When we were invited to attend the 2018 Fancy Food Show in San Francisco, it was an opportunity that we could not pass up. There is nothing more enjoyable than being fancy, and of course food! All of the yummy samples aside, we knew this would be a great opportunity for our team to meet the most innovative companies in the food industry. And all innovation needs a spoonful marketing.

This was our first experience attending a convention of this size while representing Cobalt & Sapphire. We met a lot of incredible companies, ate a lot of delicious food, and learned a  tremendous amount about ourselves. We hope this helps you the next time you attend a convention (and plus we have provided links to delicious, wholesome food companies below).

This might seem obvious but you have to think everything through from start to finish. You will be spending most of your time at a convention on your feet, which means that you should plan your outfits with comfortable shoes in mind. Also, consider what you are holding in your hands or on your back. Remember, you will always leave a convention with more than you started with. This is because most conventions provide totes to collect samples and brochures. If you bring a giant bag that is already heavy you are not going to be a happy convention goer. Taking a few added steps to think ahead helps to maintain your energy for the remainder of the convention. Which leads me to our next piece of advice…

And no we do not mean the delicious new spicy mayonnaise that we tried at the Secret Aardvark’s booth. If you try to do too much in one day you will surely wear yourself out. We knew the Fancy Food Show was Sunday – Tuesday. Because we had exhibitor badges, we were even able to get in on Saturday during set up to meet some vendors ahead of time. This also allowed us to prepare a game plan as to what hall we wanted to start in and spend most of our time. We spent the whole day Sunday talking to lots of amazing people – leaving us physically and mentally exhausted. We gave ourselves Monday off and continued exploring on Tuesday. Spread out your attendance at a giant convention like this and your feet will thank you!

This is probably the most important tip on our list. If your goal is to leave the event with potential leads and connections, you must be organized. What we mean by this is when you get a company’s card, don’t just throw it into your tote where it will get lost. Keep all cards you collect in one spot. Even have a pen on you to jot down a quick note of who you talked to and this will help your memory when you return home. For example, we spoke to a lot of people who gave us someone else in the company’s business card. To remember their name for future follow-ups it helped to write it down. It is literally impossible to remember everyone’s name when you are talking to hundreds of people a day. This also applies to business cards and brochures you will be handing out. Have them all in the same place and organized so you can quickly hand them out when it’s appropriate. Nothing is more distracting than when you have to dig through your bag or your pocket to find your own business card.

Whichever convention you find yourself at always remember the tips above and you’re sure to make it a successful show!

We even did all of the hard work for you, below is a list of our favorite companies from this year’s FFS. Take a look & enjoy!

Most Clever Packaging:
Matcha Bar NYC caught our attention with their clever one-liners on their bottles. Each bottle has a saying like “Original Matcha is your guru’s guru” or “Apple Ginger Matcha can win an argument in 140 characters or less.” These quick-witted one-liners are like Snapple facts, for millennials.

Best Looking Booth:
We loved LA Libations booth because they were sampling many products but their booth was clean. Their display included hardwood floors and various counters where they were sampling drinks, it was organized and informative.

Most Consistent Branding:
We saw so many companies with great branding, but the most memorable had to be Hakuna Banana. Everything about their booth was related back to their banana based ice creams. They had fake grass on the floor of their booth as well as banana themed shirts and hats, which added a nice touch. Their brand carries everywhere from their business cards to their website, flawlessly. And the co-founders are also Berkeley Haas Alumni! #GoBears

Friendliest Booth:
A company from Colorado wins this category. We walked by Yum Bana a few times and they were warm and friendly each time. They were passionate when explaining their product but were also interested in what we had to say as well. Also, it helps that their gluten-free cakes were DELICIOUS!

Best Tasting Snack:
This category was really hard to decide on since we ate so many amazing foods from all over the world. But we tried Bubbas Foods two days in a row and each day we were pleasantly surprised with the ‘nana chips. These were banana chips but if we were blindfolded we would have guessed they were potatoes, and we know our chips.