Today’s most successful restaurant brands are venturing beyond their home countries. In fact, the trend is so hot that food service franchises took 19 spots on Entrepreneur’s 2016 list of Top 50 global franchises, which is one reason the Restaurant Franchising & Innovation Summit is making its European debut, July 18-20, 2017 at London’s Grange City Hotel.
The annual summit, which explores how restaurant franchises can leverage innovation as a catalyst for expansion, brings together c-level executives from around the world to share growth and innovation strategies, said Cherryh Cansler, host of the summit, and director of editorial of Networld Media Group, which is producing the three-day event.
“During our sessions, attendees will learn from some of the world’s most successful restaurateurs,” she said. “They’ll discuss progressive ways to build their businesses that have helped them attract both investors and customers. They’ll also have the opportunity to socialize with one another at several events we’ve planned. We call it, ‘partying with a purpose.'”
The event in London will be the second Restaurant Franchising & Innovation Summit in 2017. The first is March 28-30 in Dallas, Cansler said.
“Franchisers around the world — not just those based in the U.S. — need information, so we felt compelled to offer two events this year so more people could learn as much as possible,” she said.
On the London agenda
Carl Howard, CEO of Fazoli’s, and Justin Livingston, VP of development of Coyote Ugly, are keynoting the summit. Howard will discuss how he transformed Fazoli’s from a failing quick-service brand into a thriving fast casual brand that has reported strong growth and sales over the past few year. Livingston’s keynote, “Building a Brand that Transcends Borders,” will not only feature a behind-the-scenes look into Coyote Ugly’s global journey, but Livingston will also share tips on how and when franchises should expand beyond their own borders.
Other session topics include:
- The Ultimate Balance: Empowering the Franchisee vs. Maintaining Brand Integrity
- How Big Name U.S. Brands Are Using the Latest Tech to Drive Sales: Innovative Restaurant Equipment and Its Impact on Sales, Services and the Bottom Line
- Going Big with a Small Budget
- How the Rise of the Fast Casual Pizza Concept is Changing Delivery
- Navigating the Supply Chain
- Winning the War on Talent
- Global Innovation: Is Your Menu on Trend?
- Driving Sales with Food Trucks
Additional speakers (among others) include:
- Mario C. Bauer, CEO, Vapiano Franchising
- Brian Duckett, chairman, The Franchising Centre
- Eric Ersher, founder/CEO, Zoup!
- Elizabeth Friend, Consumer Foodservice Strategy Analyst, Euromonitor
- Andrew Gruel, founder/CEO, Slapfish
- Stacey Kane, CMO, East Coast Wings
- Tommi Tervanen, CEO, Koti Pizza Group
- James Walker, president of operations and development, Johnny Rockets
Register now to get early-bird pricing for the London event.
Early-bird pricing for the Dallas summit, March 28-30, is also open.
Speaker opportunities and sponsorship opportunities are also available for both locations.
About Networld Media Group
Founded in 2000, Networld Media Group is a leading business-to-business (B2B) media communications company specializing in digital media, associations and events in the mobile, self-service, digital signage, retail, food service and financial services industries. Online properties include ATMmarketplace.com, DigitalSignageToday.com, FastCasual.com, PizzaMarketplace.com, KioskMarketplace.com, MobilePaymentsToday.com, VirtualCurrencyToday.com, QSRweb.com, RetailCustomerExperience.com and ChurchCentral.com. Networld event properties include the Fast Casual Executive Summit, CONNECT: The Mobile CX Summit, Interactive Customer Experience Summit, Bank Customer Experience Summit and the Restaurant Franchising & Innovation Summit. Networld also operates the ICX Association. Its newest offering, Networld Press, provides clients with an all-in-one website solution featuring custom website design and ongoing editorial, content strategy and website updates.
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