Trade fair staff for ISM planned right
Which roles your booth at the world's largest confectionery trade fair truly needs, how many staff members make sense, and how the workflow across 4 trade fair days operates.
Common questions when preparing for ISM
Before planning staff for ISM, structural questions typically arise:
- Who manages tastings and product presentations?
- How are initial conversations separated from purchasing negotiations?
- How many conversations run simultaneously with 30,000 visitors?
- Who handles brand representation and sampling?
The quality of a trade fair presence at ISM is determined by how product presentations and conversations are professionally organised.
ISM at a glance
- Next date: 1-4 February 2027
- Location: Koelnmesse, Cologne
- Visitors: approx. 30,000 trade visitors
- Exhibitors: approx. 1,600 from 70+ countries
- Industry: Confectionery, Snacks, Sweets
Why ISM is critical for your business
ISM is the world's largest and most important trade fair for confectionery and snacks. Together with the parallel ProSweets Cologne, it forms the central platform for the international confectionery industry.
A professional trade fair presence with trained staff makes the difference: from inviting product presentations to competent brand representation to attentive guest service.
Successful projects at ISM
Excerpts from our previous deployments.
Innovative consumer goods manufacturer
- Flyer distribution and active visitor engagement
- Brand representation and product information
- Catering support and guest hospitality
Traditional confectionery manufacturer
- Product sample distribution and tasting supervision
- Booth presence and visitor guidance
- Lead capture and contact documentation
How conversations at ISM actually develop
At ISM, a booth does not work through a single role, but through a sequence of targeted interactions.
First, a trade visitor is approached through a tasting, then professionally assessed, and only then handed over to the appropriate sales representative. Without this separation, your specialists conduct initial conversations with every visitor -- and are unavailable for the relevant contacts.
That is why staffing is not planned by headcount, but by interaction types: Tasting → Qualification → Consultation.
From this structure, the appropriate team size for 4 intensive trade fair days emerges.
The next step in planning
Determine the required conversation capacity
Determine team sizeAssess the resulting budget framework
Derive budgetTypical positions at ISM
These roles we regularly staff for exhibitors in the confectionery and snack industry.
Hosts & Hostesses
Booth presence, guest greeting, product information and professional brand representation.
High demandPromoters
Flyer distribution, product sample handout, active visitor engagement and sampling actions.
Service Staff
Tasting service, catering management, booth maintenance and restocking displays.
Guest Registration
Lead capture, business card collection and contact documentation for your sales team.
Your perfect trade fair team in 3 steps
Structured, transparent and reliable -- from briefing to deployment.
Consultation & Concept
We analyse your trade fair presence, advise on team size and profiles, and develop a tailored staffing concept.
Staff Proposals
You receive hand-picked profiles with photos, experience and language skills. You decide who represents your brand.
Training & Deployment
Intensive brand training, detailed briefing and punctual deployment. Optional backup staff for maximum reliability.
Why decision-makers recommend höchstmass
One point of contact
A dedicated contact for all questions -- before, during and after the event. No hotline, no waiting queues.
Backup staff
Qualified replacements on standby -- for 99% reliability at your trade fair booth.
12+ languages
Multilingual staff for international trade fairs. Native speakers in all major business languages.
Cologne expertise
Experience at gamescom, Anuga, ISM and all major trade fairs in the region.
FMCG-trained
Staff for tasting service, product presentation and brand representation -- experienced in the confectionery industry.
Legally compliant
Temporary staffing with all permits. Contracts, insurance and billing are handled by us.
Discuss your concept & proposal for ISM
Describe your trade fair presence at ISM -- we will get back to you with a tailored staffing concept.
- Free & non-binding consultation
- Tailored staffing concept
- Hand-picked staff proposals
- Proposal within 24-48h
What our partners say
"The tasting supervision was first class. Our products were presented perfectly and the visitor engagement was authentic and enthusiastic."
"At ISM we need staff that represents our brand and convincingly presents products. höchstmass delivered exactly that -- professional and with genuine enthusiasm."
"Lead capture and sampling ran like clockwork. The promoters were outgoing and actively engaged our target audience. Outstanding results."
Your Questions – Our Answers
Answers to the most important questions about trade fair staff for ISM.
Let us structure your presence at ISM
Tailored concept, experienced team and a dedicated contact person. Free and non-binding.