Singapore Food Festival 2012

1.  Capella Singapore Resort & Spa

Capella Singapore is well-known for being one of the best luxury hotels in Singapore, with an aim to provide world-class service and products for their guests. Located in Sentosa, it allows guests to enjoy their vacation in privacy, surrounded in the luscious rainforest. They have beautifully incorporated modern buildings and their colonial buildings into an astonishing, breathtaking fusion with the South China Sea as their backyard (About Us, 2011). After much research, it is clear that Capella Singapore is a prime location for an impressive range of events that caters to food lovers and even entrepreneurs.

Recently, they have hosted ‘Autumn Treasures with Martin Yan’ on 7 September 2012. This allowed the viewers of an Asian Food Channel (AFC) Original Production, True Passion – Martin Yan to interact with him and also taste the mouth-watering dishes that he created on the program instead of just admiring it through their television. AFC is the first and only regional Asian food channel that was launched in mid-2005. It proved to be successful and has managed to establish a leadership position as a top-notch lifestyle channel with a combination of Eastern and Western programs. It was a five-course dinner, set in Capella’s very own fine-dining Cantonese restaurant, Cassia.

Capella Singapore will also be hosting an event called ‘Unleashing Innovation: Creating Value in A Global Market’ from 19-21 February 2013 hosted by Wall Street Journal Experts such as Alan Murray who is the Deputy managing editor, The Wall Street Journal. Unleashing Innovation will attract an invitation-only audience of over 200 senior executives and subject-matter experts from around the globe who are driving innovation across diverse fields including technology, medicine, energy, manufacturing, business & management and other industries (Wall Street Journal: Unleashing Innovation, 2012).

2.  Chosen Event: Singapore Food Festival 2012

Just like many others out there, I am a self-confessed food enthusiast, in constant search of gastronomic culinary experiences around Singapore. What better way than to explore the annual Singapore Food Festival in Singapore for the whole month of July! Since its launch in 1994, it has grown to become Singapore’s biggest culinary event of the year!

The logo symbolizes a crab coming out from the ocean waters; eager to join the festivities too.It certainly is a catchy logo as I’m sure that many were excited for the event as well.

I think that the organisers of the event have come up with a brilliant idea as Singapore is well-known for our local food and fusion Asian dishes with European influences. The Singapore Food Festival, in its 19^th year, has proven to be a success amongs the locals and tourists alike.

This year’s theme is ‘Seafood Tales of Temasek’, which pays tribute to Sang Nila Utama and also to our growing love for seafood in Singapore. Personally, I applaud the creator of the concept as it not only honors the prince, but it also integrates one or more of Singapore’s favorite crustaceans into this year’s theme.

3.  Marketing Mix

3.1.  Product

The Singapore Food Festivals offers an array of sub-events but I believe the core product of the event is the ‘Singapore Food Festival Village’ and the ‘Seafood Treasures, Tales and Trails @ Kampong Gelam’.

These two events aim to introduce and promote the traditional delights loved by us locals. In addition, the latter incorporates a treasure hunt where participants will scour Kampong Gelam to complete the activities. Personally, I find that this is an excellent idea where participants are engaged in the activity instead of just observing. As stated, an important characteristic of the marketing of leisure services is that people are also part of the product (Johnny Allen, 2010). This activity facilitates the interaction between participants because they could engage in playful, competitive banter as they attempt to outdo each other during the hunt. The participants will be killing two birds with one stone as they would be gaining knowledge and forging new friendships along the way.

Similarly, I find that it is also a way for us to rediscover our love of local food and to also try improved and reinvented famous local dishes. Our local chefs are given the opportunity to display their talents as they introduce new tricks into traditional dishes. It is a plus for everyone because it not only caters to adults, but also for the aspiring mini chefs!

The tangible product would be pricing of the events. Pricing is fixed by the respective stalls.

An important factor that differentiates the Singapore Food Festival from their competitors is the type of food offered and the service quality of everyone involved in the events. For example, the World Gourmet Summit 2012 is a gastronomic heaven for those who are interested to taste the different cuisines offered by world-renowned chefs. However, at the Singapore Food Festival, it is all about our local food. In addition, the chefs are more laid-back and are comfortable in their environment which livens up the atmosphere instead of it being a case where the chefs simply introduce the ingredients and method of cooking, and are too focused that the audience may feel ignored.

3.2.  Place

As the Singapore Food Festival continuously draws in crowds every year, the events are dispersed across various parts of Singapore. For the Village, instead of their previous location which is the Singapore River, it will be held at Waterfront Promenade, Marina Bay! The waterfront promenade is a continuous route along the waterfront and which connects an array of attractions at the Marina Centre, Collyer Quay and Bayfront areas. It provides an excellent panoramic view of the Bay as the chefs are conducting live cooking demonstrations. For the ultimate seafood journey, Celebrity Chef Violet Oon will be whipping up delectable seafood dishes at Violet Oon’s Kitchen, located at Bukit Timah.

