The Restaurant & Food Group by Informa Connect Unveils the New Nation’s Restaurant News Magazine and CREATE Community Fueled by Record Digital Growth

NEW YORK, Nov. 11, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Restaurant & Food Group by Informa Connect, the leading B2B media group in foodservice and food retail, is excited to announce record growth in audience connections, investments in integrated media efforts across print, digital and marketing services and an expanded flagship Nation’s Restaurant News magazine (NRN).

During a period of unprecedented challenges in 2020, The Restaurant & Food Group worked diligently to become closer to audience and customer needs through compelling content, new product development and a laser focus on always being the authentic, trusted voice for restaurants and food retailers.

Record Growth at Flagship NRN Fuels Audience Trust, Engagement and Performance

Throughout the extraordinary challenges of these past nine months, the foodservice industry has turned to Nation’s Restaurant News like never before*:

• 86% of readers feel information from NRN has been more important than ever
• NRN is 6x more likely to be recommended as an information source than any nearest B2B media competitor
• 98% of readers still receive the printed magazine, or the digital edition of NRN, even amid the COVID-19 pandemic
• More than 80% of readers took an action after an article or advertisement in NRN
• NRN.com has seen record audience growth with Average Monthly Unique Users up 59%, Sessions up 72% and Page Views up 34% from a year ago.
• Open rates of flagship eNewsletter NRN a.m. are industry leading, averaging more than 40%.
• The Restaurants Rise digital community has engaged thousands of leading executives across three premier digital events, nearly 100 sessions, and a rating of 4.6 out of 5 stars for the latest Restaurants Rise powered by MUFSO experience in October.
  

* Sources: Informa Restaurant & Food Group Audience Survey (Sept. 2020), Signet AdEffect Study (July 2020), Google Analytics (Jan. – June 2020), Eloqua (Jan. – June 2020), Publishers Data (Jan. – Oct. 2020)

Committed to Integrated Media Opportunities, and a New NRN Magazine

Launching in January 2021, the new NRN magazine will be the foodservice industry’s only business-to-business print magazine dedicated to serving the information, insights and solutions needs for the entire commercial restaurant industry, including large chains, emerging concepts, and independents – and across all segments from full service to quick service. The new magazine will feature an expanded print and digital circulation including the most engaged audience from independent restaurant focused sister brand Restaurant Hospitality and totaling more than 100,000 qualified readers.

NRN and its leading NRN.com will continue to lead the restaurant industry through one of its most trying periods in history with a refreshed monthly magazine and new digital offerings covering the most relevant topics for a changing restaurant landscape, with emphasis on its award-winning in-depth reporting and analysis.

“There is no other voice like the voice of Nation’s Restaurant News. At Informa Connect we are closer to the needs of the industry than ever before, and now is the time for us to commit to offering impactful and integrated media opportunities for our customers and our audience. With a qualified audience from the largest of chains to the most creative of independent restaurants, quite simply, we serve all restaurants,” says Sarah Lockyer, group director of the Restaurant & Food Group by Informa Connect. “Our growth leads to the growth of our audience and our partners. As foodservice continues to face challenges from a changing landscape, operators and suppliers need intel, insights and ideas not only to rebuild their business but also to rise and thrive. A new, more impactful NRN, along with the targeted communities served by its sister brands of Restaurant Hospitality, Food Management and Supermarket News, is the clear partner of choice for the food and retail industries.”

Full Digital Portfolio Provides Targeted Audience Opportunities

In addition to NRN, the Restaurant & Food Group by Informa Connect is also investing in sister brands Restaurant Hospitality, Food Management and Supermarket News to better serve each unique market segment and their information needs:

• Restaurant Hospitality (RH) is the only dedicated digital resource for independents, about independents, by independents, spotlighting restaurant innovators and culinary voices via an expanded digital presence with new content offerings, eNewsletters and expanded and experiential video and multimedia content. The RH website has experienced a 49% growth in users.
  
