The 2023 FEDA Annual Conference will be presented at the Omni PGA Frisco Resort in Frisco, Texas from Oct. 24-27, 2023.

Chef, restaurateur, New York Times Best Selling author and Emmy Award-winning TV host, Guy Fieri is one of the world’s most recognizable and influential culinary stars. Fieri shared how he helped lead an inspiring and successful campaign to support and rebuild the restaurant industry during and after COVID.

10:30 a.m. CDT Tuesday, Dec. 6

The value-added sales call is the tactical execution of the Value-Added Selling Process®. The eighth and final part of the 2022 Live Webinar series will demonstrate a step-by-step execution of the process in front of the customer.

This webinar will include:

• Opening with impact by establishing rapport and previewing objectives
• Customer needs analysis
• Content areas of probing: S-C-P® Formula
• Multi-level customer needs
• Presenting your company’s solution with style and substance
• Closing strategies and handling customer resistance

At the end of this webinar, participants will be able to:

• Tactically execute the sales call
• Uncover the customer’s needs
• Present a compelling solution
• Gain the customer’s commitment

Participants will earn 1 credit toward a sales strategies certification.

10:30 a.m. CDT Tuesday, Nov. 8

In this phase of the sales process, dealers are supporting the customer and providing a smooth, seamless transition. Part seven of the 2022 Live Webinar Series on value-added selling will discuss after-market strategies for delivering on all the promises made to the customer on the front end.

Topics covered in this webinar include:

• Value reinforcement – Reminding the customer of your value-added services
• Leveraging – Achieving maximum account penetration

At the end of this webinar, participants will be able to:

• List three ideas to reinforce the value of your solution
• List three ways to leverage your existing relationships
• Describe cross-serving and how to implement this idea

Participants will earn 1 credit toward a sales strategies certification.

Young industry leaders learned how one company built a culture focused on diversity and inclusion, which included leadership’s strong commitment and accountability for creating opportunities for candidates of color, expanding global and diverse talent and building a more inclusive workplace. 

Steve Forbes is chairman and editor-in-chief of Forbes Media, one of the world’s most successful business magazines for more than a century. An internationally recognized expert in global economics and finance and an advocate for businesses, Forbes shared his concerns about the most serious barriers impacting U.S. economic recovery, including inflation’s effect on the current and coming stock market; proposed tax hikes; the impending wave of antitrust actions; and regulatory blunders that are crushing American ingenuity.

Some of the FES industry’s most successful manufacturers discussed manufacturer and dealer challenges and opportunities related to labor shortages, evolving industry technology, equipment innovation, and a focused on supply chain resiliency through sustainability, visibility and technology

Dirk Beveridge is the founder of UnleashWD, the premier design, strategy and innovation firm in wholesale distribution. Beveridge shared the insights he gained from traveling across the United States post-COVID to gather data from distributors in a variety of industries. This culmination of insights, called “Unapologetically You,” from his We Supply America tour, asserts that independent distributors can and are competing effectively today and should be recognized as the “Noble Generation” for keeping the nation’s economy, workforce and supply chain going strong despite unfathomable setbacks over the last several years. Beveridge also discussed how dealers can overcome their own false narratives about their industry that keep them from having the confidence to forge ahead in new ways they never thought they could before.

The conference opened by welcoming leaders working on behalf of foodservice operators, including President and CEO of the California Restaurant Association Jot Condie, who will provide an overview of the state of the foodservice industry and the policy and operational needs of its more than 22,000 members. Additionally, 30-year restaurant industry veteran and now Black Box Intelligence CEO David Cantu discussed his views on restaurant recovery and what the data on over 87,000 restaurants is telling us about the foodservice challenges ahead.

10:30 a.m. CDT Tuesday, Oct. 18

As dealers reach this phase of the sales process, they focus on supporting the customer and providing a smooth, seamless transition. Part six of the 2022 Live Webinar Series on value-added selling will help dealers build deeper relationships with their customers and deliver on the high expectations they have set.

Topics covered in this webinar include:

• People and process support – Creating a smooth and seamless transition
• Relationship building – Developing deeper customer loyalty
• Tinkering – Re-creating value for the customer

At the end of this module, participants will be able to:

• Support the customer during the transition
• List three relationship-building tips
• Conduct a Tinkering sales call 

Participants will earn 1 credit toward a sales strategies certification.