Karen Caplan Discusses Recharging the Frieda's Brand and the Showing of Fear No Fruit
ATLANTA, GA - Frieda’s Specialty Produce, a 53-year-old pioneer in expanding the U.S. market’s perception of “fresh,” has rebooted its label to better reach the newest generation of consumers.
Karen Caplan, President, CEO, and second generation to the Frieda’s company, took time out of her busy Fresh Summit schedule to tell us about the decision that fueled the change.
“As you know, we’re a 53-year-old specialty produce company, and we thought it was time to look at how we can resonate with today’s shoppers,” Karen tells us, adding that the company is very excited about the launch. “Within the next two to three months we will have converted all our products to the new brand.”
Karen added that, besides a fresh label, the company is stepping outside of its very purple comfort zone to incorporate more bright colors as well.
“You notice that even though purple is our ‘home color,’ we’ve actually brightened it up quite a bit with some bright, fun colors.”
As we previously reported, Frieda’s announced that it was unveiling a new look and a new message after finding that millennials crave new food experiences and favor brands that engage them, and wished to showcase its fun, quirky culture.
Karen was also very excited about the screening of Fear No Fruit, a documentary based on the pioneering efforts made by her mother and company founder, Frieda Caplan, in both the expansion of the produce category and for women and the produce world.
“The documentary that was made about my mom and our family business was showing this very weekend (Oct 23-25) at the Carmel Film Festival. We’re very, very excited to have the story told of the woman who introduced the kiwifruit to America.”
For reasons why you, your employees, and your friends should watch this important film about an influential chapter in produce history, see this previous feature on Fear No Fruit from AndNowUKnow’s sister publication The Snack Magazine.
To see the full interview with Karen, watch our brief 57 second video above. And, as always, keep checking in with AndNowUKnow for all the latest on what is influencing the ever-changing produce industry.
