Frieda’s Branded Produce Celebrates 60 Years in Business; Karen Caplan and Alex Jackson Discuss
LOS ALAMITOS, CA - There are many things that demonstrate a fresh produce provider’s strength in the industry, and 60 years of success is surely one of them. Frieda’s Branded Produce is celebrating 60 years in business and bringing unspoken specialty fruits and vegetables into the spotlight.
“We were the first to not only label our products, but because there was some empty space on the first label, my mom decided to offer free recipes to the consumer by asking them to send us a self-addressed stamped envelope with ideas,” said Chief Executive Officer Karen Caplan. “Never could she imagine that more than 300–500 individual shoppers would write to us for recipes every week! I know this happened, as answering those letters was my first job! This was before the internet, so Frieda’s became the trusted source for recipes and information to shoppers for new and exotic produce.”
In 1962, the company’s late, fearless founder Frieda Rapoport Caplan began bringing specialty fruits like kiwifruit, its landmark item, to consumers. Shortly after, the supplier made major headway in the industry by labeling its produce with a sticker containing a coinciding recipe, according to a press release, enticing shoppers to purchase and try the unfamiliar produce products.
Based on a C&R omnibus research survey of 1,000 people in partnership with Frieda’s, the company revealed that 60 percent of shoppers are saying Frieda’s branded produce is more likely to catch their eye in stores, contains the most appealing names, and has the most up-to-date branding.
“Consumers are telling us that our packaging looks better than ever, and our research shows that shoppers are willing to pay more for our items vs. the competition,” said Alex Jackson, Director of Sales. “Not only does that help bring your produce department to life, but it also translates into higher sales per square foot for our retail clients.”
To celebrate its 60-year anniversary, the purveyor has released a bespoke birthday cake recipe featuring some of its most exclusive and fan-favored specialty items.
Congratulations to everyone at Frieda’s for this exciting milestone. We here at ANUK can’t wait to see what growth the company experiences next.
