Royal FloraHolland GROW j1n2'16 eng

GROW nr. 2 April 2016 Royal FloraHolland's magazine for members and buyers

“Convenience, that's a trend�

Steef van Adrichem Orchid farm Anco pure Vanda

Theme: The marketplace that is Royal FloraHolland

Visit the Greenhouse event attracts 205,000 people

Column

GROW

1

Exquisite

Tulip Mania in Holland

The tulip (Latin: tulipa) is genus of bulbous plants in the lily family, so-called monocots. The ambassador to emperor Ferdinand I in Turkey introduced tulips to the western world. In letters, he described the flowers he had seen in Edirne in Turkey in the year 1551. The cultivation of tulips in Europe started when a shipload of tulip bulbs arrived in Antwerp in 1562.

In the seventeenth century tulips became excessively popular. It became a craze, a ’Tulip Mania’ that affected a lot of Dutch citizens and reached its peak in 1636/1637. From about 1630 onward tulips became suspect to speculation and the trade in tulips and tulip bulbs took off in a big way. Many traders wanted to get in on the action and sometimes paid all they owned for one single bulb.

Illustration from ’Tulpenboek’ (Book of Tulips), circa 1648, belonging to the Frans Hals Museum in Haarlem, the Netherlands.

Acquired with the aid of the Rembrandt Foundation.

What’s driving

Lucas Vos

Ambition

Marco van Zijverden, CEO of the Dutch Flower Group “ I want to bring out the best in people”

p4

p 12

Points of view

Rose grower Tom Meewisse “ Veiling Rhein-Maas is pretty unique”

p 25 Editorial The central theme of this edition of GROW is the marketplace. Your flowers and your plants are traded worldwide via the marketplace of Royal FloraHolland. We are a dynamic and a physical as well as a virtual marketplace where trade, knowledge and innovation converge. Here, our buyers and members meet and conduct business. This edition contains several articles that have a direct link to our marketplace. Our CEO Lucas Vos explains, for instance, why he regards the marketplace as a nerve centre. And you can read how we can further improve the marketplace by means of reliable product information and representative product photos.

Let GROW inspire you!

Cross-fertilisation At the Florist Event, there were some inspiring demos by floral stylist Geertje Stienstra. “You really do need each other in the floriculture sector.”

p 26 The road to 2020 News Big data Insights Globetrotter Trends Service Calendar Colophon

6 10 16 18 20 28 30 31 31

What’s driving

Lucas Vos The central theme of this edition of GROW is the marketplace. According to Lucas Vos, CEO of Royal FloraHolland, the marketplace has become something of a hot item. “Everybody wants a piece of the virtual world.

The good thing is that only one party can rule this world as far as flowers and plants are concerned. That party is Royal FloraHolland, together with all its members and buyers. Why? Because we can supply all these products. So many companies try to launch their own digital platforms.

We should use established marketplaces and export our products using the look and feel of Royal FloraHolland.

Let them come by here for a beauty contest. We must act swiftly in this matter.

We should also carefully consider how to get our buyers on board, for they all have online stores of their own. Will there be rivalry? The underlying problem: the chain of trade is being shortened. No one knows what tomorrow’s world will bring. What I do know, is that it’s to the benefit of our buyers if we concentrate all the supply that’s out there in one spot. As it is, a lot of buyers have direct links with individual growers. That’s a lot of hassle. As a marketplace, Royal FloraHolland can be the liaison in these matters."

Balancing between pull and push Lucas touches on the physical marketplace, the most visible tool of our cooperative. “The New Auctioning will produce a blueprint in the first quarter of this year. I am most pleased with the way communication with our members 4

GROW

what’s driving lucas vos

Lucas Vos sees opportunities for the marketplace: “Royal FloraHolland can be a nerve centre.

Buyers benefit if we concentrate all the supply that’s out there in one spot.”

and buyers is going. Everybody seems to see the necessity for change by now. The solution will lie in cutting the connection between logistics and the moment of the actual sale. So, it will either boil down to auctioning off-nursery or a system of day trading. Or, maybe, some intermediate solution. However, it is paramount we protect the smaller growers. When we opt solely for the pull, we’ll lose them.

We should find a balanced solution, a balance between push and pull. And then wait and see how that pans out in the coming years. It would be great if we could streamline the logistics, if only because of the cost reduction."

According to Lucas buyers could further consolidate their positions. “At the moment we have 1,500 buyers that are scarcely able to differentiate. Buyers certainly ponder the question what constitutes added value. They cannot claim the assortment; Royal FloraHolland has that. Therefore the question is: how can buyers create added value for consumers? I am convinced this will lead to consumers making choices. That is something I would like to talk over with our clients."

“Royal FloraHolland, as a marketplace, can be the nerve centre"

what’s driving lucas vos

GROW

5

The road to 2020

Designing the future together: the New Auctioning What will the future hold for the auction process? That’s what we want to discuss at the regional meetings. An excellent opportunity for our members to once again share their thoughts on the future of the marketplace. Our buyers will get the change to do the same at the gatherings in May.

“The previous meetings with members and buyers provided us with a lot of input.“ This is Ronald Teerds speaking, programme director of the New Auctioning.