  
• Food Management (FM) is the undisputed leader as the comprehensive resource for onsite/noncommercial foodservice operators, with an 81% increase in website users and industry-leading eNewsletters. FM will feature a deeper understanding of the nuances that impact the different segments of the market and expanded digital presence with new eNewsletters, in-depth special reports and more.
  
  
• Supermarket News (SN) is the only comprehensive and integrated resource for the full food retail industry, with a robust monthly publication, a website that’s grown 95% in website users and industry-leading eNewsletters. SN will feature a renewed focus on the business of running retail through the lens of category buyers through expanded reporting via channel and segment special reports and expanded coverage through webinars and podcasts.
  

“Our full portfolio offers the deepest and most engaged audience profiles for our customers to successfully market products and services, showcase dynamic thought leadership and utilize highly dynamic multimedia vehicles from videos and podcasts, to binge-worthy custom content programs, retargeting and more,” says Susan Szymanski, director of business development and client success.

Digital Community Leadership to Evolve in 2021

Restaurants Rise, the premier virtual event and digital community initiative in foodservice is now an award-winning brand, having been named the winner of Best Event Branding by ON24, a leading virtual event technology company. The award highlighted the industry-leading webinar console, promotional materials and website, featuring “excellent logo placement and frequency, industry-relevant graphics, an incredible color scheme and superb sponsor promotion,” according to the judges.

Restaurants Rise will evolve in 2021 with a continued commitment to our community and content with the introduction of CREATE, The Future of Foodservice. An integrated offering of digital, hybrid and in-person event activations will begin in 2021 and lead foodservice and food retail into a new age of innovation. CREATE will include a live event Oct. 4-6, 2021, in Denver, Colo.

“We have successfully led the industry with our virtual event efforts, debuting our digital community first and fastest at the height of the pandemic when our audience needed to connect. CREATE will define what’s next and continue to build on the success of Restaurants Rise and MUFSO,” says Monique Monaco-Levy, director of events. “We continued to learn from our engaged audience and founding partners what operators and suppliers want and expect from digital and in-person community initiatives. There will be exciting information and partnership opportunities for our community that we will share in the coming weeks.”

Content will always come first for The Restaurant & Food Group, as we embark on these dynamic new efforts.

“In a turbulent period of a pandemic and social unrest, the brands at the Restaurant & Food Group by Informa Connect have built communities through content,” says Becky Schilling, content director. “Our audience, whether an operator in a restaurant or onsite location or a retailer in food retail, have connected with us in the pages of our magazines, at our virtual events, or on our websites through podcasts, video or in-depth reporting. Our goal is to help advance the industries we serve by providing the insights, analysis and solutions for operators and retailers to do their jobs better – professionally and personally.”

To learn more about the Restaurant & Food Group, visit https://restaurant-food.informaconnect.com/your-partner-for-growth-in-2021-and-beyond/

For marketing and sponsorship opportunities, contact Susan Szymanski at [email protected].

ABOUT THE RESTAURANT & FOOD GROUP BY INFORMA CONNECT
The Restaurant & Food Group by Informa Connect is the leading B2B integrated media group connecting products, solutions and thought leadership with the largest, most engaged and highly-qualified audience in foodservice and food retail. The group connects the entire food and foodservice ecosystem of operators, chefs, retailers, manufacturers, vendors and solutions providers through traditional, digital, social and custom media as well as digital and live events. Learn more at https://restaurant-food.informaconnect.com.

ABOUT INFORMA CONNECT
Informa Connect, a division of Informa plc, is a specialist in content-driven events and digital communities that allow professionals to meet, connect, learn and share knowledge. We operate major branded events in Global Finance, Life Sciences, Construction & Real Estate, Restaurant & Hospitality, and in a number of other specialist markets and connect communities online year-round. Learn more at https://www.informaconnect.com.

MEDIA CONTACT
Jesse Yeung
Marketing Director, Media
The Restaurant & Food Group by Informa Connect
[email protected]