We choose our strategic partnerships with care

We are proud of our flowers, our methods and our people. In a series of interviews we give you a look inside Marginpar's kitchen. This week: Sales & Marketing. 

Michiel van Paassen, 40, has been responsible for Sales & Marketing at Marginpar since the end of 2018. Before that he worked for years at different exporters in plants, but coming from a family of flower growers the switch from plants to flowers was a logical choice. Michiel: "I think it is powerful that Marginpar is so close to the breeding process. Also the vision behind building a flower brand with unique flowers immediately gave me a very good feeling." 

Photo: Erik van der Burgt from VRBLD photofilm

"I started here to set up partnerships for direct sales and for the further development of the Marginpar brand. We are not looking for direct customers, but strategic partners who fit into our vision; with whom we become stronger together. Now we are 2,5 years further, the team is starting to grow and it is only getting more fun."

Direct sales: availability of product and continuity is crucial

Michiel: "Marginpar is strongly clock oriented. We build up the market for our varieties on the clock and set the standard for our sorting, aimed at the end customer; the florist." 

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At the moment, we still sell 75% of our flowers through the clock, serving many buyers every day.

"Many trading exporters experience high pressure on their logistics at peak times. The distribution of clock purchases takes place after the auction. We therefore see an increase in the demand for direct sales, whereby the time of delivery can be planned at a more favourable moment."

No sales from stock

Because we want to continue to serve the auction clock as well as our strategic partners, we do not do day trading or sell from stock. Michiel: "The auction clock is still the best place for supply and demand to come together. There is a large buying public, including wholesalers, who then serve the florists. We have hundreds of buyers who buy our flowers on the auction clock; we want to give them all a chance. We are always looking for the right balance between direct sales and auction."

European market

Marginpar aims for the widest possible reach among florists in the larger European markets. Our first focus is therefore on reaching florists in Germany, England and the Benelux by using Marketing & Communication, both Online and Offline. We are looking for cooperation with sales partners who excel in these markets. Who know how to optimally serve the florist. Together, we ensure that our flowers are readily available in these markets.

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Everyone has their own speciality. We grow flowers, our sales partners serve the florist.

Global demand

We mainly focus on the European market. But there is worldwide demand for our flowers. There are a number of markets that we manage to serve directly from Africa, albeit on a small scale. The flowers do not come to Aalsmeer first, but are delivered directly from our production countries. Here, too, we go for strategic partnerships. For example, we have been working for many years with a strategic partner in Japan for direct shipments from Africa. We also work together with Royal FloraHolland China for an efficient logistical flow and facilitating settlements with Chinese wholesalers. Michiel: "As far as North America is concerned, our preference is for Miami as our entry point. Flowers from South America also arrive there; there is a logistics hub. There used to be a route from Ethiopia, via France and Spain to Miami, but because of Corona, many routes have disappeared. So we have a challenge here to find reliable logistics solutions again, because the demand is there."

Global flower brand

Michiel: "We are working hard to build a true flower brand. With the help of marketing, we are making our products and our brand clearly visible in the market."

Michiel has a clear vision of where Marginpar will be in ten years: "We are a leading global flower brand, which is really known and trusted by florists. We still have a limited number of strategic partners with whom we have continued to grow. It is important to have the courage to make choices regarding our partners and range. You have to dare to make clear choices so that the market knows what you stand for and what you are going for. You have to make choices in order to get chosen."

NEXT TIME

IN THE COMING WEEKS WE WILL TELL YOU MORE ABOUT MARKET DEMAND, SUSTAINABILITY, OUR COLLABORATIONS WITH BREEDERS AND HOW WE PUT OUR PEOPLE FIRST. ENOUGH TO TELL! THESE ARTICLES APPEAR FIRST ON LINKEDIN. 

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