Going by the investment trends of the last couple of years, one is left to ask this simple question. Is Kenya shifting to the auction like markets while moving away from the auctions?
The trend of investment in flower for both new investments and extension of existing farms has been 80% uplands and 20% lowlands. This means the target production is long stems and big head varieties. However, the market is slowly shifting from auction to the more lucrative (relative) wholesale. Statistics available show less than five farms are purely auction growing with most of the remaining farms doing 65% direct and 35% auction. So, which way Kenyan flowers?
Most of the growers have shifted to the wholesale markets, and some of them are doing retail markets for some customers who need the long stem big head varieties. In this trend, one is left asking himself, why are we shifting to these varieties? Is it because our traditional short stem and small head market is dwindling? Or is it because the other market is bigger and has less competition? The answer will be Yes and No. Why? We all need to agree that Ecuador has slowly encroached to our traditional markets and looking at their quality, the competition maybe stiffer.
On the other hand we need to agree the competition paused by Colombia and Ecuador for the longer stems and big heads is stiffer. It is no gainsaying to state that we cannot compare with the South Americans especially in their post-harvest handling, packaging and cool chain management hence their quality will always be superior to ours. So are we gambling? Or are we foreseen a Brazilian situation where more flower hectares in the South American countries may be lost into urbanisation due to their fast growth?
Why is it difficult to maintain our traditional market which we have an edge considering climatic conditions, less competition from Europe’s due to high cost of labour, heating of greenhouses (being discouraged) and also urbanization. In addition the cost of production is also low. Well, this is a million dollar question which we need to explore.
Going by the above analysis, it is a fact that Kenya can dominate the two markets if they play their cards well. We have all it takes to be the King of flower exports. What we may need to do is keep our traditional markets as we explore for new markets.
That should always be the goal. And, while in some ways, it may have seemed easier to achieve that goal in the “old days” when communication options were limited, the fact is that we have the opportunity to be far more successful in achieving this goal today because we can more narrowly, more specifically and–hopefully– more effectively target exactly the right customers we need to reach to achieve our goals. This is both a blessing and a curse.
It’s no longer about running an ad on one of the “big 3″ television networks or attending an exhibition. It’s about identifying the wide range of communication options available to you and narrowing them down to the ones that are most likely to reach your target customer at the right time in the right place with the right key messages to encourage some desired action.
How about Branding our Flowers
In these days a number of commodities are moving towards brands. One wonderful and beautiful category, which is full of fragrance, is also moving towards a strong branding and marketing initiative. This natural category is the category of flowers.
Internationally, the size of the market of flowers is huge and is able to spread happiness to both the recipient and the giver. In fact the flower industry has been inspired over thousands of years and has been portrayed very well including roles of flower girls. Whether it be in romance or prayer, whether it be on a happy or a sad occasion, whether it be at dawn or at dusk, flowers have always been human beings’ companion and therefore the marketing of flowers is going to assume great significance in the next few years. Flower marketing is spreading its fragrance far and wide whether in the form of Roses or Carnations, Orchids or Lilies. Flower marketing and branded flowers and branded flower service providers are going to grow by leaps and bounds. The Internet is helping spread the net far and wide and is able to bring people closer and the gifting of flowers is helping people express their sentiment for one another, easily across countries.
For the brand marketing strategy of flowers what are the key element which may be important in addition to the normal marketing initiatives? To my mind there are 6 elements which are important in formulating an effective brand marketing strategy for flowers.
I would recommend that, first of all, there should be the element of sensitivity incorporated and there should also be the packaging done to convey the sentiment along with flowers in a sensitive manner.
The second element would be the element of freshness. In the brand marketing strategy of flowers there should not only be the element of tangible freshness but also intangible freshness with the choice of flowers and reduction of boredom and fatigue.
The third element, I would recommend is the arrangement of flowers. Even if the flowers are good but are not arranged well, the perceived value could go down.
The fourth element, I would recommend is the element of pedigree. The source from where the flowers come makes a lot of difference. Roses from Kenya or Tulips from Holland, the pedigree counts.
The fifth element, I would recommend in flower marketing is that of consistency. The quality should be maintained across years for the brand to be successful. The final element, I would recommend would be safe storage and transportation because of their perishability.
If all the above elements, along with the normal marketing initiatives are taken care of, very strong brands can be built in the area of flower marketing.
