VANCOUVER, B.C. — The Oppenheimer Group recently announced the promotion of one of its own to the role of stone fruit category director.
Evan Myers was named to the lead position in this pivotal Oppenheimer category in mid-September. He joined Oppenheimer in a quality assurance role in 2005, and was promoted to category coordinator for grapes and stone fruit a year later. In 2009, Myers began focusing specifically on the company’s imported stone fruit programs, and was appointed category manager.
In his new category director role, Myers plans to nurture Oppenheimer’s relationships throughout the supply chain, working with retailers to further develop Oppenheimer’s stone fruit category and specifically increase West Coast distribution of all Oppenheimer stone fruit items.
“Increasing our overall volumes especially with imported cherries will be a major area of focus,” said Myers. “I’ve received feedback from retailers who want to promote cherries all season long due to strong customer demand.”
Myers said Oppenheimer is responding to country-wide retailer demand for a seamless supply of stone fruit throughout the winter months by strengthening partnerships with Chilean growers and forging new ones.
“An inconsistent supply of peaches, nectarines, plums and apricots makes it difficult for retailers to run promotions, in turn creating slow movement within the industry and lowering overall net grower return,” he said. As emerging markets continue to present growers with other viable options to send their fruit besides North America, Myers stresses the importance of nurturing relationships with producers.
“These connections will be an important part of how we can serve our customers best during these challenging times,” he said.
Stone fruit items available from Oppenheimer are Orchard View Farm cherries, all Chilean stone fruit including peaches, plums and cherries, Argentinean cherries, and apricots from New Zealand.
Source: The Oppenheimer Group
