Description

Sponsored by the International Franchise Association and organized by MFV Expositions, the International Franchise Expo (IFE) 2011 will be held April 1-3, 2011, at the Walter E. Washington Convention, in Washington, D.C. IFE Expo 2011 is the largest and most important annual trade show in the world for franchising, featuring nearly 200 franchise exhibitors, with investments ranging from US $5,000 to US $ 1 million. Attendees have the opportunity to meet face-to-face with executives of the exhibiting franchisors and to attend free seminars as well as other symposia sessions from the world's leading franchise experts. The full conference program with a list of all "free" and symposia session is available at: http://www.ifeinfo.com/FS_Friday.asp.

Recent statistics provided by the International Franchise Association show how important a role franchising plays in the U.S. economy. Franchising accounts for 50% of all U.S. retail sales (just over $1 trillion annually). More than 8 million people are employed by franchises in the U.S. in more than 75 different industries, with an average 8 to 14 employees per establishment.

Franchising, as a method of doing business, is increasing worldwide. Rapidly growing markets now include the Pacific Rim countries, especially Singapore,Taiwan and Malaysia, the Middle East Gulf States, especially Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, Latin America, Eastern and Western Europe, and most recently China, Russia, and the countries of the former Soviet Union.

The U.S. Department of Commerce's Franchising Team will be offering a free Showtime program at IFE Expo 2011 for U.S. exhibitors. The goal of the Showtime program is to better utilize the franchising industry expertise of the delegation leaders by providing one-on-one counseling to U.S. exhibitors who sign up for the Showtime program. Export counseling may include export market overview briefings, discussion of best export opportunities in the client's target markets, as well as matching delegation members with prospective U.S. exhibitors.

Companies interested in exhibiting at IFE 2011, should contact Ms. Corali Romero, with MFV Expositions by phone (201) 226-1130, or e-mail: ibp@ifeinfo.com.

Internal Comments

The Franchising Team is actively supporting IFE 2011 and will be providing a Showtime/Matchmaking program at the event.