“For a large part, that is due to the high turnout.

At some point there were over a hundred people present at the meeting in Rijnsburg. There’s a high level of interest - with good reason. And what’s more, everyone is on the ball and constantly contributing.

With lots of insights and information as a result.”

Disconnecting commerce and logistics “We provided our members and buyers with four thought-lines: Emotion, Central mechanisation, Focus on direct and Off-nursery. There’s general agreement we should sever the connection between commerce and logistics. That way, we can improve the logistics of the marketplace. Direct sales are undoubtedly here to stay, as 75 per cent of growers plan to sell less via clock auctions and more via direct sales. This implies we should turn our attention to Focus on direct and Off-nursery.

But how? These past three months we worked out how by processing all the input members and buyers

6

GROW

The road to 2020

provided us with. And by substantiating our findings with data, to the very best of our abilities. We even brought in external expertise. By doing so, we’re sure to be as thorough and objective as we possibly can be. Eventually, this will result in a blueprint: a broad outline of what the future could look like. The three central themes are the system of transactions, logistics and the clock auction.”

Contribute!

“These next weeks we’ll be asking members and buyers to once again share their thoughts“, Ronald continues. “It’s vital and valuable to have this kind of direct dialogue. Time and time again, this proves to be the case. We need each other badly if we wish to build a future for the marketplace. Therefore I hope everyone will join in. So, if you want to know what we did with your earlier input, and if you’d like to voice your opinion again, this is the time to do it. Attend one of the meetings and share your thoughts. I cannot stress this enough.“ ←

Designing the future These past months, the team behind the project ’the New Auctioning’ has been in contact with about 1,200 people at eighteen regional meetings for members and eight meetings for buyers, in the Netherlands as well as abroad.

Will you be joining the discussion this spring?

You’ll find the latest on this topic on our website, www.royalfloraholland.com/hetnieuweveilen.

When will there be a regional meeting in your area?

Below, you’ll find a small number of scheduled meetings, and on page 31 of this edition of GROW you’ll find a larger selection. A full list is available on our website royalfloraholland.com.

All meetings start at 4.00 p.m.

Tuesday, April 26: Royal FloraHolland Rijnsburg, reception room Monday, May 2: Café Bleeker Heerhugowaard Tuesday, May 3: Royal FloraHolland Naaldwijk Fleurcenter, presentation room 6.16

The road to 2020

GROW

7

The road to 2020

Learning by doing: trials in China

The 2020 programme World Flower Exchange is making progress on the Chinese market. By now WFE is running a number of trials in Chinese supermarkets and an online groceries service.

These activities provide valuable information about Chinese consumers, conducting business in China and the logistics involved.

’Learning by doing’, that’s our motto as we try to feel our way into the Chinese market. “We’re trying to open up the Chinese market for flowers from Holland.

If a step we take seems to work, we’ll take the next step in that direction. That goes for the trials we’re running too”, says Guido de Wit, programme director of the WFE. In the first two quarters of the year there’ll be trials in several supermarkets and on a number of e-commerce platforms. WFE will be looking for answers to many questions. Will a Chinese consumer buy Dutch flowers, for instance? And if he does, via what sales channel? What impediments are there to doing business in China? How does a Chinese consumer prefer to present flowers to someone? “The essential point is that this country has huge potential, because of its size and the number of its inhabitants.

For now, we’re focussing on Shanghai, where people on average have enormous purchasing power. It has great potential.”

Women’s day Guido states WFE is running trials in supermarkets such as Metro and Lianhua, and on e-commerce platforms such as YiHaoDian, a subsidiary of Walmart. This spring the trials focused on Women’s 8

GROW

The road to 2020

“The gift box is essential, for Chinese customers want to see the wrapping at every stage.”

Guido de Wit WFE programme director

Day, an important celebratory day in March, which lead to the sale of large quantities of flowers, partly due to special marketing campaigns. WFE teamed up with another campaign promoting cosmetics and offered female consumers discount on a bouquet of flowers. The commercial extensively showed an exclusive gift box together with a bouquet. We set up a production line especially for this trial, with ten Chinese workers arranging the flowers. These workers received training from our colleagues in Shanghai.

“The gift box is essential, for Chinese customers want to see the wrapping at every stage.

Because of these results WFE will continue the trials with e-commerce in China. In May, there are two more opportunities: Mother’s Day and I Love You Day - a new special day that invites Chinese couples, married and unmarried, to (re)declare their love for each other.”

how far in the flowering process should the flowers be? “As it is, the Chinese like to get their flowers when they are at their prettiest - in full bloom, and therefore nearly done blooming. And they set great store by the colours and the deeper meaning of the flower. They’re starting to develop an interest in the flowering process now, so that’s something we try to stimulate. Chinese consumers know next to nothing about flowers, and we’d like to show them the beauty of a flower coming into bloom. Another thing is the Chinese sensitivity to environmental matters, so we should point out flowers are a great natural product.”

Royal Flora Holland will evaluate the WFE programme in the third quarter of 2016. ←

Interested in flowering One of the things we discovered during the trials is that the Chinese like to know where the flowers they’re buying came from. “Therefore it should say clearly on the wrapping that these are flowers from Holland.” Timing is also very important, for The road to 2020

GROW

9

News

Visit the Greenhouse

205,000 visitors It’s an event that welcomes one and all, but mainly attracts young families and pensioners.

