Since cooperative DOOR was founded on 1 July 2013, they’ve grown into a rather large vegetable cooperative. DOOR’s focus is on sales, marketing and innovation. From the start, their strategy has been on strengthening brands and members, according to Jan Opschoor, manager of DOOR. This strategy has proven successful. In the past five years, the area has more than doubled to 553 hectares, and product yield has increased to 353 million. DOOR has the ambition to continue this sustainable growth in production, making production more sustainable and strengthening the market position of these brands.
Founding of DOOR
On 1 July 2013, cooperative DOOR was founded with 270 hectares and 27 members in Maasdijk, the Netherlands. The DOOR group started with three brands, each specialised in its own product, Prominent for tomatoes, Purple Pride for aubergine and Green Diamonds for high wire cucumbers. In 2014 and 2015, PapriCo and SweetPoint joined DOOR with bell peppers and sweet pointed peppers. “As House of Leading Brands, our brands are central , and DOOR is supportive. DOOR invests in the development of its brands and functions as a platform for cooperation and knowledge exchange. But the most important thing is that our organisation is carried by progressive and enterprising growers who are willing to invest in innovation and marketing. Each brand has its own identity, but they function best under one umbrella. That is the strength of our organisation,” Jan says.
Continuity due to sustainable growth
“To be able to supply our customers with good-quality fresh vegetables throughout the year, DOOR wants to continue growing to 800 hectares in 2020. The joining of the Mondial group with 36 hectares is a good step in that direction. DOOR is also doing everything possible to make the production of our vegetables more sustainable. For this, we focus on energy, means, water, and 100% usage. For energy and means, actual goals until 2030 have now been drawn up. Of our total area, 135 hectares are already certified Planet Proof. By 2020, 80 per cent of our greenhouses will be heated by some form of sustainable energy. Late 2018, new goals will also be drawn up for water, and for looking for new destinations for all of our residual and waste flows.”
“To increase sales on shop floors and efficiency in the supply chain with our customers, we invest in Trade Marketing and Supply Chain Management. We make sure our sales and marketing teams have the necessary disciplines at their disposal. Moreover, the construction of a new distribution centre will lead to closer cooperation among brands within DOOR. It can offer customers the convenience of a one-stop-shop by packing other vegetables besides tomatoes in small packs.”