Market Minute: Holiday melons are ripe for promotions
Market Minute: Holiday melons are ripe for promotions
Get set for celebrating Memorial Day and the start of summer with large melon displays. Melons can add high volume sales to the produce department along with some very favorable gross profit.
Melons originated between Africa and Asia. Cultivation goes back over 4,000 years and began to spread throughout the Mediterranean world. Christopher Columbus brought melons to the Americas. The origin of the cantaloupe came from Europe in the town of Cantalupo, Italy. The sweetest melons are grown in a volcanic ash on an island town in Yurabi, Japan. In fact, one melon can cost up to $10,000.
Domestic melons will start up as we get into early summer. In the meantime, Mexican cantaloupes and honeydews are starting to slowly increase in volume. Florida is shipping seedless watermelons, and quality remains excellent. With additional melons entering the scene the markets will start to stabilize.
Merchandising: If floor space allows, a large aggressive display of all melon varieties will sell best out of a group of empty cartons and bins. This type of display draws shoppers over to it in a flash mainly due to its visual merchandising approach. Place false bottoms in the bins to prevent pressure on the lower melons causing damage and shrink. Display some cut melons as well to show customers the interior flesh.
Contact or meet with your melon suppliers and plan an early holiday promotion. Be ready to meet the demand and be first to compete for those high-volume sales.
Ron Pelger is a produce industry adviser and industry writer. He can be contacted at 775/843-2394 or by e-mail at [email protected].