In 2002, the 25th anniversary of Visit the Greenhouse, it ranked eighth on the list of national events, receiving a recordbreaking 228,000 visitors. Ever since that year, the number of visitors varies between this peak and 201,000. This year the event attracted 205,000 people - the lovely spring weather probably helped to raise the numbers.

10

GROW

News

The largest public event in Dutch horticulture is ’Visit the Greenhouse’, which on the 2nd and 3rd of April 2016 was held for the 39th time. This year’s theme was ’Horticulture is fascinating’.

History The international horticultural event Floriade, held in Rotterdam in 1960, got the general population interested in horticulture. It gave rise to the idea to give people access to actual greenhouses.

This led to the opening up of greenhouses, for a few days, in the mid-sixties in the Westland, a newly developed region with a lot of greenhouse horticulture. The idea was picked up by other regions and continued to spread. As of 1977, the event is called Visit the Greenhouse (in Dutch: Kom in de Kas).

Growers’ enthusiasm

Growth “In the early years we had to make do with a very low budget”, recalls the former chairman of Visit the Greenhouse, Wim van Delft. “After 1990, when I became chairman, we managed to get some sponsors and we could afford to advertise and pay someone to design a logo for us. It’s a great way to show everybody what you have to offer. I for one will certainly visit this event again.”

Why is Visit the Greenhouse so successful an event? The secret lies in the enthusiasm of the growers themselves, surely, all those in sixteen different regions who open up their company buildings to the general public. The start of this year’s nationwide event took place at the 31th of March at Bunnik Vriesea’s in Kudelstaart. Some 125 primary school students got a grand tour and learned how to grow the best possible bromeliad. After the tour they participated in an adventure game and finally were asked to solve a giant jigsaw puzzle to symbolically kick off Visit the Greenhouse 2016.

Finances Today’s sponsors are: Royal FloraHolland, pressure group GroentenFruit Huis, Interpolis, Rabobank en Bayer CropScience.

News

GROW

11

Ambition

• Marco van Zijverden celebrates his 54th birthday on the 29th of April. He was born in Kudelstaart and now resides in Aalsmeer • Motto: Making Life Colourful. Do things that bring colour to your life and the lives of others.

• Treasured values: Respect voor elkaar. Bring out the best in people.

• In 2015 he was awarded the prestigious title EY Master Entrepreneur of the Year.

12

GROW

Ambition

“ I wasn’t supposed to go into the flower trade” Marco van Zijverden is the CEO of the Dutch Flower Group (DFG), an incomparable family business consisting of thirty specialised trading companies that deal in cut flowers, bouquets, plants and decorative greenery. His father told him not to get into the flower business, but ’to learn a proper trade’. Now, many years later, Marco is in charge of an international trading company that has a turnover of 1.4 billion euros selling flowers and plants. →

Ambition

Blood is very often thicker than water. It’s the same with Marco and his link to horticulture. “My grandfather was a rose breeder. My father wasn’t too keen on growing and went into the flower trade instead. He started off with just one client in Germany, but that proved to be the foundation for the OZ Group. I myself was never meant to work in this sector. My father always said, ’Learn a proper trade, like lawyer of surgeon.’

I went to college and studied at Nyenrode Business University. It may be fate, it may be coincidence, but I still ended up in the flower trade. I think a flower is a wonderful product, and I like to deal with growers. And in my career I managed to get a taste of all aspects of the job, including buying at the clock auction and wrapping flowers.” Just as Marco graduated in 1986, the American dollar plummeted. OZ Export suffered, for the company depended on trade with the United States. “Therefore my father asked me to devise a plan to get the company back on track financially, 14

GROW

Ambition

and to subsequently execute that plan. In 1993, me and my brother Jaco took over OZ Export, and in 1999 we merged with the Van Duijn Groep, run by Art and Jaap van Duijn, to become the Dutch Flower Group.”

Bringing out the best in people What’s Marco’s ambition? “We want to be the finest company in the international field of horticulture, and indefinitely remain the finest company. A company where people like to work, where they can blossom and grow.” What’s driving Marco personally is the wish to bring out the best in his employees. “I like to help others to shine. After all, you can’t do everything yourself. If employees truly have potential, I want to bring out the best in them. People adhering to this philosophy helped build this company to what it is today. You have to rely for 90 per cent on your gut feeling to find the right people. No matter how impressive a CV is, there has to be a click.”

What is the Dutch Flower Group?

The Dutch Flower Group is a merger between two exporting companies: OZ Group, founded in 1959 by the Zijverden family from Aalsmeer, and the Van Duijn Groep, founded in 1969 by the Van Duijn family from Honselersdijk. The two companies merged because both managements felt that joining forces would improve the chance to fulfil their ambitions.

“ Everyone in this company must be willing to share his knowledge and wisdom” The time for action is now Royal FloraHolland sees the Dutch Flower Group as an important partner in establishing the 2020 strategy. Are there more reasons why the Dutch Flower Group is so important to Royal FloraHolland?

“We buy quite a lot. Also, we are members of the customer panel.”

