SEPTEMBER 2022
CELEBRATING 143 YEARS AS CANADA’S PREMIER HORTICULTURAL PUBLICATION
THEGROWER.ORG
MARKET MOVERS
Greenhouse branding: from the boardroom to the kitchen
The branding of greenhouse vegetables – and fruits – has reached such sophistication that a kitchen was built inside the new marketing quarters of Pure Hothouse Foods’ sprawling greenhouse at Leamington, Ontario. The open concept is equipped with lights that can accommodate food photography but also provide a hub for team brainstorming. Here, Chris Veillon (L), chief marketing officer for the Pure Flavor brand consults with in-house chef Michael Giannotti on a new recipe for the next edition of the Live Deliciously eMagazine. Photo by PureFlavor.
KAREN DAVIDSON Touchless faucets, check. Open shelving, check. Stainless steel appliances, check. The backdrop of this kitchen looks like a glossy shot from Canadian House & Home. Rather, it’s the new kitchen next door to the 10-person marketing department at Pure Hothouse Foods Inc. Its purpose is as hard-nosed as the executive team that must coordinate the growing, packaging and sales of hundreds of acres of tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers grown in Leamington, Ontario. What might be considered a place for a java perk for the staff is actually a multi-functional work space for food photography, brainstorming and hosting visitors. The visual backdrop of thousands of greenhouse peppers is a constant reminder of the real focus: marketing vegetables to meet surging demand across North America. “A decade ago, marketing wasn’t the powerhouse that it
Ontario apple tour Volume 72 Number 09
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is today for produce companies,” says Chris Veillon, chief marketing officer for Pure Hothouse Foods Inc. “In those days, very small groups of people managed a couple of trade shows, created Powerpoint presentations, handed out product at community events and that was it.” Today, the 15-year veteran of marketing for three different greenhouse growers is now part of the executive leadership of the Pure Flavor brand. His specific responsibilities include business and market development, market research and planning, strategic direction for promotion and advertising, coordination with sales, and directing the day-to-day activities of the Strategic Marketing Group. That’s a cool job that has him running at Olympic speed in his Adidas sneakers to Mexico, the United States and Europe in the last three months. “As a kid, I was always fascinated with brands -- how they positioned themselves with colours, messaging and purpose,” recalls Veillon. “We are not a bag of Lays chips or a bottle of Coke or Pop tarts. Fifteen years ago, there was only a handful of well-known brands in fresh produce
and everything was a commodity. What we have learned is that we can sell more than red produce that consumers associate with sweetness and juiciness. Other produce can be flavourful too.” The emergence of specialty crops has been matched by varieties that not only yield well, but provide a unique tasting experience. For Veillon, new greenhouse products such as the two-bite snacking cucumber require a story about the grower, the packer and the IPM manager, so that the parent is confident about buying it for school lunches. At the retail counter, it’s known as the Uno Bites Nano cucumber. But for the retail category manager, with a Pure Flavor product guide in hand, the Uno Bites Nano cucumber is promoted as an ideal snacking item that goes well with lime juice, dill and mint. It can be paired with bell peppers, black olives and chicken. And for the epicurious, consumers can go to the website for the recipe: Cucumber Citrus Salad. Continued on page 3
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