In the Netherlands, Chainn began more than five years ago with the goal of making the supply chain transparent, traceable, and efficient. "We're growing by double digits annually, growing tremendously in 2023. We have now moved beyond the pioneering phase and are ready for the next step," begins Managing Director Michiel Bontenbal. This year, the company will make its first appearance as an exhibitor at Fruit Logistica.
In 2018, the company garnered attention with a specially developed app that gives supply chain users real-time updates about the status of their products. They can, thus, precisely track whether the product has been sold, is in stock, or is on its way to customers. The costs for, say, inspection, cooling, or storage are also made clear. And you know how much a product goes for as soon as it is sold.
Real-time insight
"Such transparency was fairly unique for the fresh produce sector. For instance, our Spanish zucchini grower can see exactly what's happening in the Netherlands. He sends part of his trade on a program basis and invoices it himself. But he always keeps extra stock to sell on the day trade. Our platform means he can see what's going on and precisely the costs and revenues being made. He used to be at the mercy of the gods. Now he can watch in real-time."
"Our app, which we keep developing, has opened many doors. So, we now have a permanent programmer on staff. You can have a nice app, but what you deliver daily is your promise. The app has become more of a tool to run our business than a unique selling point. People don't only communicate via the app. So it's primarily about the total package," says Michiel.
Owners still responsible for purchasing
"The transparency we envision is still vital, especially from suppliers. On the customer side, there's an increasing need for knowledge. The nice thing is that the founders and owners - Evert Jan van Vliet, Kees van den Heuvel, Leo van de Heuvel, and Pieter de Jong - are still responsible for purchasing product groups."
"Our specialists have remained specialists. And being a greengrocer is still a craft. Owners often take up a different position, and know-how fades into the background. Our company owners, however, are fully involved in our commercial team and also train young talent," Michiel explains.
"We also firmly believe in specialization with our product range. Approximately half of our product turnover consists of overseas citrus, making us perhaps the largest market player. In the winter, we focus heavily on Spanish and Moroccan vegetables. About 10% of our revenue consists of watermelons, which we don't source from overseas."
"The melons are becoming our true third pillar, where we stick to our focus on European produce. Supermarkets aren't necessarily keen on suppliers who deliver the whole package. You must provide knowledge and be able to relieve the supermarket. We know everything about the products we carry, so we immediately add value for our customers. In fact, we don't start a supply chain unless we add value," Michiel continues.
Day trading as an extra service
"Many citrus import agreements are made on a daily or weekly basis. Vegetables have far many more long-term contracts. The method doesn't matter; we hardly trade but connect European growers and buyers, with day trading mainly being an extra service to help growers sell their entire harvest."
Wasn't it often a traders' task to 'play smart' and thus make a few cents profit? That irks Bontenbal. "Playing smart implies growers are stupid whom you can outsmart. I don't believe that. If you look at today's growers, you see entrepreneurs from which many trading companies can learn. We want open collaboration and fair trade," he says.
Next phase
"Our platform is now entering the next phase. We'll continue digitizing processes, freeing up our people to share knowledge and advice. From the start, we deliberately chose some countries. From this fall, we want to increasingly focus on the German market, for which we've put together a specific team. The processing industry is also an essential branch for us."
Are others in the market now following the Chainn business model? "Companies are cherry-picking. For example, large traders are divesting their logistics activities. Other small businesses are choosing specialization. We don't mind; on the contrary, we hope these efficient connections become the new norm. We're ambitious and want to impact the market. That can only happen if most of the market operates this way," Michiel concludes.
Chainn is an exhibitor at Fruit Logistica: Hall 1.2, stand B-34
For more information:
Michiel Bontenbal
Chainn
Tel.: +31 (0) 882 221 009
michiel@chainn.nl
www.chainn.nl