The National Mango Board (NMB) named Michael Vesely of Jewel-Osco as the 2017 Mango Retailer of the Year. The award was announced during the NMB’s Annual Mango Industry Reception on October 20, 2017 during PMA’s Fresh Summit Convention & Expo in Orlando, FL. Present at the award ceremony were mango industry leaders, including many of Jewel-Osco suppliers and several NMB board members.
The Mango Retailer of the Year award recognizes retailers that go above and beyond to offer strong consistent support to the mango industry, and deliver outstanding mango promotion results. Jewel-Osco was selected from over 100 retailers that partner with the NMB across the U.S. The Midwest retailer routinely over-performed in all mango sales and volume. Jewel-Osco is a leader both regionally and nationally in mango volume sold per week.
Jewel-Osco also ensures mango promotion is implemented 12 months of the year, creating unique and timely seasonal opportunities for mangos. They often incorporate multiple varieties of mangos in their promotions, fresh-cut and case sales. They utilize and reinforce the mango message through print and online magazines, newsletters and posts, reaching millions of potential mango customers in their market. They consistently provide multi-tiered access of communication among their teams; whether it is the produce team, registered dieticians, or the marketing group, Jewel-Osco encourages open dialog with the mango industry.
Jewel-Osco produce team left to right: Paul Calas, Produce Procurement Manager; Michael Vesely, Senior Produce Buyer;
Scott Bennett, Produce Sales Manager; Eric Haacker, Assistant Sales Manager.
Vesely drove total department sales through promoting mangoes while not deflating other categories in the department. He also attracted new customers to Jewel-Osco through the ongoing promotion of mangos. “Being selected as the Mango Retailer of the Year has been a tremendous honor; second only to seeing year over year sales increases,” stated Michael Vesely, Senior Produce Buyer at Jewel-Osco. “The NMB provided us with many tools to help create retail excitement. The displays our teams have built using the NMB’s Point of Sale materials have been amazing. Working with the NMB’s retail account managers Katie Manetti, Tim Beerup and Wendy McManus have really energized the team and shown them what mangos can do for the produce department. We look forward to continuing to develop our relationship with not only the NMB but also with our valued vendor community.”
“Having a Midwest retailer as the recipient of this prestigious award is a testament to mango growth in the U.S.,” stated Valda Coryat, Director of Marketing at the NMB. “This sends us a clear message – there is a mango for all seasons and they are gaining momentum in this under-indexed consumption area of the country. We look forward to our continued work with Michael and the Jewel-Osco team, as well as all our retail partners in helping them achieve mango success.”
Contact information:
Angela Serna
National Mango Board
Tel: (407)-629-7318