The locations are excellent as they are hot tourist spots such as Kampung Gelam and Little India. Tourists may stumble upon the Singapore Food Festival while visiting the sites, or will choose to visit the sites to go to the event. It is a win-win location for the event organisers and the site because it increases patronage for both. In addition, the Singapore Food Festival would have come to the attention of many as they have events throughout Singapore, thus increasing recognition.

As the Waterfront Promenade provides one of the best views that Singapore can offer, it is no wonder that the organisers picked it as the new location for the village. There would certainly be huge crowds especially during the weekends as families and couples are spending quality time together. And what better way to bond than over a sumptuous meal?

However, in my opinion, for the true Singaporean experience, these events could be held at residential areas such as Tampines or Pasir Ris instead. Most of these local dishes are sold at neighborhood areas and contributed to the popularity and demand of these dishes. I believe it is offers a much more authentic  experience for the people and will increase the number of locals visiting as well.

3.3.  Partnerships

After 19 successful years of the Singapore Food Festival, they have managed to maintain strong bonds with their partners and their sponsors. The Singapore Chefs Association has been a constant partner from 2010 onwards. This shows that Singapore Food Festival has managed to constantly keep their vision and that of the Association’s in sync. It is an important aspect as partnerships provide the necessary resources to fully implement and execute the event.

Other partners include the Singapore Tourism Board, Carlsberg, Pokka, Resorts World Sentosa and Nets@Flashpay. These partners are highly influential as they are big companies in Singapore. Even though the number of partners has decreased as compared to the Singapore Food Festival 2012, it will not affect the event drastically. This is because the companies are very successful and have established excellent branding in Singapore and other parts of the world as well. Therefore, it is guaranteed that the event will proceed successfully as these companies are more than capable of providing ample resources.

3.4.  People

The people involved the event are not only well-prepared for any questions thrown at them, but they are also passionate about the one thing that has brought everyone together in the first place – food! At the cooking demonstrations and the workshops, the chefs are focused and are willing to share their expertise with the crowd, cracking a joke or two at the same time. However, it is very evident that they are passionate about their cooking and it is a delight to see how they have infused it with our rich heritage. Let us not forget the staffs that work hard behind-the-scenes to prepare everything that is need beforehand as they are focused about getting the job done so that the crowd can enjoy without delay. It is heartwarming to see the chefs acknowledge the staffs who were working hard, which induces a round of applause from the crowd.  

Furthermore, the chefs at the event are locals themselves. This allows us to identify with them as they grew up in Singapore and we can be certain that they have the taste buds of a Singaporean. It adds subtle authenticity to the event as it shows that not only are we proud of our home-grown talented chefs, it shows that the food are locally-inspired.

3.5.  Promotion & Packaging

With a total of 2, 935, 480 Facebook users in Singapore (Singapore Facebook Statistics, 2012), it is not a wonder that the Singapore Food Festival has set up a page for themselves with over 300 likes to be more accessible.

On the website, the Singapore Food Festival has dining privileges. However, it can only be seen on the website which encourages more people to visit their website so as to enjoy these privileges through word-of-mouth and social media. It allows more visitorship to the website, and brings in more revenue for the supporting brands.

However, I find that the packaging could have been done better. Although it does increase visitorship, it does not have a major impact, as compared to advertising in the local newspaper or local magazine. ‘8 Days’ Magazine would be an excellent choice as their readers go up to thousands. In the magazine, there is a section called ‘Ad Gallery’ where an advert could be placed there to attract attention. In my opinion, the best way to significantly make an impact is to have a column in their ‘Eat’ section. Food enthusiasts are sure to see this page, and with a few preview photos, it is guaranteed to bring in the crowd.

3.6.  Programming

Personally, I think that the way the events have been scheduled throughout the month of July are not strategically-planned as most of the starting dates for the sub-events are from 13 July onwards. This shows that there is a lack of planning and organization as they did not put the whole month of July to good use. As some events are only for a few days, such as the ‘Seafood Mela @ Little India’, visitors will have to choose between the sub-events as they may not be free throughout the entire month.

3.7.  Price

The prices set for this year’s Singapore Food Festival is a little bit costly, in my opinion. To interest a mass market, setting a price of $65 for a masterclass or workshop sets the event at a disadvantage. In addition, paying such a high price may lead the participants into raising their expectations of the course. In the event that it does not turn out well, they would most probably be disappointed and would spread  the word to others about the bad experience. This, in turn, will cause bad publicity for the event. However, the bundled pricing of $65 for a parent together with a child for workshops aimed for children are quite reasonable as it provides entry for both. This provides the parent the chance to monitor the progress of his/her child in the workshop.

