"Social capital" and direct contacts

"Social capital" and face-to-face communication

For many companies, the exhibition has become the entry point to a new stage of development. Fit Service noted that BuyBrand is, above all, "social capital". "It's about meeting people — the visitors, the organisers, who help us steer the business in the direction that entrepreneurs are actually asking for," the company's representatives said.

For online businesses, an offline platform remains indispensable. Roman Oreshkin (Secret Kitchen) named what matters most to an exhibitor: "Over a limited period — three days — to meet dozens, even hundreds, of new market players who might be interested in your brand and your franchise." And at Rybnaya Manufaktura they stressed that talking to customers in person "immerses people in the brand more effectively and more powerfully".

Target audience and geography

Up Sushi noted that the exhibition is "one of the best tools" for getting your name out there and attracting strong partners. Newcomers agree: Zotman said that potential investors "come here first and foremost", since this is where the largest number of exhibitors gather. And Varka stressed: "This is a focused exhibition — people know exactly why they're coming."

Ekaterina Soyak, CEO of EMTG and founder of the exhibition, highlighted the geography and quality of the audience: "These are prospective franchisees from all over the country — not just Moscow, St Petersburg or the major cities. We have a huge number of regions represented here."

A platform for competitors and colleagues alike

The exhibition also serves strategic purposes. The Pyaterochka chain admitted that they take part not only for the sake of new partners: "For us it's more about image. We do genuinely find new partners here, but for us it's more about looking at the competition — who's represented on the franchising market today. It would be odd if we were in the market and didn't take part in this exhibition."

Colizeum confirmed that several objectives can be met at once: "Here I can achieve two things at the same time: talk to new partners and talk to fellow business people, get a sense of which way the industry is heading," commented Rinat Magdeev.

BuyBrand is also valued for its international line-up. Katusha Ahmed, a representative of the delegation from Saudi Arabia, said: "For us, Russia is a new market. We hope to find a partner, and we'll be working with Russian businesses and exchanging experience."

Visitor Andrey from Yekaterinburg, who owns several franchises, summed up the main value for an investor: "You can talk to franchise owners directly... that's incredibly valuable."

And Ivan Petrov, a representative of the Dixy chain, noted the atmosphere of the event: "No two [BuyBrands] are alike. It's always new people, always new meetings... it's vibrant, it's very diverse, and no two days are the same. And that's probably why we love this exhibition too."

See you at BuyBrand 2027!