Expert speakers, retailers and suppliers will be in attendance at the CSP Dispensed Beverages Forum by Informa, taking place April 27 to 29 at the Westin Chicago Lombard in Lombard, Illinois.
The forum will cover the latest trends across all dispensed beverage categories, including hot beverages (coffee, tea, specialty drinks), cold beverages (fountain drinks, teas, infused waters) and frozen beverages (slushies, frozen coffees, smoothies).
Sessions will address consumer preferences, equipment innovations, flavor trends and operational best practices to maximize beverage program performance.
The forum is ideal for convenience retailers, category managers, foodservice directors, operations executives and anyone responsible for beverage strategy and sales. Suppliers, equipment manufacturers and service providers in the dispensed beverage industry will also benefit from attending to connect with retail decision-makers and showcase their solutions.
Speakers at the event include:
- Yannis Apostolopoulos, CEO of the Specialty Coffee Association. His presentation, Why Great Coffee Matters: Quality, Craft and Impact, will include looking at what makes a great cup of coffee and why it matters for the future of the convenience-store industry. Apostolopoulos will talk about coffee’s journey from seed to cup, exploring how origin, agriculture, roasting and brewing come together to define quality.
- Robert Byrne, senior director, consumer research at CSP sister research arm Technomic, Chicago. Byrne will talk on 5 Consumer Realities Shaping the Future of Dispensed Beverages. Byrne will reveal five essential consumer truths to help retailers leverage new opportunities for growth, from occasion dynamics to flavor evolution and format preferences.
- Kyle Drenon, co-CEO of Supper Co., Springfield, Missouri. Drenon will discuss ways retailers can make their coffee and fountain programs more craveable, authentic and real. He will demonstrate how user-generated content, AI and other tools can “dynamize your everyday beverage interactions into high-performing marketing.”
- Rachel Toner, founder and technical director of Taste Strategy, Chalfont, Pennsylvania. Toner will look at reframing the consumer experience at a coffee bar not as a cost, but as a strategic choice that builds trust and long-term value.
- Todd Smith, president of Sandy, Utah-based Swig. Smith will talk about Making Sodas Cool Again. Smith will share “the fun and thrilling rise” of Swig, which specializes in dirty sodas.
CSP and Informa Connect are both part of London-based Informa PLC. For more information and to register, click here.
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