The 2022 Agenda was as followed:

10:00 Welcome address

Jill Livesey, MD, MCA & Lumina Intelligence

10:05 Pret, fast tracking growth. Guy Meakin, Managing Director

Pret A Manger’s omnichannel journey was fast-tracked during the Covid years, and following the runaway success of its coffee subscription, the brand is evolving the model with its Pret Perks loyalty scheme. In this presentation, interim MD Guy Meakin will update on Pret’s business transformation, growth and how the brand’s people have helped shape its success.

10:25 Lumina Intelligence, the power of restaurant brands in retail, and delivery trends. Blonnie Whist, Insight director

Blonnie will reveal exclusive Lumina Intelligence research on the power of restaurant brands in supermarket aisles. She will examine the opportunity for FMCG products, meal kits and ready meals, as well as levels of consumer awareness and perceptions of these products. Blonnie, Insight Director at Lumina Intelligence will share, too, the latest trends in foodservice delivery using data from proprietary Eating & Drinking Out Panel data.

10:45 PizzaExpress, powerhouse brand, challenger mindset. Zoe Bowley, Managing Director

PizzaExpress is an iconic brand which has long been an omnichannel leader, with 57 years serving customers in Pizzerias, 22 years on supermarket shelves and seven years delivering pizzas to customers’ homes. In this exclusive presentation, MD Zoe Bowley will discuss how PizzaExpress’ channels work together, connected by industry leading loyalty and digital transformation. Zoe will share her insights and experiences on growing a powerhouse multichannel brand, while maintaining a challenger mindset.”

11:05 Coffee break

11:25 Omnichannel, an international perspective. Tim Cook, UK Managing Partner, OC&C Strategy Consultants

Tim will examine how grocery retailers, foodservice players and property development companies in the US, France, China and India have tackled the omnichannel foodservice opportunity. He’ll share what’s worked and what hasn’t, assessing latest trends from concessions and kiosks, to the evolution of delivery hubs, dark and shared kitchens, and the role of virtual brands.

11:45 Panel, meeting the diversification challenge

With a multitude of potential sales channels to explore, ambitious operators are each on a unique diversification journey. In this panel, we will explore different omnichannel approaches, which include a virtual kitchen rollout, a direct-to-consumer e-commerce platform, and creating new restaurant concepts within supermarkets.

• Sara McKennedy, Commercial Brand Director, Coco di Mama
• Satnam Leihal, CEO, Boparan Restaurant Group

12:10 LEON, transformation and innovation. Mariam French, Marketing Director

Since its launch, Leon has succeeded in bringing healthy ‘fast food’ to a wide consumer base. This admired, award-winning company was recently bought by the Issa Brothers, owners of the EG forecourt group and Asda. Mariam, Leon’s Marketing Director, will discuss how this new ownership has informed and enabled new approaches to reaching customers, including drive thru openings, digital transformation such as customer ordering screens, branded products into retail as well as grocery offers at some of their venues and how, throughout this, the company has stayed true to its founding principles.

12:30 Picadeli, a ‘smart’ foodservice concept for UK retail: David van Laskowski, CEO.

Initially launching in Sweden, Picadeli’s high-tech fresh salad bars are now sited in supermarkets across Europe. In this presentation CEO David von Laskowski outlines how the salad bar concept works, the success it’s enjoyed so far, and its expansion plans, including its recent launch in the US and its evaluation of the UK and other markets where it’s not currently represented.

12:50 Lunch

14:00 Launching restaurant brands into retail: David Marston, co-founder, Alexis Philippidis, Head of commercial, Taste Shakers

Working with brands including Stem & Glory and Le Pain Quotidien, Taste Shakers helps restaurant operators to capitalise on the power of retail. David and Alexis will provide insight into the restaurant-branded grocery category in terms of size, future growth and market potential, outline the opportunity of retail for operators and discuss what retailers are looking for and how to approach them in the most effective way.

14:20 Investment panel – why an omnichannel approach is essential

Eating out brands are increasingly expected to have a considered omnichannel strategy in order to attract investment. In this session we will speak to three specialists – two private equity partners and a financial advisor - about why leveraging brand recognition, and having multiple routes to market, is a must in today’s world.

• Ali Aneizi, founder, Tamweel Capital
• Robin Rowland, partner, TriSpan
• Yasha Estraikh, associate partner - brand, Piper Private Equity

14:45 Coffee break

15:05 Panel, tech and delivery as omnichannel enablers

Taking the omnichannel route may seem daunting but the rewards can be high. This panel will discuss the key ingredients for success, from delivery platforms and integration, to the tech involved in customer-facing ordering systems, to loyalty programmes and collecting and using customer data.

• Ruth Carpenter, Head of Marketing, Pizza Pilgrims
• Ellie Starr, Senior strategic partnerships manager, Just Eat
• Nick Liddle, Commercial director, Vita Mojo

15:30 Itsu, a comprehensive, customer-led approach. Ganan Kanagathurai, UK CEO

Itsu has been at the forefront of expanding into new sales channels, from mobile and kiosk ordering, to delivery, e-commerce and retail - Itsu Grocery now being a £50m business. In this presentation UK CEO Ganan Kanagathurai will discuss moving quickly on digital channels, bringing data together on Itsu's in-store and retail customers, and why he sees tech as the enabler rather the solution for an omnichannel strategy.

16:00 After conference drinks