Resendiz Bros. Protea Growers earns Marketer of the Year Award
Resendiz Bros. Protea Growers earned theSociety of American Florists’ Floral Management Magazine’s 2018 Marketer of the Year Award for its successful efforts to bring protea to the national stage, according to a news release. The award recognizes an innovative and successful marketing effort that increased the overall sales volume of cut flowers and the award also includes a $5,000 cash prize.
Flower farmer Mel Resendiz and company business manager Diana Roy, who together founded the company in 1999, accepted the award at the SAF Annual Convention in Palm Springs, CA.
“From the beginning, we both agreed that in order to succeed we really needed to focus on marketing,” said Roy.
Their goal was to increase consumer awareness and influence floral trends to drive sales of protea flowers and foliage. They grabbed every chance, big or small, to promote their products and their proteas have appeared in the Rose Parade, the First Lady’s Luncheon and major bridal magazines. They also used their flower knowledge and thousands of photos to share proteas with wholesalers, designers and consumers.
And all of their efforts are working. In the past five years, Resendiz Bros. has added 93 acres of farmland and increased sales by more than 30 percent.
While presenting the award, Floral Management’s editor-in-chief Mary Westbrook noted that Resendiz Bros. marketing efforts put protea on the national scene, creating real, growing demand for a product that was previously virtually unknown in the United States.
In accepting the award, Roy thanked Resendiz Bros.’ customers who have made protea part of their daily inventory, as well as floral designers who are incorporating protea into their arrangements. She also announced that Resendiz Bros. is collaborating with farmers worldwide to bring new protea varieties to the U.S. market.
“I see winning this award as a boost for California flower farmers and for floral designers who are meeting the requests of consumers who are now seeking out protea,” Roy said.
As the Marketer of the Year Award winner, Resendiz Bros. is the cover story for the October 2018 issue of Floral Management.
