RZ-100-wt4-E-flipbook-240702 - Flipbook - Page 64
Export
However, the company doesn’t yet have a success-
Jaap Zwaan now sees his chance to get the
ful sales force in the Netherlands. A partnership is
company to play a more active role on foreign
the obvious solution. So Rijk Zwaan will sell seed in
markets. After all, he has already proved in Germany
the Netherlands for Bruinsma, while Bruinsma will
that there are cross-border opportunities for
do the same for Rijk Zwaan in France, the UK and
Rijk Zwaan. In Belgium, Rijk Zwaan enters into a
Scandinavia. The rest of the French exports are in
partnership with three seed dealers, resulting in
the hands of the company Vilmorin, Rijk Zwaan’s
a significant increase in exports to that country in
representative in France.
1971, and the company is also performing well in
the UK and France, although this is largely due to a
The Rijk Zwaan company has mainly built up expe-
partnership with a Dutch company (Bruinsma).
rience with its own sales in neighbouring countries
at its location in Germany. So it is no surprise that
Back in the 1960s, it turned out that Rijk Zwaan
Jaap Zwaan tries to win over other parts of Europe
was not yet very successful with tomatoes, so it
for exports from his old base via the branch in
was decided to find a partner that already tasted
Germany. To start with, he sends representatives
success in this market segment. Bruinsma from
to Austria, followed by Denmark.
Naaldwijk is a company with a strong tomato range.
It is in the 1970s that the company starts increasing
the international sales market in earnest. In 1971,
for example, a plan arises to also deploy its own
representative in the UK alongside the existing
arrangement with Bruinsma. The aim here is for
the new representative to sell the varieties for
which Bruinsma doesn’t have exclusive dealership.
At the same time, similar plans are being developed
for the French market. These plans turn out to
be very productive: exports to France and the UK
start to grow rapidly, and the French market in
particular proves to be ideally suited for lettuce
seed exports. By 1973, exports to France already
exceed those of the company’s German subsidiary. However, the cooperation with Bruinsma is
coming to a head, as both companies are now
working the same market with similar products
anyway. This is particularly the case for short-day
Rijk Zwaan’s Dutch
representatives in an
advertisement and
on excursion.
62
Rijk Zwaan | Moving forward together
