The industry’s largest bar and beverage trade fair, Bar Convent Berlin, will return in 2024 for its 18th edition this October. The show launched in 2007, with this year having more than 500 exhibitors, 12,000 visitors and over 80 talks and seminars focused on the global bar industry.
The event will return to Exhibition Centre Berlin for a second year after it relocated, where bar owners, bartenders, distributors and manufacturers from almost 90 countries will showcase their products and network.
Seminars
Highlights of the show’s line-up of speakers include Leo Robitschek from the Nomad Group discussing the needs and beauty of the restaurant bar. Speaking on his philosophy about reading the room will be winner of the 2024 hospitality award Keith Motsi from Tokyo’s Virtù, along with Jean Trinh of Alquímico Bar Cartagena discussing building lasting communities in cities. Alex Francis, ex-Little Red Door in Paris, will continue to explain the trials and tribulations of opening a new bar in one of the world’s premier markets.
There will also be category-specific seminars, such as Priyanka Blah and Yash Bhanage discussing the growth of India as a key hospitality market. Other sessions will cover accessing or designing effective bartender education and sustainability, as shown by bars like Line in Athens.
This year’s show will also have some innovations in stage concepts, with the main stage, for the first time, located in the Rotunda in Hall 16, where visitors can expect presentations and panels by well-known bar experts.
The new BCB Workshop Stage will provide the opportunity for visitors to be active, with a focus on interaction and hands-on elements. The practical workshops will cover topics such as garnishing, cocktail photography and videography, carbonation, working flair and flavour theory run by experts and celebrated authors.
“This area will also include workshops on emotional intelligence and gender-neutral mixology, which promise to be eye-opening and game-changing for the industry,” said Angus Winchester, BCB director of education.
This year’s show will also have an increased focus on whisk(e)y, as the spirit will have its own highlight area, where a programme on whisk(e)y topics will take place over all three days of the trade fair.
In addition to its own bar, which will be managed by the Collab Bar team from Hamburg, there will be a separate education area to educate visitors on all aspects of whisky.
Partnering with BCB, OurWhisky, the non-profit organisation founded by Becky Paskin, will curate the education programme at this year’s Whisk(e)y Embassy. Visitors can expect seminars that will cover a range of whisky topics, from Whisky 101 to cocktail masterclasses and how to create the perfect whisky menu.