Is there anything Royal FloraHolland should give a higher priority to, according to Marco? “The time for action is now. Without any changes, RFH will significantly lose revenue from 2017 onwards, and maybe even lose members. I told Lucas Vos as much. The New Auctioning must be implemented.

The current system of auctioning is too expensive.

I’m okay with the principle of the clock auction, but you cannot reduce your costs by 15 per cent in 2020 if you keep using the clocks and systems you’re using now. Please pull the plug on the physical clocks. Or switch to auctioning off-nursery, that should save a lot of money. The RFH management will have to take that step together with the supervisory board. It’s impossible to get all members on board when it comes to this kind of radical decision. Yes, you need popular support, but at some point someone has to force the issue. If you don’t, you’ll fall behind.” ← Ambition

GROW

15

Export to Germany on the wane →

–3,

Export

To get a complete overview of the diminishing export to Germany, GROW interviewed RFH market specialist Bettina Denker. Check it out on our website www.royalfloraholland.com

Top 3 Most popular presents

14% 11%

9%

Top 10 Cut flowers exported to Germany

3 % Sunflower

5 % Gerbera

2 % Chrysanthemum 2 % 3 % Carnation Lily

2 % Daffodil

3 % Amaryllis

Cut flowers 2015 €976,357,000 2014 €976,332,000

19 % Other

15 % Tulip

Consumption value flowers

46 % Rose

€5,019,000,000 €4,851,000,000 2015 2014 16

GROW

big data

,8 %

total Top 10 Garden plants exported to Germany Pe

tu 2 % nia

Hy dr an 2 % ge a Ca rn 2 % at ion

Os te

os

s

2 % gete Ta

er

2 % vend La

ry

ne

ree eg tiv

3 % cora De

pe

rm 5 % um

12 %her Ot

Pe

–12,6 %

lar g 2 ge oniu 1 % ra niu m/ m

13 % la Vio

Plants

Plants 2015 €580,848,000 2014 €664,598,000

Top 10 Houseplants exported to Germany Am

Ch

ar 2 % yll is

Cy cla

rys

3 me % n

an

th

em 5 % um

il

2 % ffod Da

5 Ro % se

Ph

ra

3 % rbe Ge

th

4 % acin Hy

5 % her Ot

e

ho

ala

16 op % sis

en

7 % lanc Ka

Consumption value plants

€2,168,000,000 2014 Data: Floridata, consumer panel Royal FloraHolland, Flower Council of Holland

€2,009,000,000 2015 big data

GROW

17

Insights

Reliable growers’ information is essential

The reliability of the product information our members supply is often not up to scratch. It became the responsibility of the growers themselves after Royal FloraHolland halted its inspections in 2015.

Clients meanwhile demand accurate information and call for significant improvements.

GROW talks it over with Royal FloraHolland’s manager commercial operations Aad van den Enden and quality manager Petra Schrikkema. Aad: “At this point, the year after, we find things do not work as we would like them to. This is starting to affect all of the chain. Clients notice they sometimes get second-rate products, while they paid for A1 quality. And often they’ll leave it be, since they’re strapped for time. Complaining about it means having to send back the goods, which takes up time and labour.

On top of that, they’ll have nothing to ship out. All and all, the quality system is creaking. In direct sales, things are not that bad. In this case the growers themselves can be held responsible for the reliability of their information.”

Devaluation of classification Because of these developments, the classification of products loses its worth, Aad points out. “A1 isn’t necessarily A1 anymore (the highest quality label, followed by A2 and B1). No one forces people to stick to the quality system. This leads to some growers trying to get all 18

GROW

insights

of their products labelled as A1.

The suggestion it’s a good product can be made because there’s no adequate control anymore.”

Lower prices At the moment, Royal FloraHolland can only keep track of complaints that do get made. In 2016, this concerns 1.4 per cent of all lots brought to auction. In 2015, it was 1.5 per cent. This could be a small improvement instigated by more strict intervention measures per January 1, 2016. Petra: “But it’s just the tip of the iceberg. We’re in a downward spiral. Some buyers know full well it’s not really A1.

They’ll end up paying a lower price because they have to incorporate the costs. A large group of buyers that aren’t in the know about the quality of the growers’ products at present pay too much.”

Structural improvements How to solve this quality problem, according to Aad and Petra? “We need a structural improvement to stop the downward spiral.”

The team for quality intervention was launched in the summer of 2015 and is starting to show

results, but it’s sadly not enough to improve overall quality. And we can’t go back to the old system of inspections by RFH, Petra states, because the costs are too high.

Targeted inspections “The project ’100 per cent reliable product information’ has started by now and we expect it will lead to some firm measures”, Petra Schrikkema explains. “In the short term, we’ll expand the intervention team, for we plan to introduce extra inspections of the seasonal products. We’ll pick out a specific group of seasonal products, and have targeted inspections at the beginning and the end of the season. The team will help growers not to slip up. And the team will take steps if a grower intentionally supplies incorrect information. That could include the refusal to auction the products.” ←

“ Royal FloraHolland should take stronger measures. If this leads to your product being degraded from A1 to B1, maybe that will help bring home the message.”

