Eurest & ESFM Supplier Diversity Summit Brings Together Leaders, Business Owners

The theme of intentionality and partnership was the undercurrent of Eurest and ESFM’s Supplier Diversity Summit, a pioneering event as divisions of Compass Group. Gathered together at Truist Field in Charlotte, N.C., Compass Group leaders, key decisionmakers and representatives from emerging and established minority- and women-owned businesses came together to have honest conversations about growth, distribution strategy and solutions to the challenges they face.

Eurest & ESFM Senior Director of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) Natacha Agnant Jacque described the event’s purpose as focused on “having impact and real conversations.”

“Creating opportunities and a promising pipeline is so important to build these partnerships,” Jacque said as she recognized Eurest and ESFM’s commitment to supporting diverse suppliers, evident in the two divisions’ diverse spend which more than doubles the national average across all industries.

The summit included a series of powerful panel discussions, covering a variety of topics from managing national distribution networks and scalability to brand storytelling and product development. Attendees received practical takeaways from both suppliers and procurement and supply chain leaders.

Eurest Project Director Anthony Atiase emphasized the organization’s commitment to supporting diverse suppliers.

“As a diverse supplier, you need a strong advocate, someone who believes in you more than you believe in yourself, your product and gives you a voice,” Atiase said.

ESFM Vice President of Supply Chain & Procurement Rick Wright underscored how Eurest and ESFM’s people-first culture influences its approach to supplier diversity and explained his personal connection to the company’s focus.

“When I think of intentionality of partnership, it means a lot to me,” Wright said. “It affects communities and those are the communities I grew up in.

“That’s why we are focused on community impact. That’s why our partnerships need to have common goals, mutual accountability and a constant push for improvement.”

Edgar Morena, president of marketing and sales for Ole Mexican Foods, discussed what factors should motivate innovation and enhancement in national contracted foodservice.

“When we’re creating, we think of the guest because it wasn’t that long ago that we were the guest,” he said. “What will they experience – is it quality, practical, affordable?”

Armando Rodriquez, president & CEO of A&A, a facilities solutions company, shared his testimony as a small business partnering with a national company like ESFM, a partnership built on quality and with perseverance.

“We came with nothing, but we had the will to succeed. It’s you at the end of the day – believe in yourself, believe in the people you choose,” Rodriguez said. “We’ve grown tremendously because of this partnership with ESFM and are a far more sophisticated company than we were ten years ago.”

The event capped off with a brand showcase featuring new and innovative products from featured suppliers and was highlighted by a fashion from NewChef, the woman-owned, longtime uniform provider of ESFM and Eurest.