“Cherries are one of my favorite commodities to sell and merchandise,” says Brian Dey with Four Seasons Produce. One of Dey’s responsibilities includes building store displays. “We are coming into the Northwest cherry season, which is always an exciting time of year. Displays with cherries offer a tremendous opportunity to increase sales volume,” he added. This coming Monday, the Northwest cherry display contest kicks off, which means cherry displays will dominate the entrance of many U.S. retail stores in the next four to five weeks. This commodity contest is a way to increase awareness for the category, and cherries from many different growers and shippers in Washington will be pulled to fill the displays.

Stone fruits like peaches and nectarines are also key promotional items this time of year. “We’ve been working with Homegrown Organic Farms for many years and feel aligned with them.” As a result, the two companies run a stone fruit promotion every summer. “It truly is a win-win for all parties involved,” said Dey. “Consumers get an amazing product at a great price while these big summer displays drive volume sales for growers and retailers.”

Homegrown Organic Farms stone fruit display.

Mangos are another commodity Dey is very positive about. “We’ve been working with Crespo Organic for many years and their displays have done wonders,” he said. “Their varietal program has created so much mango awareness. Sales of round mangos and Ataulfos exploded every time we did a promotion. I’m excited to see the results of promotions of lesser-known varieties like Mallika, Nam Dok, and Thai sweet green mangos this summer.”

Crespo mango display.

Concurrent promotions
Produce displays are always a collaborative effort. Together with the retailer, a plan is being developed, sometimes several months in advance. “The Northwest cherry promotion for June and July was cemented back in April as it requires significant planning from many different parties involved,” Dey commented. Displays come together in partnership with growers and shippers as well as retailers. In terms of supply, Four Seasons has set supply partners they work with year in and year out. “However, sometimes we meet new potential suppliers at a trade show, or we get approached by a new supplier.” This happened last year. For many years, Four Seasons had been working with Sunkist on citrus displays, but the company got approached by Kings River Packing last year. “What can we do to get in?” Kings River asked. “They put together sharp pricing and some amazing point-of-sale material,” Dey said. “As a result, we were able to execute some nice citrus displays while still supporting long-term supplier Sunkist.” The citrus displays from the different suppliers ran concurrently, which worked out well as the citrus category as a whole performed very well this past winter.

Retailers in the Mid-Atlantic are able to take advantage of the displays that are being built by the Four Seasons team. “The promotions are specific to our trading area that covers Maine, all the way down to North Carolina as well as Tennessee and west to Ohio.”

Expanded role
Recently, Dey’s responsibilities have expanded. While he is still responsible for building store displays, he is now Retail & Merchandising Innovation Manager. This role focuses on strengthening connections between growers, marketers, and retailers. He acts as a bridge between the different partners with a goal to increase produce consumption and drive sales. His role also includes mentoring the next generation. “I thrive on training and it’s most rewarding to bring on the next level of produce people. I feel very privileged I get to be their mentor.”

Sweet Karoline blackberry display.

Calavo avocado display.

For more information:
Brian Dey
Four Seasons Produce
[email protected]
www.fsproduce.com