For the past 26 years, the Bouquet watermelon has spearheaded its category on the European market, with presence on the supermarket shelves in 30 countries.
Anecoop plans to market 150,000 tonnes of watermelon during this campaign, of which 80% will correspond to the seedless watermelon Bouquet. In 2017, 132,000 tonnes were reached, 77% of which were seedless.
100% of these watermelons are produced in Spain by farmers with a high level of specialisation. Thanks to its unique global programme, Anecoop has extended its campaign from April until the end of August.
The brand name Bouquet represents 18% of watermelons produced in Spain, and 15% of those exported.
In the words of Anecoop’s chairman, Alejandro Monzón, “this crop has an important social value for the continuance of the farming activity all year long. It is true case of support for Spanish quality agriculture.”
Regarding the future, Joan Mir, the General Manager, believes that “the challenge is to distinguish ourselves from productions in other countries as we offer greater freshness and less impact on the carbon footprint.”
From its two experimental fields in Almeria and Valencia, in both greenhouse and open air crops, the company continues working on its production processes and on new cultivation methods. In this evolution, the trend towards smaller sizes and segmentation by qualities and colours stands out.
At present, the seedless watermelon family Bouquet is made up of four types of watermelon: the red and the yellow-fleshed watermelons with striped skin, the black-skinned one and the mini watermelon, all of which are also available as a bio crop.
Getting closer to consumers
The cooperative will tackle an intense communication campaign with an investment of over € 900,000 covering Spain, France, the Czech Republic, Belarus and Poland. The marketing will be very diverse: ranging from actions at points of sale, on the radio, television and social networks to cultural and sporting events and meetings with the media.
A new action in which a free gift will be offered based on different experiences (adventure, beauty and health, leisure, gastronomy, children and hotel stays) will be emphasised.
In France, the main buyer with around 20,000 tonnes, the brand will be promoted through a television campaign as well as on social networks, and in Spain, this will be carried out on the radio, social networks and aerial advertising.
