On-line produce auction is getting another try
On-line produce auction is getting another try
A group of Arizona produce and technology experts believe the time is ripe to launch an on-line produce auction once again.
A decade ago, the trade show convention floors were crowded with on-line trading companies expecting to make millions pushing the produce industry into on-line trading. Although buyers and sellers have embraced the Internet as an excellent communication tool in which to complete transactions, the buying and selling of produce between unknown buyers and sellers never materialized.
Humberto Moreno and a number of others unveiled Foodmoves Inc. (www.foodmoves.com) at the recent Produce Marketing Association convention, and they believe the produce industry is now ready for an auction platform similar to eBay.
Mr. Moreno said that a decade ago, on-line buying and selling in all walks of life was not nearly as prevalent as it is today. He said that companies such as eBay have worked out the kinks and the consuming public has embraced these concepts. As such, the Foodmoves partners have designed an on-line trading platform that they say fits the unique requirements of the produce industry.
A company press release said that Foodmoves was founded in 2006 by veterans of the produce industry "with the goal of increasing efficiency, reducing waste and improving profitability in buying and selling produce." Foodmoves has done market research and believes that business people in the produce industry are ready to incorporate on-line trading into their daily workflow.
The company was scheduled to unveil live trading at its Fresh Summit booth Saturday, Oct. 13, but Mr. Moreno said it expects to build the business slowly. Initially, Foodmoves believes that on-line trading is likely to have an impact in situations where time is critical, such as turnover of rejected loads, reconditioning and reselling loads damaged in transit, and similar emergency situations.
Mr. Moreno believes that a supplier with a surplus of inventory on a Friday afternoon and no prospects of selling it until Monday might turn to the site to try to make a weekend sale. He said that the auction will have a bidding process much like eBay. Sellers will list the time frame in which to accept bids. Foodmoves will take a 5 percent commission on all sales from the seller; buyer participation is free.
Eventually, the Foodmoves executives believe that the on-line trading platform will prove to be an excellent place for suppliers to find new buyers. Buyers are expected to want to visit the site to find new suppliers or fill pressing needs.
According to the company press release, the initial reason for buyers to visit foodmoves.com is because the "marketplace offers opportunities to find more and better deals, either in price, or filling the demand for specialty produce, than can be found using conventional trading. The user interface of the web site makes it possible to look for buying opportunities that can't easily be found with conventional practices, such as doing location searches for partial lots with the intent of filling a truck as a 'mixer.'"
Mr. Moreno said there will be some testing of the site in the first few months, and the company has lined up suppliers mostly from the Nogales, AZ, and San Diego areas to put product up for sale.
He said that the company's group of founders includes people working in the produce industry who are going to use the site initially for filling some of their own orders.
Mr. Moreno and his brother, Mauro, are the main produce industry connections. Mauro Moreno brings 20 years of expertise in the produce and transportation industries. He established himself at Howard Liggett Inc. and also worked for C.H. Robinson. Most recently he operated a third-party logistics corporation called AVIVA International.
Humberto Moreno has more than 12 years of experience in the produce industry, having started as an inspector with the U.S. Food & Drug Administration before going to work as a buyer for Frank Donio Inc., based in Hammonton, NJ. He currently runs his own produce brokerage firm, Arizona Mixers Fresh Produce LLC in Nogales.
Elizabeth Tanori-Slack is president of Foodmoves, while Glenn Haney serves as a business manager. Until recently, Mr. Haney was president of Aztecs Globalcom Technology LLC, a player in telecom provisioning services. Also on the team is Lupita Moreno, who has 15 years in the customs brokerage business.
Founders and co-corporate counsels Charles Slack-M?ndez and Linda Lory have been investment partners in several successful ventures and partnered again to organize Foodmoves. They bear responsibility for business development, including forthcoming announcements of associations with major industry players as well as maintaining the status of Foodmoves as a debt-free, independent start-up.
Chief technologist Daniel Kehoe was retained by the company's founders in a national search for top technology talent. A company press release said that he was among the technologists responsible for launching the World Wide Web in 1991, and has participated in every phase of the growth of the web, including development of the first site for sale of e-books (1995) and the first deployment of web technology in the container shipping industry (for American President Lines in 1999).
