The successful banana brand, Mack Premium, has
been a popular name on the wholesale markets for
an impressive 10 years in 2016. To celebrate, the
brand has had a fresh new makeover and launched
a second product – Mack Premium Avocados. The
new boxes are designed to stand out from the crowd and to make the most of the fruit inside.
Sales of Mack Premium Bananas have grown to make the brand one of the leaders in the sector today, easily rivaling the long-established global names for quality and value. A loyal customer base in the wholesale markets has helped the sales desk at Mack International to build volumes to the point where Mack Premium now outsells almost all other brands – with volumes set to grow much further in 2016 thanks to a renewed focus on the brand and to greater investment in marketing support.
With procurement managed through a small, dedicated team at Mack in Paddock Wood, the fruit for Mack Premium Bananas is sourced from just three growers. They’re in Ecuador, Costa Rica and Colombia. This is a strategic move designed to make sure that the quality of fruit in the brand remains constant through the year, and it allows greater flexibility to meet additional volume requirements. Each grower has been selected for the quality of their fruit, for their commitment to social and environmental initiatives, for their capacity to help support growth and because they also believe in the future of the brand. Each receives frequent visits from technical and commercial representatives to maintain the quality of the relationship and to help share long term plans.
The team have streamlined the supply chain through from plantation to end customer, finding the most efficient route to market for the Mack Premium fruit. Reviewing the shipping, the control points and the ripening process has added up to 6 days to the life of the fruit in the UK. Ripening is undertaken by dedicated experts at the extensive Mack facilities, primarily at Paddock Wood. The ripening facilities at The Fresh Produce Centre have received major investment and undergone upgrade work to increase their efficiency and reduce their environmental impact in recent times.
Branch Director for Mack International is Gary Canning. He has great hopes for this next phase in the development of Mack Premium. “The Mack name is well known at wholesale, standing for quality, value and trust. We’re proud of the growth in the Mack Premium Banana brand, and we’re approaching the launch of this new look with renewed energy and excitement. There’s a programme of investment in promotions with our customers through the year in support of the brand’s sustainable growth.”
The new avocado launch has also generated significant interest in the markets. The recent sales performance for avocados is very impressive, with sales volume increasing by 41% in the last year (data from Kantar, 52 weeks ending 3rd Jan 2016). New shoppers are discovering the flavour and versatility of avocados, supported by much better quality and more consistent product on offer.
Mack Premium Avocados will be supporting these new sales by guaranteeing quality Hass fruit, ripened to perfection and ready to eat.
As with the bananas, Mack Premium avocados are never sourced through exporters – always from direct grower relationships to help ensure quality and consistency. The Mack buyers specify that fruit is left on the tree for longer, thereby producing higher dry matters and improving the overall eating quality.
Each fruit is labelled clearly with a ripe and ready message to help communicate more effectively with consumers.
Charles Rees is the new man at the helm of Mack Wholesale, joining the company this year from his previous role with Vitacress. He’s looking to drive sales and performance in the competitive top tier with the Mack Premium brand. “Our sales teams are truly proud to sell products bearing the Mack name. We have ambitious targets for brand growth this year, developing our customer base and delivering greater volumes for our growers. The future for Mack Premium looks as bright as our new boxes!”
For more information:
Mack Premium bananas-sales
Mack International,
Tel: +44 (0)23 8074 7570
Mack premium avocados-sales:
Wayne Flynn,
Tel: +44 (0)1892 831594