Many might argue that the equipment and supply industry is very old school in their thinking and the way they do business. Everything is done by in-person meetings or via telephone, with digital media either obsolete or very new in business strategies. The Food Equipment Digital Disruptors (FEDD) is on a mission to bring the industry into the digital age.
Led by President Rich Malachy and Media Manager Angel Quiroz, FEDD wants to teach, share and assist the food equipment industry in the growth of their brands and digital platforms. The goals of FEDD are to solve the skilled trades/technicians gap via digital content, providing solutions, education and know-how in order to help these companies better navigate their media platforms and leverage them for their bottom line.
What started as a Facebook group for the industry has quickly evolved in a new conference aimed at giving manufacturers, reps/dealer and service companies in the food industry a chance to obtain the tools needed to create a thriving and successful marketing department or company brand. Malachy has grown up in the industry thanks to his involvement with his father’s business. After seeing the lack of digital knowledge companies and brands he worked with, he took it upon himself to change the landscape.
“I wanted to help facilitate a place for people who didn’t really understand how to incorporate social media into their business,” Malachy admits. “We also wanted to have a space that allowed them to come online and network in order to form a community.”
“One of the things I’ve seen in the industry is that people build incredible relationships, but I wanted to disrupt the way people form those relationships and bring into a digital place so that they can do it quicker and more efficiently than before,” Quiroz added. “There’s no pressure to return phone calls or emails and we’re making it more social. The FEDD group is trying to disrupt the way people communicate within the industry, but in a positive way.”
The Conference is set to be held February 5th through 7th, 2020 in Miami, Florida, at the Confidante Miami Beach and will be a bi-annual event.
“Our thought is that it will run every other year from the NAFEM Show,” Malachy explained. The event will feature the best voices in both the digital space and food service industry in order to give attendees condensed and valuable resources for their digital journey and success.
Guest key speakers will include entrepreneur, brand marketing executive, public speaker and start-up founder Carlos Gil; creative brand storyteller and strategist Erick Koenig; and co-founder and President of Davisware, Inc. Jennifer Davis. Other speakers will include CEO and Owner of Malachy Parts & Service Rich Malachy; CEO of Windy City Equipment Services Josh Zolin; CEO of Much More Media Mike Moreno; and realtor and social media influencer Ed Stulak.
Attendees will be able to enjoy discussions, panels and talks on a vast array of useful subjects, such as marketing for the food equipment industry, humanizing your brand, the future of the industry in tech, brand strategy, how to build content and much more. Panel discussions and Q&As will also be utilized so that attendees can interact with guest speakers and get in-depth information as it relates to their personal business or brand.
According to Quiroz, the industry’s social media seems to be lackluster when it comes to content and the FEDD Convention looks to change this sentiment. Malachy would also like the outcome of the convention and FEDD in general to be a means where people within the industry can support each other online. “This will only help create more noise in the industry and it’ll also be a catalyst on making the industry more attractive to younger generations as they now see it as a viable career.”
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