MARKETING & TRADE
Busy start to global marketing campaign
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THE ABA has experienced one of the busiest starts to a marketing year with dual trade missions in February to India and Dubai . More than 5000 attended the inaugural MEWA Dry Fruit and Nut Conference in Delhi on February 16- 17 . The event exceeded expectations around aggregating the almond buyers from across the country and has received widespread praise across the supply chain . The ABA was an early adopter and supported the efforts of organisers who were keen to showcase the nation ’ s dried fruits and nuts industry . The event exceeded expectations and is almost certain to become a permanent fixture of the trade calendar . Organisers have already started planning for 2025 and will incorporate a larger gap between the event and Gulfoods in Dubai . Innovations like the MEWA Premier Legue cricket tournament the day before the conference generated a lot of interest . Unfortunately our Australian Almonds Invitational XI was outgunned in a novel format and will return next year much the wiser for the experience . There were teams representing nut buyers from Kolkata , Mumbai , Chennai , Gujarat , Delhi and Dubai as well as California XI . Indian-based Austrade officials were of great assistance to the ABA during the Delhi visit . Austrade ’ s Delhibased High Commission advisor Harsh Mohan Puri and Mumbaibased chief John Southwell went out of their way to assist with cricketers from the High Commission as well as facilitate a number of meetings with retail and manufacturing companies during the exhibition . It complemented the already wide network of contacts the ABA enjoys after more than 20 years of trading in the sub-continent . The support provided to the ABA by MEWA organisers , especially Raju Bhatia ( roundtable ), Sameer Bushanali ( ABA involvement ) and Shrey Bhatia
In A Nutshell - Autumn 2024 Vol 25 Issue 1
The two teams that competed in the 2024 Almond Ashesin Dubai . India won by 22 runs and lead the series 3-2 . ( cricket ) was most appreciated and highlighted the strength of ties between the two countries . The evolution of the ABA trade mission was the most pleasing aspect of the visit . In the past the Australian Almond story has been shared with the traditional traders and wholesalers and has involved us imparting information to the traditional buyers through organised events and oneon-one meetings . MEWA opened up two-way dialogue and helped further expose the Australian almond message to retailers , manufacturers , re-packers and food service providers . India is the land of the entrepreneur and as result the risks involved in doing business are still worthy of establishing local trustworthy contacts and networks to ensure continuity and ethical trading behaviours are maintained . However , there is no doubt India is on a fast track to economic prosperity and visitors to MEWA could not help but be swept up in the positive vibe among the locals . Part of the appeal of the conference was local trade experts sharing their insights into the Indian market and the rapid modernisation of commerce and business . To underline the transformation , more than one expert speaker displayed the traditional overcrowded Indian train photo covered in people and in the next , a picture of a bullet train that also operates within the country . We were told of commerce platforms that have 450 million customers on their database and others who promise delivery within 10 minutes of ordering . Home delivery is next level in places like Mumbai . Need an x-ray ? Radiologists do house calls ! Understanding consumer behaviour and the aspirations of middle India has never been more important . Under the three-year marketing plan , the ABA will be leveraging its vast range of contacts and resources to enhance its niche footprint in the biggest almond market in the world . The proposed almond kangaroo was well received when previewed with a select few packers and once a licensing agreement is in place there is scope for this to be used to identify Aussie almond origin on pack .