Retail Asia 2018 RA AUG2018_Online | Page 38

SPECIAL REVIEW Speciality Fine Food Asia and Restaurant, Pub & Bar Asia 2018 welcomed more than 3,300 visitors from the food and beverage and hospitality industries across South-east Asia. The top three winners in the ‘Productive Business Solutions for the F&B Industry’ track were Good for Food, Beekeeper Communications and TAB. people in Asia — especially in big cities like Singapore — they don’t really like cooking because they can go out and buy food everywhere but maybe this is a way to bring family or couples together and discover the culture of cooking.” Another highlight of the trade show was the inaugural Investor Pitching Series launched to provide a practical springboard for companies with exciting, innovative ideas to pitch their concepts and products to a panel of industry judges for real- time feedback. Over 10 companies live-pitched their ideas to a panel of industry leaders including representatives from Mastercard, Golden Equator Consulting, The Lo & Behold Group, UOB, Enterprise Singapore and more. The top three winners in the ‘Productive Business Solutions for the F&B Industry’ track were Good for Food, Beekeeper Communications and TAB — all local companies that leveraged technology to solve real- life challenges faced by the F&B industry. Speciality & Fine Food Asia and Restaurant, Pub & Bar Asia will take place again next year from July 17-19. ra Asia is a market that many of the exhibitors at SFFA hope to enter. Bite-sized learning on the go SPECIALITY & FINE FOOD ASIA (SFFA) 2018 also saw the launch of Employment and Employability Institute’s (e2i) new F&B mobile modules on ULeap, a mobile learning app, for quick, bite-sized learning on the F&B industry. The mobile learning platform, with short multimedia content on various topics contributed by Knowledge Partners such as industry partners and 36 Retail Asia August 2018 associations, allows learners to stay up-to-date on current trending issues and participate in various learning communities to discuss best practices and exchange knowledge. Instead of developing new courses over a period of three to six months, Knowledge Partners can harness the sharing by various learning communities to curate and construct bite-sized lessons on ULeap to meet current demands. They will also take the roles of moderators and validators in the learning communities. The topics of the new F&B modules range from practical tips for hands-on learners; tools and content for business owners; as well as guides for learners who would like to know where their food comes from, to insights into the future of F&B technology. ra