Upon tear down of a booth, the sales reps running the booth tossed all the unused booth food samples into that large gray custodial bin we all have seen across the Trade Show circuit. I asked the reps why?, their response was they "were in a hurry and had to catch a plane". One thought to ponder as owners of an exibiting company:
What if all exhibitors in the trade show food industry required attending reps to donate their left over booth samples to the local food bank upon tear down, and required a proof receipt? (It is easy and usually they are on premises). Why that single act would be a good thing:
- You would help in some small way the families that don't know where their next meal will come from.
- You will save on poorly kept and damaged shipped back samples. (If reps even take the time.)
- You might , in some small way, help the needy and feel good about yourself.
- Your reps may not over ship samples, via overnight costs, and thereby save a lot on trade show expenses.
- Please Read point number 1 again.
JMHO
Great Suggestion. The NASFT Fancy Food Show in NYC works in conjunction with a city based volunteer group that appears at the end of each show with hundreds of volunteers to gather, sort and handle both perishables and shelf stable samples. It is an impressive and moving sight to see so many people volunteering. They literally clear that excess food from the entire Javits center in a matter of only a few hours.
ReplyDeleteIt would be great to see other show managers coordinate similar efforts when food is included in trade shows.
Jack:
ReplyDeleteYou have it backwards. The organizers of the show should make arrangements with a local food pantry well in advance of the event and letting exhibitors know that a rep of the food pantry will be by during the show to determine whether or not the company is interested in donating.
During the show, the reps from the pantry can visit each booth, determine what will be donated, and make specific plans to accommodate the type and amount of food being donated as well as provide the tax documentation.
Unless and until you make it frictionless for the exhibitor, needing to catch the plane is always going to win out over searching for someone to donate the stuff to and wait for the documentation.
:: Clay Gordon
Creator/Moderator
TheChocolateLife.com
PS. The trade show's organizers should also offer the food pantry a free booth to promote their work and work out of during the show.
What an excellent idea Jack!
ReplyDeleteBut as Clay says it, it's a shame it has to be so complicated to put that in place, while people just need to be able to get free food when they're hungry it.
Maybe you should suggest that to the organizers...