LOCKPORT, NY - The next decade is upon us, and January is an opportune time to kick off campaigns that will boost sales throughout the year. From social media to grocery floor displays, companies can take advantage of this new era by being the first to brand it with their premium products. Crunch Time Apple Growers (CTAG) is doing just this, launching a campaign that will highlight its iconic RubyFrost® variety, which is grown on family farms across the state of New York. I tapped CTAG Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Rena Montedoro, to find out the company’s key messaging as we take on 2020.

“We were Made to Grow Apples. From the amazing soil called Honeyone in New York state to the cold crisp fall nights and hot summers that deliver high brix and super juicy apples, New York has superior growing conditions for truly flavorful apples,” said Rena. “Our famers at CTAG represent over 70 percent of all apple production in the state of New York.”

Bred to be an easier apple to grow that delivers a consistently superior eating experience, the RubyFrost variety is an excellent way to start off the new year. Rena explained that this variety holds up beautifully on the shelf, with a deep, red burgundy color and a lush, plump size that make it a showstopper in the category.

“It's truly the jewel of the produce aisle with its rich color, size, and amazing crunch,” she continued. “Ruby is high in vitamin C, making it a premier cooking and baking apple, but it is so delicious to eat fresh that we say it's the ‘apple you reach for everyday.’”

This apple is the brainchild of a world-renowned leader in apple research, Dr. Susan Brown at Cornell University. CTAG tout this variety as a “cold storage apple,” meaning that its relevance will long outlast the launch of this campaign.

“Picked at harvest, RubyFrosts go in controlled atmosphere storage where they ripen and get more and more delicious,” Rena boasted. “That's why it's called the Winterfresh apple. It will start to hit the markets this month with amazing crunch and flavor, and only gets better as time goes on. Depending on sales volume, we can have RubyFrost available until late spring-early summer.”

As an apple that is expected to generate sales all year long, I was curious to find out how CTAG promotes the variety outside of grocery stores. Rena explained that the company takes an “online direct marketing” approach, which has proven to be extremely successful. Taking its promotion to social media channels, the company averages over 156 comments per week on Facebook. The collective social media consumer engagement across all platforms, however, is over four million. Rena divulged that this year, the company will promote a baking contest on Facebook, called Baker’s Little Help.

As shoppers seek out the solution to their New Year’s resolution woes, stay on top of products like RubyFrost that are sure to drive register rings. For more of 2020’s biggest initiatives, keep a tab open for us at AndNowUKnow.

Crunch Time Apple Growers