Marcel van der Voort Van Schie Potlelies Honselersdijk

“ It’s too bad Royal FloraHolland has been cutting back on quality inspections these past years. The overall quality is degrading. As the owner of a trading company, I have firsthand experience. Growers are messing with the system of classification, trying to find some wiggle room. Worse still, it’s the consumer that gets the wrong end of the stick, as the flowers and plants he buys will be lower in quality.”

Cees Heemskerk Heemskerk Rijnsburg

“ It’s the buyer that suffers when growers get careless or sloppy. It’s important buyers should be in a position to rate growers. And that rating should have some consequences.”

Ronald Brand Groep Flore, trade division

“ At the moment a lot of the products on offer have invalid growers’ information attached. This is bad for the purchasing process of the buyers and bad for average pricing.”

Peter van Gijlswijk Quattro Plant insights

GROW

19

Globetrotter This returning section features objects from all over the world, providing they have a direct link to international horticulture and Royal FloraHolland.

Floriculture in Vietnam is blooming Vietnam is very much an exporting country.

Most crops can be grown year-round, thanks to the climate. Furthermore, this Asian country has infrastructural benefits, with airways, highways and fairly fast seaways connecting it to neighbouring countries. This is why Vietnam has a lot of potential.

The majority of nurseries are situated in Lam Dong, Dong Thap, Sapa, Moc Chau, Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. The flowers that they produce are mainly chrysanthemums, roses, gladioli, and carnations.

Dong Thap province is an important flower producing area and sells a lot of its produce to Ho Chi Minh City. Both regions plan to radically improve their floriculture when it comes to (sustainable) production, the sales channels, extending the

20

GROW

globetrotter

assortment and trying to establish one of the cities as the ’City of Flowers’. From 2014 onward investors from Japan and Taiwan started setting up nurseries in Vietnam. Part of what they produce there is exported (mainly) to Japan. In 2014, export sales to Japan already amounted to about 20 million euros worth.

Drive Monceau Fleurs: choosing flowers from the comfort of your car seat At the Drive Monceau Fleurs you can order flowers while sitting in your car. It’s the latest brainchild of Monceau Fleurs, a large chain of French florists, based on self-service. The Drive uses the same principle as a fast-food drive-in. A customer drives up to an electronic order point, chooses what he likes - what kind of bouquet, composition, colour, flowers - and can proceed directly to the counter, where he can collect his order and pay. The Drive was opened only recently for a trial run at a Monceau store in La Garde, in the south of France.

Iranian New Year and the hyacinth The Iranian feast Noruz (or Nauruz) celebrates both spring and New Year at approximately the 21th of March and lasts no less than thirteen days.

During this celebration, people practice Haft-Seen, a custom that requires you to put seven symbolic items on your table. According to tradition every item has to start with the letter ’s’ in Farsi, and one of the standard items is the hyacinth. This flower, to Iranians, symbolizes spring and the sky. Other standard items on the table are a mirror, coins and a goldfish. The celebration starts on the first day of spring, when the sun is directly above the equator.

Noruz is the most important feast of the year in Iran.

During Noruz people clean their houses thoroughly and decorate them with flowers, garlands and all kinds of beautiful things.

Plant Bag clears the air From a Belgian horticultural magazine - The Plant Bag is a backpack containing plants. A fanning system leads the air through a root-filled growth medium. The purified air arrives at the mouth via a collar or a scarf. The Plant Bag got first prize at a design competition that called for solutions to air pollution. Marnix de Kroon, student of strategic product design at the Delft University of Technology, is one of the designers. So, why the Plant Bag? “Air quality is often poor, not only in countries such as China, but here in Holland as well. This could be a solution.”

Points of view The marketplace of Royal FloraHolland in all its aspects. A story about the extra marketplace Veiling Rhein-Maas; more and more Royal FloraHolland growers sell their products there.

Rose grower Tom Meewisse tells us why. Also there’s a story from the perspective of one of our buyers, Heemskerk Flowers, about the importance of reliable product photos.

Auctioneer Jeroen van Sprang has been part of Royal FloraHolland for the last fifteen years. His workplace is usually the clock auction for plants in Naaldwijk.

His roots lie in Boskoop, an area with many tree nurseries, so he knows all about horticulture. He tells about the changes happening in our marketplace.

There’s the introduction of presale clock auctioning, for instance.

According to Jeroen, it’s a success. The grower has to do little. One third of the supplied goods can be offered via FloraMondo. So now the possibility of buying 24/7 has become a reality. The advantage is that small quantities can be bought at a price determined by the supplier. At the moment we see on average a 10 per cent price increase for lots sold via presale clock auctioning.

“ The biggest change in the marketplace is the platform FloraMondo, that started the process of digitalization.”

Jeroen van Sprang Auctioneer plant clock Naaldwijk

22

GROW

Column

“ Presale clock auctioning is a success” Changes in the clock auction for plants The last couple of years, sales via the clock auction have gone down. That’s a fact. According to Jeroen, the plant clock is not affected as much as the flower clock. The significant decline in clock volumes happens primarily in the flower trade because of the increase in direct sales. This trend isn’t as strong in the plant trade. The auctioneer does notice growers often use the plant clock to get rid of residual quantities. “That means a surplus can be disruptive.

