International Foodservice Forum: Ready for the rebellion
On 13 March 2025, Pesca founder and visionary Sven Sallaerts talks about his extraordinary business concept at the International Foodservice Forum in Hamburg.
Dutch hospitality entrepreneur Sven Sallaerts will be on stage at the International Foodservice Forum in Hamburg, German sister event of our fabulous EFSS. Sallaerts, who spoke at the summit in Zurich in 2023, and his co-founder Joseph de Jong reveal to an exclusive industry audience what makes them so radically different.
Get your tickets for the International Foodservice Forum now!
The title of Sallaerts’ presentation promises deep insights behind the scenes of the company, which was launched in Amsterdam in 2016 with the Pesca brand: the reorientation of business models – international expansion, GenZ and marketing as success factors!
‘We are turning traditional business models on their head and creating our own,’ says Sallaerts about himself and his partner. ‘We’re not afraid to be a bit rebellious and love to colour outside the lines.’
In Hamburg, Sallaerts will report on what Younique Concepts’ entrepreneurial path has looked like so far and where the company has consciously departed from the classic path. This much can be revealed in advance: Profit-sharing for all employees is one of the pillars of Younique’s HR strategy. Managers and decision-makers can look forward to practical insights into how to stand out from the crowd and attract the talent of tomorrow.
About Younique Concepts
The two Hospitality School graduates Sven Sallaerts and Joseph de Jong founded Younique Concepts when they were just in their mid-20s. In 2016, they opened their first restaurant in Amsterdam: the first Pesca has already been multiplied. The second location of the innovative fish restaurant opened in Rotterdam in 2022. This week, number 3 will open in Nice and Hamburg will get a Pesca restaurant at the beginning of April. The portfolio also includes the bar-restaurant concepts de Tulp, Fiona, CaféCafé and Lolo. Hotel concepts such as THIS HO(S)TEL and Boutique Hotel Zaan can also be found under the umbrella of Younique Concepts. In 2023, the Selva and Sonora brands were launched in collaboration with NH Hotels, while a partnership with Meliá Hotels International led to the development of MOST, Tierra and Hasta La Vista, Baby!
Experience Sven Sallaerts and many other top-class speakers at Europe’s largest hospitality congress – on 13 March at the CCH Hamburg.
- Germany’s top 100 gastronomy players – ranking, analyses, highlights & outlook 2025: Katrin Wißmann, foodservice
- State of the industry: Jochen Pinsker, Circana
- Talk: Psyche. Products. Price sensitivity. With Michael Christmann, Globus Markthallen, Sarah Johannes, Valora Group, Oksana Lukyanenko, Wolt Germany, Ilona Ploenes, Mitchells & Butlers/Alex, and Alexander Tauer, Domino’s
- Emotional resilience in digital change – brain-friendly communication: Dr Laura Wünsch, neuroscientist
- Talk: Travel hubs – on the road to 2030 with Mark Hallstein, Fraport AG, Sarah von Nordheim, Deutsche Bahn InfraGo AG and Michael Mayer-Sonnenburg, Rewe To Go
- The new political world order – USA, China, Russia: Where does this leave Germany and the EU? Marcel Fratzscher, DIW – German Institute for Economic Research
- Start-up contest: Three winners show what they can do
- Case Study: Thinking big with strawberries – Expanding without losing your soul: Robert Dahl, Karls Markt OHG
- Take-aways of the day – learning material for tomorrow & the day after tomorrow: Prof. Dr Torsten Olderog, AKAD University
- Team, vision & hard work – Knowing what you want and fighting for it: Patricia Kelly, singer
