On February 5th at the Confidante Hotel in Miami Florida, Rich Malachy (Owner at ) and his Director of Marketing Angel Quiroz assembled a grouping of 11 keynote speeches all about how to incorporate digital marketing into the food equipment world.
The FEDD Group began when Rich Malachy and Angel Quiroz started a private Facebook group dedicated to helping all channel partners communicate more effectively and frequently.They used it as a way to educate others about the perks of digital marketing. The group quickly shot up to 400 industry professionals and this made Rich and Angel re-evaluate the function of the group. It quickly became clear that the natural trajectory of this group would be an industry event, and the concept for the FEDD Conference went from there.
The FEDD Group’s primary objective as Angel describes, is to raise the profile of the skilled trades all together and help to fix the dreaded trades gap by providing an authentic look into the industry via digital content.
The FEDD Conference hosted people from all sides of the food equipment and digital marketing industry, including companies like Hobart, Heritage and Univex. Also in attendance, a variety of industry CEO’s like Josh Zolin and Joe Ferri.
When asked for a synopsis about the conference, Josh Zolin (Owner at Windy City Equipment) said: “The FEDD Conference undoubtedly provided much-needed perspective to, not only myself, but all the attendees about the importance of utilizing digital media to expand their presence in the industry. It was a truly eye-opening and inspiring experience!”
Similarly, “If you’re not here, you’re way behind,” said Terry Strong of Hobart Service when he was asked about what he thought of the event.
Evan Preisel, Director of Marketing at Univex was also quoted saying “Not only do I want to go to the next [conference], I want to speak at the next one!”
The FEDD conference was jam packed with speakers and panels. A panel specifically teaching how to use YouTube in the food equipment world as well as a panel on how to better communicate between channel partners using the digital platforms we have available for free. There was even a whole session dedicated to connecting with each other on LinkedIn and Instagram. Cory Yates, (Owner at Alpha Omega Restaurant Equipment Repair) stated that this was “A gathering of industry professionals all looking to increase their footprint and invest in their companies to become better leaders.” He went on to say that he was “Honored to be among my peers and be a part of the 1st FEDD (Food Equipment Digital Disruptors) Conference. Big thanks to @richmalachy for pulling this weekend together.”
Among notable speakers were Carlos Gil, Marketer and Best Selling author of the book “The End of Marketing”, and Jennifer Davis owner of Davisware. The topics ranged from “customer intimacy strategy” all the way to “Humanizing your brand” and even a deep dive into the differences between corporate and personal branding.
The consensus was clear, this was the food equipment industry’s first digital marketing conference and most of the attendees left with a better understanding of how to utilize the digital world for their specific company needs.
Malachy has already announced the FEDD Group’s second event, an industry-wide event in Jersey City specifically for Women. A place where women in the blue collar world can meet and showcase their stories in order to encourage new generations of women to join the trades. The event is set for August and details still remain to be announced.
If you are looking to get involved with the FEDD group feel free to request to join the Facebook group at
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