While the exhibition provided industry members with a venue through which they could become familiar with each other, the symposium gave them the opportunity to learn more about each of the three different tracks being presented: tea, coffee and specialty markets. The tracks ran simultaneously in morning and afternoon sessions and each included approximately 30 speakers. There was a good deal of interaction between speakers and the audience, with the only downside being longer sessions. Nevertheless, this minor inconvenience was nothing to delegates who were eager to learn from, as well as argue with, their colleagues and competitors.

The atmosphere at the Tea & Coffee World Cup was filled with a feeling of people looking for new ways of doing business in the tea and coffee industry. Social events such as the opening cocktail party and the Gala Dinner Reception at the close of the event were the perfect places to unwind, meet new friends, and enjoy an insider’s view of Vienna’s elite inner sanctum. The success of this first venture by Tea & Coffee Trade Journal galvanized the sponsors to announce a second exhibition that would only surpass the accomplishments of this event.