Drawing visitors to its booth by offering samples of food prepared on AFE equipment and occupying a sizable space on the show floor certainly helped build Infinity's brand at the International Hotel/Motel & Restaurant Show held in New York City from November 10th through November 13th. However, it was Infinity fryers' ability to sell themselves that helped to make the show a success for the company.

    According to Mitch Cohen, vice president of cooking system sales for Infinity, as well as for Eloma and Stellar Steam, the fryer maker generated several promising leads and actually completed a handful of sales during the show. Cohen noted that two of Infinity's features resonated the most with new customers at the NY Show.

    The company's paperless and powderless filtration system, he noted, received especially favorable reviews because it allows end-users to filter oil in less than four minutes. Such easy filtering helps foodservices significantly extend the use-life of each batch of oil.

    "A lot of operators are moving to trans-fat free oils, which can cost twice as much as the frying media they have been using," he said. "They really liked that Infinity's filtration system can help keep oil costs under control."

    Another fryer feature that received positive reviews was Infinity's energy efficiency. While it is logical to expect the savings available from energy-efficient equipment to matter most to chains and other large operations, which can realize significant cost reductions based purely on the number of units they purchase, even smaller foodservice establishments that visited the AFE booth at the NY Show expressed interest in Infinity's low energy use and ENERGY STAR® certification.

    "A few years ago, smaller operators weren't so interested in energy efficiency. Now, they are. The energy efficiency message is resonating even with operators who only want one or two fryers," Cohen affirmed.

For more information, visit Infinity Fryer's web site at www.infinityfryers.com