When this occurs, we try to reach an arrangement with growers that supply an excessive amount. It happens every now and then, for some product groups suffer from overproduction. I sometimes wonder if growers know who they produce their goods for.”

The Russian market JJeroen illustrates this with a development on the Russian market. “A few years ago the upper range of plants could be sold there, giving sales a boost.

The price was no consideration at all. That time has passed. Dutch traders now buy a cheaper range of products, because of the developments in Russia.

An alternative market isn’t easily found.” This is why Jeroen thinks that opening up new markets, an ambitious goal of Royal FloraHolland’s strategy 2020, is a very good idea. Also, there’s the New Auctioning, a programme that’s extremely important in regard to preparing for the future, according to Jeroen.

Responsibilities for growers What are the biggest changes within Royal FloraHolland to our marketplace? Jeroen points to the process of digitalization that was set in motion by the launch of the platform FloraMondo.

The auctioneer cannot help but notice some growers haven’t embraced the digital era yet. Royal FloraHolland has a part to play in this, Jeroen states. “We have to tell it like it is. We have always been used to helping everybody out. Now we must give the suppliers more responsibilities. We can’t do everything anymore. An entrepreneur should be able to profit from the opportunities our cooperative offers.” Jeroen realises that some growers are traditionalists. “They often don’t know how to move with the times.” ←

“ A representative product photo should be mandatory” Showing good product photos in the dealing rooms is vital. Many growers, in practice, don’t deliver reliable or representative product photos. This is the view of René Egberts, purchasing manager of the trading company Heemskerk Flowers.

For a number of years now, René has been working from the dealing room in Rijnsburg. He notices many growers don’t supply reliable or representative photos. It’s a serious situation indeed. “Growers should realise the importance. They want the highest price for their products, but apparently are not prepared to do everything it takes to earn that money.”

What is the importance of a good product photo?

“It shows the maturity of the product. That matters, especially with the summer season approaching. The flowering of the hydrangea for instance differs from day to day. Therefore, a new photo of the product should be supplied every day. Royal FloraHolland now leaves the responsibility for this to the growers, and consequently nothing happens.”

Mandatory The purchasing manager thinks that Royal FloraHolland has been too lax for too long. He recommends taking stronger measures against those growers that don’t abide by the rules. “I even think a representative photo of the product should be mandatory.” The Heemskerk Flowers employee indicates that the trading company itself takes care to provide decent pictures of all the products it exports. “That’s how it should be in the dealing room too. I don’t think growers can use ’lack of time’ as a valid excuse.” According to René, product photos are especially bad as far as plants are concerned. “70 to 80 per cent of the photos leave to be desired. The growth stage is often depicted incorrectly. And mixed plants frequently don’t look like the photograph at all.”

The trust of the buyer Any more messages René wishes to give to Royal FloraHolland? “Well, representative product photos should have been made mandatory prior to the introduction of image auctioning. If RFH wants us to switch to Remote Buying (KOA), reliable product photos are simply essential.”

René does feel that if growers start providing up-to-

“ At the moment, product photos of plants often show the wrong growth stage.”

René Egberts Purchase manager Heemskerk Flowers

date product photos, buyers will start trusting the information. Which will possibly lead to more Remote Buying.

Buying everything at the auction Finally, what does René see as the big advantage of buying in a dealing room as opposed to buying at the clock auction? “Buyers can purchase all of their products at all auctions, that’s the big advantage.

Also, in the dealing room the lines of communication within the company are very short. Communicating is a breeze. Our buyers could never run around every morning in three different auction halls to assess the flowers. That’s why the availability of representative product photos is so important.”

The response of Eric Velthuijzen, manager operational auctioning: “Royal FloraHolland thinks signals from buyers should be taken seriously. That is why we already started a project that should ensure every product has a product photo supplied with it.”

See also the article on page 18 of this magazine. ← Points of view

GROW

23

Perspectieven

“ Our auction provides growers with access to a huge market.”

Ruud Knorr CEO Veiling Rhein-Maas

Gateway to Germany: Veiling Rhein-Maas Veiling Rhein-Maas in Herongen (Germany) is part of the marketplace of Royal FloraHolland. What are the advantages of this German auction for our growers?

“We are the gateway to Germany”, CEO Ruud Knorr explains.

breeders in Germany is different. “Here, for instance, Avalanche+ can be auctioned when the ’quota’ for the Netherlands is reached. Germany has a different policy and therefore more product differentiation.

For example, in Germany they breed shorter roses in terms of the length of the stems.”

In 2011 the activities of cooperative Landgard (two branches in Germany) and Royal FloraHolland Venlo have been combined in Veiling Rhein-Maas. An important reason for merging the three locations was that both buyers and growers from the region were in favour of concentrating all available supply in one location. This would lead in all likelihood to a better balance between supply and demand. Consequently prices should stabilize and costs should be lower.

For members of Royal FloraHolland, Veiling RheinMaas is an interesting option because it’s an extra marketplace in Germany, according to Ruud. “You can reach your market in no time at all. The logistics are excellent, so the products get transported to the Ruhr region in a flash, where there are a lot of consumers. This ensures better sales for our members. Our auction provides growers with access to a huge market.”

