Buyblitz.com - an online marketing business serving food and alcohol retailers in Australia, will announce the expansion of its service to the U.S. at the Fancy Food Show, the annual gathering of the National Association of the Specialty Foods Trade, to be held this year in San Diego, CA beginning on Sunday, January 13^th.

"American food and alcohol retailers have lagged behind other consumer product retailers in recognizing and exploiting online marketing opportunities," says Buyblitz.com founder and CEO Franco Lagudi. "The food service business is still tied to expensive and inefficient print advertising, while consumers are seeking and responding more to information and promotions on the Internet."

Buyblitz.com enables retailers to construct highly functional Web sites hosted within a virtual "mega-mall" for only $365 per year. Food and alcohol retailers (including restaurants) can conduct e-commerce on the site; promote product specials, post menus, take reservations, distribute printable gift certificates and savings coupons, and much more.

"These are the kind of Web functions that would typically cost a small business an average of $20,000 to have built," said Lagudi. "On Buyblitz.com, retailers can build their own custom designed, multi-function Web site in about 15 minutes – for the equivalent of $1 per day – and be tapping into the power of the Internet the same day."

Using Buyblitz.com, consumers are able to search for retailers – locally, by state or nationwide – and peruse menus and specials, subscribe to selected vendors' newsletters or request e-mail alerts about product availability or discounts.

Says Lagudi: "Our goal at Buyblitz.com is to bring together retailers and customers in a way that's more convenient and economical for both."

As the president of a large grocery distribution company in Sydney, Australia, Lagudi had often met with independent food and wine retailers who were intimidated by the cost and complexity of establishing a Web site and conducting e-commerce and online promotions. In an effort to aid both retailers and customers, Lagudi successfully launched Buyblitz.com in Australia in early 2007.