2026 Agenda - more to be announced
SECURE YOUR PLACE TODAY
Leaders’ panel: The future of hospitality innovation
With brand relevancy key to success in today’s fast-moving yet challenging consumer landscape, we ask how leaders are balancing commercial realities with bold innovation across food, tech and the customer experience. The panel will also explore growth strategies in a cost-constrained market and how to cut through the noise to identify true trends.
Panellists:- Tom James, MD, Bill’s
- Caroline Ottoy, managing director, WatchHouse
- Gemma Glasson, CEO, Wahaca
AI in Hospitality: From hype to operational impact
This session examines where AI is delivering real value today—and what’s coming next. Our panellists explore, citing real-world case studies, AI copilots for operations and head office, agentic AI & automation in restaurants, personalisation and customer data, labour optimisation and predictive forecasting and more.
Panellists:- Jim Hingston, digital and technology director, Azzurri Group
- Rob Trippett, IT director, Heartwood Group
- Kerry Gilbert, head of restaurant technology, Wagamama
Retail innovation: Threat and opportunity
Flora Zwolinski, insight lead & senior insight manager, Lumina Intelligence
Retail and FMCG remain powerful engines of innovation, with trends such as functional nutrition, snackification and globally inspired own-label ranges reshaping consumer expectations. In this quick session, Flora Zwolinski, insight lead and senior insight manager at Lumina Intelligence, will explore the innovations driving growth across retail categories and examine what foodservice operators can learn from them.
Shelf made – how hospitality brands win in retail
As more consumers look to recreate restaurant-quality experiences at home, specialist hospitality brands are finding new opportunities to grow beyond their four walls and into supermarket shelves. But how much does success in grocery demand an entirely different mindset? This panel will bring together operators who have crossed into the supermarket aisles to discuss what drives success and the commercial decisions behind translating a hospitality experience into a scalable retail proposition.
Panellists:- Gulrez Singh Arora, CEO and co-founder, Gymkhana Fine Foods
- Sara McKennedy, MD, Coco di Mama
- Lesley Mcilroy, sales and marketing director, Ole & Steen
From fried chicken to drinks destination: How KFC turned Kwench into a nationwide hit
Leo Sloley, strategy and innovation director, KFC UKI
KFC’s strategy & innovation director Leo Sloley reveals how customer insight, rapid testing and bold category expansion transformed Kwench from a Manchester pilot into one of the brand’s fastest-ever rollouts. Discover the innovation framework behind a drinks range that doubled sales in trial stores, opened new growth occasions and helped reposition KFC for the next generation of consumers.
The secret sauce behind menu makeovers
Our panel shares their process behind menu changes from insight, through to ideation and activation. Satiating customer demand for bold new dishes and flavours, and with margin in mind, they discuss lessons learned, key successes and the means to pain free execution.
Panellists:- Elia Elio, co-founder, Chopstix
- Louise MacLean, business development director, Signature Pubs Group
- Joel Robinson, co-founder and CTO, Openr
Delivery - the innovations fuelling growth
Foodservice delivery is now embedded into consumer habits, powered by younger convenience-led, tech-savvy users - but where does the next wave of growth come from? This session explores how operators are evolving delivery through smarter tech, seamless integration and better customer journeys - from WhatsApp ordering and AI orchestration to menu optimisation, sustainable packaging, and balancing aggregator scale with direct relationships.
Panellists:- Rebecca Carroll, marketing director Papa Johns UK
- Rory Scallan, commercial director, Five Guys Europe
- Joe Heather, VP UK&I, Deliverect
- Claire Barrett, senior manager global digital product, Subway
Reinventing the occasion: How bars are adapting to changing consumer behaviour
From low and no options to functional drinks, consumers are increasing looking for options outside the traditional alcoholic categories. In this panel we explore the trends and formats that are driving drinks sales, from experience-led venues to bottomless brunches, and ask how operators are adapting to the changing social behaviour of different generations.
Panellists:- Charlie Gilkes, co-founder and director, Inception Group
- Sarah Miller, chief operating officer, Nightcap
- Jamie Hazeel, joint MD and co-founder, Little Door & Co
Lifestyle, culture & community: The formula behind hospitality’s most influential brands
Stand-out hospitality operators need to offer more than just a place to eat or stay; the best are projecting an aspirational, distinctive lifestyle. From cultivating communities to staying creatively relevant as they scale, this session will unpack how brands maintain their edge, evolve with changing audiences, and create long-term engagement.
Panellists:- Georgina Hayward, director of brand marketing, Yard Sale Pizza
- Martina Luger, chief brand officer, Ennismore
Liquid assets: The evolution of beverage-led hospitality
Amid evergrowing demand for matcha and ube and the premiumisation of classics such as hot chocolate, beverage-led concepts are redefining the future of hospitality, driving new formats, experiences and revenue opportunities. Join industry leaders as they explore the trends, innovations and strategies shaping the next generation of drinks-focused venues in the UK hospitality sector.
Panellists:- William Gordon-Harris, CEO, Knoops
- Otto Boyer, co-founder & CEO, JENKI
Built to Scale: The Salad Project's Digital Growth Engine
Danna Gurbaxani, CRO, Vita Mojo
From one site in 2021 to 15 today, with Paris next and a target of 20 London locations by 2027, The Salad Project has paired rapid expansion with a relentless focus on digital innovation. In this case study with director of product Clem Haxby and Vita Mojo, hear how apps, unified loyalty, data insights and digital-first formats are helping one of hospitality's fastest-growing brands scale smarter and grow faster.