New owner, sales head take reins at orchid grower
It’s official — Victor Schaff is the new owner of Gallup & Stribling Orchids in Carpinteria, CA. The pending sale of the orchid grower founded more than 40 years ago closed Oct. 12. Mr. Schaff is a businessman in Carpinteria and owner of S&S Seeds Inc. there.
Hurricane Sandy aftermath could have lasting effects for some
People in the Northeast were shopping aggressively in preparation for Hurricane Sandy. At a Fairway store in Manhattan, even the garlic bins were close to being emptied.
"That's our garlic," said Anthony DeAngelis, director, northeast division for Christopher Ranch, headquartered in Gilroy, CA. "Fairway is a big user of our products."
For Valentine’s Day supermarket floral sales, you need more than love
In supermarket floral departments, February rocks. Industry stalwarts forget that Valentine roses are often a first-time event for many, and possibly the only flower purchase of the year. In both cases, we want to let the love shine. Here are best practices to ensure Cupid’s arrow hits the mark.
FlorEcuador 2012 comes up roses, in plethora of varieties and colors
QUITO, ECUADOR — FlorEcuador 2012, billed as the largest exhibition of roses in the world, was breathtaking in its grand sweep of stylish displays of roses in the sold-out exhibit hall —models in butterfly costumes fluttering along the aisles; novelty items like multi-colored tinted roses and hit-the-jackpot plants; and fashion shows with stirring music.
WF&FSA conference opens with full house, added programs
The Wholesale Florist & Florist Supplier Association conference opened Oct. 24 with a sold-out exhibit area, two fully booked airport tours, a full house in the host hotel and two last-minute additions to the program: a session on social media and a free analysis of company websites.
Valentine’s Day: A positive outlook?
With floral trade shows breaking attendance records and the economy ever so slowly coming back, perhaps we can look forward to better-than-usual Valentine’s Day sales.
Unfortunately, with our floral buying habits here glued to special occasions and holidays, Valentine’s Day is a make-or-break event for many in the floral industry. Let’s go for it and have plenty of product on hand. Remember, you can’t sell out of an empty wagon.
AYCO harvesting talent of industry veterans
AYCO Farms added three essential team members to support its growth and expansion. In the last three months, the company has hired Lou Kertesz as melon category manager, Mike Dickman as category manager for greenhouse peppers and Jason Miller as key accounts for all vegetable sales.
Green Tree offers Navels and some specialty citrus
Green Tree International Inc. in Visalia, CA, which is now in the fourth year of its citrus program, will have Navel oranges from “about three different packinghouses that will pack our fruit for us, the same ones as in the past,” according to Fred Van Zandt, citrus category manager.
“We will have fruit that we run through those houses as well as fruit that we will be using of theirs” to fill customer orders, Mr. Van Zandt said Oct. 18. “We will have the ‘Green Tree’ label, and we will also have the ‘Green Giant’ label.”
Atlas Produce introduces new package, will launch new website
Atlas Produce & Distribution Inc. in Bakersfield, CA, this fall introduced a new package, a 12-ounce clamshell, for all of the company’s products, according to Ben Antongiovanni, sales manger.
The company is also in the process of “rolling out our new website, which is CarmelNaturel.com,” he said Oct. 22.
California Citrus Mutual's 35th annual meeting focuses on frustrations with one-sided state politics
VISALIA, CA — California Citrus Mutual held it's 35th annual meeting far from the hurricane winds of Sandy, but the effect was felt on the opposite coast anyway.
Rebecca Bech, deputy administrator of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service-Plant Protection & Quarantine, was scheduled to speak. She lives in Maryland and escaped major damage to her home there, but she was not able to catch a flight to California in the wake of the storm.