Metro Austria has been a cooperation partner for the ninth time at this year’s European Forum Alpbach. In the anniversary year of the EFA, the “Vienna Wednesday Society of Handels – Edition Alpbach” dealt with strategies for revitalizing culinary deliberate in Austria on August 27. The title of the Metro Talk: “Prefer positive changes for Austria’s gastronomy!” The keynote held Astrid Stharnig-Staudinger, CEO of Austria advertising. At the podium, she discussed with her in front of numerous guests Christoph Mayer, member of Metro Austria Management, Director Operations & Sales and pAul Kolarik, managing partner of Kolarik in Prater GmbH.
Host Gero Dittrich, member of the Metro Cash & Carry International Holding Management: “Austria’s gastronomy lives from people, ideas and the joy of enjoyment. In order for these values to exist in the future, responsibility – for products and producers, for employees, for the environment and not least for our guests. With this understanding, we also take part in the European Forum Alpbach. Because hospitality is more than an industry – it is a social link. It combines economy, people with ideas, tradition with innovation. We show: We contribute to finding answers to central sociopolitical questions – such as sustainability, fair supply chains or the expectations of future generations.
Metro arises according to the needs of gastronomy
Metro has had a very close connection to the gastronomy in Austria for almost 55 years, therefore knows the needs of the industry and adapts it with new purchasing concepts and the products. The large -scale range relevant to the restaurateurs can be bought through various sales channels: in modern large markets, via online shop and delivery. This is the idea behind Metro as a successful multichannel wholesaler with 16 large markets and three depots in Austria.
Create long -term added value together
Christoph Mayer: “Today it is much more than just products in gastronomy and trade. Our commitment has a clear goal: to promote positive changes for Austria’s gastronomy. This includes sustainable supply chains that secure fair working conditions, protect the environment and strengthen local producers. The focus is on our customers. Your expectations and your trust are therefore the greatest value for quality, availability and quality We can create long -term added value together.
Keynote speaker Astrid Stharnig-Staudinger presented a study on the “Kulinarikland Austria”: “Culinary delay is an important travel event for tourists. For almost half of the respondents, she influences the choice of vacation destination-and on site she is a central factor for a successful vacation. Austria’s cuisine can be particularly with the highest quality, regionality and unique enjoyment. Points – from the tavern to the gourmet restaurant. “
Culinary art as a tourism factor
- 5.3 billion euros in sales in restaurants by international visitors.
- 199 ꞓ Average editions per guest, 236 ꞓ on culinary trips.
Culinary experiences
- 46% of the respondents want to visit traditional taverns.
- High demand for tastings, farmers markets and culinary city tours.
- Interest in regional products and cooking courses.
Stharnig-Staudinger: “In order for Austria’s cuisine to be perceived even more internationally, we need an interplay of lived regionality, openness to innovation and strong guest culture that we have to communicate in a targeted manner. Our kitchen is rooted in the region and at the same time open to new influences-and this combination is the basis for future success.”
For Paul Kolarik, there are three pillars that contribute to a positive change: “Austria stands for hospitality at the highest level like hardly any other country. Our goal as an industry must be to do justice to this claim and to offer our guests a positive experience on many levels. This also includes questioning ourselves and finding the small and big cogs that make us even better. The conviction that Bio is the gold standard of food production.
Metro Cash & Carry operates 16 large markets and a delivery depot in Austria. The company employs around 2,300 full -time workers, including 130 apprentices. A large selection is an important aspect for Metro, approx. 37,000 articles from the food and non-food sector are listed, including approximately 4,000 “regionah” products. The company has been on electromobility in delivery since 2017 and supplies catering customers in the Vienna and Dornbirn area with Evans – the Metro Express. The seat of the Austria headquarters and the management is in Vienna-Vösendorf, where on March 2, 1971 not only the first Metro wholesale market was opened, but also the first outside of Germany. The company is certified as a leading company because Metro is committed to sustainable company success, innovation and social responsibility. “Act sustainably” is one of the corporate principles. Metro is listed in UA the sustainability indices and rankings MSCI, Sustaininalytics and CDP. In the 2023/24 financial year, Metro Austria generated sales of EUR 914 million. https://www.metro.at
Metro is an internationally leading food wholesaler who specializes in the needs of hotels, restaurants and caterers (Horeca) and independent dealers (traders). The over 15 million metro customers worldwide benefit from the unique multichannel mix of the wholesale company: Customers can procure their goods in one of the large-scale markets on site as well as by supply (Food Service Distribution, FSD)-everything is digitally supported and connected. At the same time, METRO Markets creates an international online marketplace for the needs of professional customers who have been growing and expanding since 2019. “Act sustainably” is one of the corporate principles, Metro is listed in UA the sustainability indices and rankings MSCI, Sustaininalytics and CDP. Metro is active in over 30 countries and employs more than 85,000 people worldwide. In the 2023/24 financial year, Metro generated sales of EUR 31 billion. https://www.metroag.de/de