Dutch Conference pear orchard
Produce of Holland
Since the Dutch Conference received access to the Chinese market in 2014, Fruitmasters has been active to advance its presence on the market. “In 2009 we introduced the pear at the Fruit Logistica in Hong Kong and ever since then the volume to China has been growing year by year. Besides the samples we have created a ‘Produce of Holland’ label that shows the Netherlands’ famous Delft blue colours and a graphic design windmill. It might be a little clichéd, but it is very recognizably Dutch,” according to Leonard Kampschoer, Commercial Director of Fruitmasters in an earlier interview with Freshplaza.
Fruitmasters' Produce of Holland label
Recently, the company is making a strong effort to boost its Conference pears in China. Fabien Dumont is the commercial export manager at Fruitmasters and responsible for its international sales programs. “Fruitmasters’ fortitude is that we deliver healthy and safe fruit, directly from the source. In addition, we strive to increase our partners’ sales and merchandising, be it retailers, food service or service providers. We grow healthy and flavourful fruit varieties. We generate consumer data, market insights and innovative concepts in order to support the retailers and distributors with whom we work.”
Important feedback that we received is that the imported Conference pear is attractive to the Chinese audience not only for its sweet taste but also because it is a safe and healthy product from the Netherlands “Continuing on these insights, we have created a whole new campaign that uses these characteristics.”
At the Fresh Produce Forum China, Fabien Dumont announced that they will therefore shift their marketing activities from a B2B to a B2C approach. Fabien mentioned: “We have started cooperation with a number of prominent parenting blogs, on which parents and advisors share tips and insights. We started to hand free pear samples to young parents, consisting of fresh Conference pears and a baby’s bib with our logo and a blue windmill, which has proven to be incredibly successful. We started with 10,000 prepared samples, but quickly received over 300,000 replies!”
“Next to creating this new story line, we introduced our hero mascot: Pipi! Pipi is particularly appealing to children because Pipi is a happy feature and always cheerful. Together with Pipi, we do not only show consumers how to prepare the pear but we also clearly explain the benefits of the food safe Dutch Conference pears.”
“Now, when reaching out to retailers and online distributors in China, we can communicate not only the quality of our fruits, we can also show that our products are in demand and appreciated by consumers.”
Crunchy Migo pear
After the successful launch of the Conference pear, Fruitmasters is planning to increase its pear export range with new pear varieties. From next autumn onwards, the Migo pear will become available in China.
The Migo pear was added to the company’s global product range in 2015. It is a strong addition to the Conference as the pear has a very different taste and applicability. "The Migo pear is a ‘crunchy’ pear with a sweet flavour that can be eaten like an apple. Therefore you might eat Migo on-the-go; in the car, metro or on a scooter. It will be a strong expansion of our product range.”
Fabien Dumont
Fruitmasters Holland B.V.
http://www.royalfruitmasters.com/
Contact number: +31 651747968