Autonomous price development Because the three auctions have merged, so has the price development. Therefore Veiling Rhein-Maas is an international marketplace with an autonomous price development. To make a comparison with Holland, Knorr draws our attention to what happens to the prices around Valentine’s Day. “Aalsmeer peaks eight days before the 14th of February, but we peak just four days before Valentine.”

A large number of growers that supply the Veiling Rhein-Maas come from Brabant and Limburg, but the auction has many suppliers from other parts of the Netherlands as well. “This means our auction contributes to the turnover of both cooperatives: Royal FloraHolland and Landgard.” What would the world of ornamental horticulture look like without Veiling Rhein-Maas? “It would be a bit more dull”, Ruud laughs.

“We are the vanilla sauce on the apple strudel.” ←

Enormous consumer market Knorr points out that 17 million people live in Nordrhein-Westfalen alone, as much as in the whole of the Netherlands. German consumers spend over 8,5 billion euros a year on flowers and plants.

“The consumer market is enormous.” An additional advantage of selling via Veiling Rhein-Maas for a grower is the fact that the issuance policy of

Total turnover Veiling Rhein-Maas and percentage of RFH growers.

24

GROW

Points of view

2011: €278,944,000 RFH growers supplied 47.2% 2015: €321,780,846 RFH growers supplied 57.2%

Contented rose grower happy with Veiling Rhein-Maas Tom Meewisse and his father Aad Meewisse, rose growers from Bergschenhoek, started two years ago with supplying Grand Prix to Veiling Rhein-Maas.

A major supplier quit the business, so they could fill that empty slot. Later on Tom stopped growing Grand Prix and switched to Red Naomi.

So now he not only sends his roses to Royal FloraHolland Aalsmeer, but also to Veiling RheinMaas. Why? “The price development is handled well here. You have to pay a little extra for the transport though. It’s a totally different market.”

As a comparison Tom indicates that exporters in Aalsmeer, as special ’flower days’ draw near, usually buy their products two weeks in advance at the clock auction. This means rose prices reach their peak in Aalsmeer a week before they peak at Veiling Rhein-Maas. This is due to the fact that the auctions differ greatly: Aalsmeer is aimed at exporting goods, whereas Herongen is an auction where a lot of retailers buy their products. “Only when the price in Aalsmeer begins to drop, we start sending a little more to Veiling Rhein-Maas. Both auctions have a set group of buyers.”

Unique place What is, according to the rose grower, the main advantage of having an extra marketplace at hand?

“Veiling Rhein-Maas is close to a lot of florists, that’s pretty unique. The other thing that makes it unique is the fact that there are no middlemen - no exporting or wholesale businesses. Less logistics required and cheaper for the florists. Another advantage, in Herongen you are very close to the Ruhr region.

And Venlo and Cologne are just around the corner, that means even more potential customers.” Tom is contented with Veiling Rhein-Maas and will continue to send his roses there in years to come. ←

“ In Herongen, you are very close to the Ruhr region.”

Tom Meewisse Rose grower

Cross-fertilisation

Inspiration at the Florist Event

Seasonal Trade Fair Several plant growers went to the Seasonal Trade Fair to show off their products. Growers see the event as a relations fair where they can meet buyers and colleagues. The day-to-day business often leaves little time for this kind of interaction. The young grower Arie van der Harg of VDH Plant from the Dutch town of Made displays a lot of Petunia Nightsky in his stand. “A new product that I want to bring to everyone’s attention.”

Another prominent feature of his stand is the map of Brabant. On the map is written ’Made in Made’ - a great marketing idea. “We are proud to have our roots in Brabant.”

26

GROW

Cross-fertilisation

Great kick-off to the new season Van Winden-Erica BV, a nursery of potted plants from Drenthe, sees the Seasonal Trade Fair as an important event to start off the season. Sales manager Barry van der Zwet: “Many products are now in bloom, so we can show them off and get the new season going.

We brought a lot of viola , bellis and Senetti that we produce for various garden centres. Especially for Mothers’ Day we have a patio rose with extraordinary large flowers, ’a real bestseller’. We are ready to go.” Van Winden also sells a lot of houseplants to supermarket Albert Heijn.

Inspiration on the Florist Event Geertje Stienstra provides demos of flower arranging, both in Holland and abroad. The subtle flower arrangements created by the Frisian sometimes appear simple on first sight, but surprise you when you look again. “It’s so much fun to do this demo. I managed to fit everything in, but only just. On Wednesday I got lots of feedback from the crowd. I’ve posted the clip I made of the demo on my Facebook page and got several likes.”

Geertje is pleased the Florist Event brings her into direct contact with growers. “They can see that I am actually working with their products, which is of course very nice. They are really passionate about their products.”

Networking is an important aspect of this fair. “You really do need each other in the floriculture sector.”

Cross-fertilisation

GROW

27

Trends Steef van Adrichem, co-owner of the orchid farm Anco Pure Vanda, turns to Paris for inspiration. What trends does he see? And what trends fit in with his products?

Learning from French pastry Packaging plays an essential role in sales. At the famous French patisserie LADURÉE, consumers are waiting in line for nicely packaged macarons.

