SANGER, CA - From Gold Nugget to Poppies Mandarins, California Raspberry Oranges to Heirloom Navels, and more, a variety has more than a name with the right merchandising. Seeing these offerings brought to life by materials from King’s River Packing, it's understandable that our Besties Committee named the company the 2024 winner for Best Merchandising Concepts.

“We understand that the value of Kings River goes beyond citrus. Our daily mission is to leave people better off than when we first met them, and this philosophy extends to our retail partners as well,” Michelle Alo, Vice President of Marketing, said when I asked why this area is so important to Kings River. “Our goal is to supply retailers with resources to deliver an exceptional consumer experience, offering merchandising that is both relevant and valuable to their shoppers—taking one less task off their plate.”

Driven by the goal of helping consumers to quickly and effectively find products that meet their needs in-store, while also providing retail partners with easy-to-execute solutions, Michelle paints a clear picture of maximizing any and every visual resource to ensure a win-win-win for all sides of a produce purchase.

“Since consumers have many options when they enter the store, it's crucial to have eye-catching displays that deliver the information they need to make fast decisions. Our displays are designed to captivate attention with clear, engaging visuals and are simple for retailers to set up,” she shared.

While this may read as a simple formula, consumer desires are a moving target for which retail stores are constantly changing to connect with. As such, so must the merchandising tools.

“Our merchandising is constantly evolving to better serve both consumers and retailers. We recognize the demand for versatile displays that can stay up longer, reducing the labor required for setup. We also see the opportunity to use multichannel elements to inspire consumers with new routines or recipes as shoppers utilize a mix of in-store and home delivery services,” Michelle commented.

Succeeding in the digital space as well as in-store, the company’s efforts stood out to our team, which handles the initial nominations to ensure each nominee meets our stringent standards at AndNowUKnow and The Snack Magazine. We then share our nominees with our Besties committee.

The committee is composed of experienced retail buyers or individuals with substantial experience and knowledge in their respective fields. This year, they voted on every category except for one: Retailer of the Year. Each committee member received a ballot with three nominations for each award category. Based on their votes, we determine the winners of the Bestie Awards.

Congratulations to the Kings River Packing team on capturing the eyes of our own team and committee as a result of these hard efforts!