It is certainly not a coincidence that, after only two editions, M.A.D.E. – Marques Associées Distribution Event – has managed to position itself as one of the main events in the food retail sector.
M.A.D.E. has proven that it can bring together a pool of experts – among the most competent in their fields – who put their knowledge and experience at the service of professionals.
In 2019, the event will be held on 19 and 20 March in Paris Porte de Versailles, in France.
For next year's edition, M.A.D.E.’s experts have chosen to draw attention to 'phygital' – a booming phenomenon in the food sector.
The Phygital Phenomenon
Innovation and future food expert Freddy Thiburce said, “The decision to focus the next edition of M.A.D.E. on phygital is the result of a series of observations. At a time when the food sector is going through a period of transition – even revolution – there is an even greater need for manufacturers and retailers to innovate in a highly competitive market.
“The creation of the Fédération Française du Commerce Phygital in the summer of 2018 demonstrates that something powerful is happening. This is not simply about updating a trend. It is a genuine break from what came before. At the moment, we do not have all the answers to the questions that arise – only a feeling of what will happen. We have good indicators, but not so many benchmarks,” added Thiburce.
Design consultant Fabrice Peltier commented, “Clearly, the entire food chain will switch to phygital, but we are really talking about digitising the ecosystems around the product. The product itself has not really changed. That is why it is important to talk about Phygital Food and Life.”
Expertise Benefitting The Food Sector
The goal of each edition of M.A.D.E. is to support the sector’s growth by providing the keys to analysing changes in the food sector, and to seize new opportunities, to gain an edge in the highly competitive food retail market.
M.A.D.E. also brings together new know-how, to co-create innovative, customised products in a food ecosystem that is going through a period of transition.
It matches supply with demand, and distributors with manufacturers, in order to promote efficient and successful business partnerships.
M.A.D.E.’s experts have chosen to make phygital the theme of the 2019 edition. Products are increasingly connected and personalised, blurring the border between the digital and physical.
An economic journalist specialising in retail, Olivier Bitoun, said, “We thought that digital technologies were going to crush physical outlets. Instead, pure-players are buying physical store chains. Phygital describes digital’s penetration of the physical world, and vice versa. It is at the heart of all sectors, including food.
“There is a lot of resistance and hindrances to shopping for food online, especially fresh and fragile products, so food products are currently the least likely to be bought online. The challenge today is convincing consumers to buy fresh products,” Bitoun added.
Even in the food sector, the physical world is being enriched by digital technologies.
The exhibitors’ products and the exhibition’s events – FoodTech Corner, the TV studio – will demonstrate phygital at M.A.D.E.
Sophie de Reynal, marketing manager at NutriMarketing, said, “The revolution is digital or technological, depending on what it covers – artificial intelligence, IOT, Big Data – and it affects all sectors of the food chain, from production to consumer.
“All actors in the chain are affected directly or indirectly – from the farmers who manage their inputs via drones and sell their production at market prices, to the transformers who set up the blockchain, connected packaging, and infinitely personalised products, to the distributors who offer new shopping experiences, and to the consumers who cannot get enough of it!” de Reynal added.
Second Edition Of 'Interviews And Controversies'
M.A.D.E will also conduct its second edition of 'Interviews and Controversies' on Thursday 17 January 2019, in Lille.
Industry experts will discuss how phygital will benefit the food-processing sector.
Some of the participants include Patrick Brunier, general delegate of PICOM Industries du Commerce, Nicolas Marra, sales manager at LSDH, and Fabrice Peltier, packaging design expert.
Other programmes on the schedule include 'State of the art' with MÉDIAMÉTRIE, 'Levers and impacts of phygital' with the trade body Fédération Française du Commerce Phygital, and 'Will product customisation move beyond wishes?' with PICOM Industries du Commerce.
The topic for discussion under 'Controversy' is 'Could phygital be the new Eldorado of the food supply?'
The topic for this year's roundtable will be 'Mass personalisation or individualised personalisation? The creation of customised products is a key issue facing the food-processing sector.'
The food supply imagined by start-ups' conclusion: 'Is phygital the solution to creating genuinely customised products?'
To attend the 'Interviews and Controversies' session, register here.
A Premium Event
M.A.D.E. is the annual premium event that brings together all stakeholders from the distribution networks – supermarkets, wholesalers, commercial and collective catering, delicatessens, organic stores, e-commerce – that are looking for talented manufacturing partners to create private-label, A-brand, and customised products.
M.A.D.E.’s central location in Paris and warm atmosphere facilitates meetings between new partners, discussions about future products, and even the implementation of projects in several sectors: groceries, fresh, frozen, design, packaging, Food Tech, and associated services.
Its manageable format brings together 450 exhibitor-manufacturers – including 35% from outside of France – who specialise in custom-made products.
The platform will showcase more than 50,000 products, including ingredients, packaging, related services, and finished products, that are the market’s major and emerging trends, such as organic, free-from, snack, vegan, ethnic, made in France, regional, premium, healthy, raw, and eco-designed.
An Opportunity For New Partnerships
The exhibition is expecting around 4,500 visitors who manufacture private-label products in various sectors, like retail, catering, specialised stores, delicatessens, e-commerce, wholesale, and exports.
M.A.D.E. is an opportunity for all visitors to think, co-create, and co-innovate. It also places at their disposal spaces to test, taste, compare, inspire, create and combine the products and know-how of the exhibitors.
Representatives from all departments of participating companies, including purchasing, sourcing, innovation, marketing, communication, management, R&D and quality, will be present at the event.
They will meet with start-ups, VSEs, SMEs, and large companies to exchange ideas, source new products, follow up on projects, and initiate new partnerships.
For more information, visit www.madeparis.com.
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