These are small, light cakes that come in jolly colours.

At LADURÉE you buy a luxury package for €17.50. A huge difference with the Lidl, where you can buy a box for just a few euros. It’s the personal touch that does it. Steef finds this inspiring. “LADURÉE manages to give their macarons a personal touch and a feel of luxury. With luxurious packaging and a personalised wrapper I want to give Vanda that same LADURÉE feeling.”

28

GROW

Trends

Convenience as a trend Consumers and business relations alike opt ever more for convenience. Steef: “I see convenience as a trend.

I developed a personalised gift for the luxurious hotel chain Four Season George V. Hotel guests could now take the flowery feel of George V home with them. Unfortunately customs won’t always let you take flowers with you. That’s why the hotel has put the idea on ice for now.” Meanwhile, the hotel maids of the George V have an easier job thanks to a handy box with ready-made Vanda’s. “They place our products in the hotel rooms just like that, and don’t have to worry about them for three weeks. The simple ideas often prove to be the best ideas.”

Jeff Leatham, artistic director of the Four Seasons Hotel Group, loves letting the Anco pure Vanda shine in the Four Seasons Hotel George V in Paris.

Service

On these service columns we share relevant publications from the floriculture sector with you. Also, there’s a horticultural calendar with upcoming important events.

Do you have questions? Or do you want to contribute something inspiring from the ornamental horticulture sector?

Email the editorial staff: GROW@royalfloraholland.com

← Winners Formidable Florists These are the fortunate winners of the readers’ competition in the GROW edition of February 13th: Tjeerd Arendse, bulb farmer from Slootdorp, and Bianca Vreugdenhil, flower stylist from Naaldwijk.

They received the book ’Formidable Florists’. The picture shows Tjeerd and Nel Arendse amid their tulips.

New brochure Environment and Safety The new brochure Environment and Safety by Royal FloraHolland states what requirements you have to meet on our marketplaces. In it, you can find the most important regulations concerning Health and Safety, including the latest changes in rules and legislation.

Read the new brochure to make sure that you are up to speed. Because of changes in rules and legislation made by the government, Royal FloraHolland must also periodically change the brochure Environment and Safety. The new brochure can be found our website: www.royalfloraholland.com

← Sponsor the RopaRun The RopaRun (14-18th of May) is a running event from Paris (520 km) and Hamburg (560 km) to Rotterdam.

All winnings go to people with cancer. For eighteen years now RopaRunTeam Royal FloraHolland, consisting of twenty-five employees, has been participating. The team is sponsored by members, buyers, co-workers and business relations. Will you help sponsor this year’s event? The team would love to once again donate a fair bit of money. With the money raised by all of the teams, the life of people with cancer and their families will, where possible, be improved! If you’d like to support the team, please look for more information on the website www.roparunteam97.nl.

30

GROW

Service

Calendar

Publishing details

A selection of regional meetings held

by Royal FloraHolland

GROW publishing details GROW is the magazine for members and buyers of Royal FloraHolland. It is published six times a year and is also available to read on www.royalfloraholland.com.

Mosav Givat Chen (Israël)

Thursday 19 may and friday 20 may

Editorial office GROW, Postbus 220 2670 AE Naaldwijk

Members' meeting at 2nd of June

Thursday 2 june

More information about our new magazine can be found at www.royalfloraholland.com/grow.

Royal FloraHolland Aalsmeer Buffet starts at 6.00 p.m., the members’ meeting starts at 7.30 p.m.

The Iftex Expo Kenya 8th till 10th of June Fair for growers and international customers. The fair will take place in the Oshwal Centre in Nairobi (Parklands).

GROW@royalfloraholland.com

Wednesday 8th till friday 10th of june 2016

This second edition of GROW has been made by: Katja Bouwmeester (editor-in-chief) Rianne Nieuwenhuize (senior editor) Nancy Bierman (editor) Willem Goedendorp (proofreader) Printing office Van Deventer bv Total Identity: Sümeyra Günaydin (graphic design) Sieds de Boer (senior advisor ) Marco de Haan (project manager) Nils van Houts (photographer) Erik van der Burgt (photographer) Cok van den Berg (photographer) Elske Koopman (freelancer) Rijger Webredactie: Thomas Gerkrath (translation) Photography Hotel George V Parijs, Jeff Leatham en iStock (pp 28-29) Mark Rinaldi en Serious Eats (Iranian New Year p 21) Mieke Haaksma, (photo Vietnam p20) No advertising Since January 1, 2016 it is no longer possible to advertise in this publication.

Questions?

For information about or alterations to the receiving of this publication, send an email to ledenadministratie@ royalfloraholland.com

You’ll find more information on all events on the website www.royalfloraholland.com

Printing process The printing process of this publication is met by strict demands concerning environment and health. The magazine is printed on FSC certified paper. The foil used for packaging GROW consists of polyethylene and polypropylene.

Calendar & Publishing details

GROW

31

A well-oiled logistic machine

A global marketplace, all about trading flowers and plants.

Royal FloraHolland is the cooperative where you earn your money. A fast, global supply chain with over a 100,000 transactions a day, sending the most beautiful products in all directions to all continents within hours.

Millions of plants and flowers in no less than 400,000 varieties