A decade ago, the trade show convention floors were crowded with on-line trading companies expecting to make millions pushing the produce industry into on-line trading. Although buyers and sellers have embraced the Internet as an excellent communication tool in which to complete transactions, the buying and selling of produce between unknown buyers and sellers never materialized.
Humberto Moreno and a number of others unveiled Foodmoves Inc. (www.foodmoves.com) at the recent Produce Marketing Association convention, and they believe the produce industry is now ready for an auction platform similar to eBay.
Mr. Moreno said that a decade ago, on-line buying and selling in all walks of life was not nearly as prevalent as it is today. He said that companies such as eBay have worked out the kinks and the consuming public has embraced these concepts. As such, the Foodmoves partners have designed an on-line trading platform that they say fits the unique requirements of the produce industry.
A company press release said that Foodmoves was founded in 2006 by veterans of the produce industry "with the goal of increasing efficiency, reducing waste and improving profitability in buying and selling produce." Foodmoves has done market research and believes that business people in the produce industry are ready to incorporate on-line trading into their daily workflow.
The company was scheduled to unveil live trading at its Fresh Summit booth Saturday, Oct. 13, but Mr. Moreno said it expects to build the business slowly. Initially, Foodmoves believes that on-line trading is likely to have an impact in situations where time is critical, such as turnover of rejected loads, reconditioning and reselling loads damaged in transit, and similar emergency situations.
Mr. Moreno believes that a supplier with a surplus of inventory on a Friday afternoon and no prospects of selling it until Monday might turn to the site to try to make a weekend sale. He said that the auction will have a bidding process much like eBay. Sellers will list the time frame in which to accept bids. Foodmoves will take a 5 percent commission on all sales from the seller; buyer participation is free.
Eventually, the Foodmoves executives believe that the on-line trading platform will prove to be an excellent place for suppliers to find new buyers. Buyers are expected to want to visit the site to find new suppliers or fill pressing needs.
According to the company press release, the initial reason for buyers to visit foodmoves.com is because the "marketplace offers opportunities to find more and better deals, either in price, or filling the demand for specialty produce, than can be found using conventional trading. The user interface of the web site makes it possible to look for buying opportunities that can't easily be found with conventional practices, such as doing location searches for partial lots with the intent of filling a truck as a 'mixer.'"
Mr. Moreno said there will be some testing of the site in the first few months, and the company has lined up suppliers mostly from the Nogales, AZ, and San Diego areas to put product up for sale.
He said that the company's group of founders includes people working in the produce industry who are going to use the site initially for filling some of their own orders.
Mr. Moreno and his brother, Mauro, are the main produce industry connections. Mauro Moreno brings 20 years of expertise in the produce and transportation industries. He established himself at Howard Liggett Inc. and also worked for C.H. Robinson. Most recently he operated a third-party logistics corporation called AVIVA International.
Humberto Moreno has more than 12 years of experience in the produce industry, having started as an inspector with the U.S. Food & Drug Administration before going to work as a buyer for Frank Donio Inc., based in Hammonton, NJ. He currently runs his own produce brokerage firm, Arizona Mixers Fresh Produce LLC in Nogales.
Elizabeth Tanori-Slack is president of Foodmoves, while Glenn Haney serves as a business manager. Until recently, Mr. Haney was president of Aztecs Globalcom Technology LLC, a player in telecom provisioning services. Also on the team is Lupita Moreno, who has 15 years in the customs brokerage business.
Founders and co-corporate counsels Charles Slack-M?ndez and Linda Lory have been investment partners in several successful ventures and partnered again to organize Foodmoves. They bear responsibility for business development, including forthcoming announcements of associations with major industry players as well as maintaining the status of Foodmoves as a debt-free, independent start-up.
Chief technologist Daniel Kehoe was retained by the company's founders in a national search for top technology talent. A company press release said that he was among the technologists responsible for launching the World Wide Web in 1991, and has participated in every phase of the growth of the web, including development of the first site for sale of e-books (1995) and the first deployment of web technology in the container shipping industry (for American President Lines in 1999).