However, for the Singapore Food Festival Village, it is free and the visitors are free to choose to incur any expenses or not. I think that this is a brilliant idea as stallholders will get to have more visitors and would not need to be worried that the entrance fee is the deterrence for possible customers. To me, it is sort of like an annual night market that sells only local food. Visitors have the opportunity to walk around and visit each stall, appreciating the delicious aromas surrounding them. Adding on, visitors may be impressed with the array of food possibilities and may choose to bring their friends to the event as no costs need to be incurred beforehand.

4.  Changes That Have Taken Place

Although there are many similarities as compared in 2011 and 2012, there are obvious differences.

Firstly, it would be the change of location for the Singapore Food Festival Village from Singapore River to Waterfront Promenade. It was an excellent decision as the volume of people visiting the area is much higher and it is much more accessible for those who are taking public transport.

Secondly, last year, their focus was on the introduction of the spices used in Singaporean cooking. However, their focus shifted to local seafood dishes. As such, the change of activities provided is evident. For example, in 2011, part of an activity was to visit the Spice Garden. However, if that activity were to be continued again, it would not reflect the theme and would imply lack of originality.

5.  Proposed Event

Capella Singapore has hosted many events that are food-oriented. The collaboration between Singapore Food Festival and Capella Singapore is superb as both are experienced in the hospitality and tourism industry, with similar aims and visions for a collaborated event. My proposed event is a cooking competition called ‘Crab Got Your Tongue!’ – an interpretation of the famous phrase “Cat got your tongue” which is said when someone is unusually quiet. However, this event is quite the opposite where contestants will need to cook their best interpretation of Singapore favourite crab dish, the Chili Crab, within a specific timing, with live commentary and celebrity judges. One of the judges will be Makansutra founder, KF Seetoh, as he was one of the first to really start the frenzied hunt for gastronomical dishes in Singapore. This event will be held outdoors, with the beautiful rainforest as backdrop.  

The winning recipe will be featured in Cassia, Capella’s modern Chinese restaurant for a limited time only. The winner of the competition will receive a hamper, and a complimentary 3 days 2 nights stay at Capella Singapore for two.

This will benefit the hotel in more ways than one. Firstly, since it is a televised live broadcast, Capella Singapore will be able to receive more recognition. Also, everyone in Singapore always seems to be finding the best Chili Crab dish. After the competition, everyone will be dying to come down to Cassia to have a taste of the best Chili Crab in Singapore, certified by KF Seetoh as well.  

I chose Capella Singapore because they are one of the best choices in Singapore and are fully able to provide sufficient resources for the event. 

References:

Virtual Tours. (2008). Retrieved November 22, 2012, from Marina Bay Singapore : http://www.marina-bay.sg/virtualtours-Waterfront_Promenade.html

Sponsors. (2010). Retrieved November 20, 2012, from Singapore Food Festival 2010: http://singaporefoodfestival.com.sg/2010/sponsor.php?page=1

About Singapore Food Festival. (2011). Retrieved November 21, 2012, from Singapore Food Festival 2011: http://singaporefoodfestival.com.sg/2011/index.php/about-sff

About Us. (2011). Retrieved November 20, 2012, from Luxury Singapore Hotels | Capella: http://www.capellahotels.com/singapore/about-en.html

About Us. (2012). Retrieved November 16, 2012, from World Gourmet Summit: http://www.worldgourmetsummit.com/wgs2012/main.php/about

Asian Food Channel Presents Autumn Treasures With Martin Yan Tour In September. (2012, August 24). Retrieved November 20, 2012, from Asian Food Channel: http://www.asianfoodchannel.com/press/2012/08/55-asian-food-channel-presents-autumn-treasures-with-martin-yan-tour-in-september

Home. (2012). Retrieved November 16, 2012, from Singapore Food Festival: http://singaporefoodfestival.com.sg/2012/

Singapore Facebook Statistics. (2012). Retrieved November 20, 2012, from Social Bakers: http://www.socialbakers.com/facebook-statistics/singapore

Singapore Food Festival 2012. (2012). Retrieved November 20, 2012, from Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Singapore-Food-Festival-2012/249517778484104

Wall Street Journal: Unleashing Innovation. (2012). Retrieved November 20, 2012, from Wall Street Journal - Asia: http://www.wsj-asia.com/unleashinginnovation/speakers.php

Johnny Allen, W. O. (2010). Festival & Special Event Management. Australia: John Wiley & Sons Australia Ltd.