machineries, packaging, technologies, vending solutions, sugar, stevia, flavours, Retail Chains, certifications, Premixes, government boards etc.
As part of their contribution to promote these vital sectors, WTCE 2017 was supported by M/s Green Brrew as ‘Associate Partner’ and by Goodricke Group Limited as ‘Beverage Partner’. Green Brrew is one of the fastest growing green coffee companies in India whereas Goodricke Group Ltd is a part of the Camellia plc UK – the world’s second largest private sector tea producer. WTCE 2017 was organised on a much bigger scale than the previous editions with some additional features like an upscale Display showcase, wider range of networking events, more educational content and national/international speakers with discussion sessions chaired by eminent Indian and global experts from the industry
WTCE 2017 was visited by buyers from a host of countries including USA, EU, UAE, UK, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, China, Nepal, Iran, Russia etc alongwith with India. With WTCE proving to be a catalyst for companies from across the world to expand their presence in India, the event witnessed launch of various latest innovations setting the trends related to the entire spectrum of the Hot Beverage sector.
Exhibitors who participated in the event too expressed great satisfaction over the opportunity to be a part of a dedicated industry expo which attracts only relevant buyers and peers from the industry. Companies which were a part of the Pavilions from India, Sri Lanka and Nepal too have been flooded with trade enquiries for bulk orders and/or dealerships.
Apart from representatives from the Hot Beverages Sector, the expo also attracts some major stakeholders from related sectors including Hoteliers and Institutional Caterers, Restaurateurs / Cafe owners / Resorts/ Caterers, Airlines representatives, Importers & Exporters, Hotel Suppliers Dealers, Mass Grocers, Supermarkets & Malls, Purchase Managers of large offices &retail chains, Packaging professionals, Dieticians / Nutritionists / Food Professionals, Chefs and cooking experts, Tea & Coffee Aficionados etc.
Since its launch in 2013, the expo has brought global industry players closer, enabled mega deals in addition to being the definite launch pad for new products and technologies especially for start-ups and SMEs who aspire for national / international expansion but have low budgets.
Speaking about the expo, Ms Priti Kapadia, Director, Sentinel Exhibitions Asia Pvt. Ltd said, “Since the past five years, this unique expo has been providing the most conducive setting for the hot beverage industry to meet and interact with each other to develop business opportunities. This year was even more successful than the previous editions.”
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
