Plantion has been around for 100 years. In the very early morning, at 06.00 am last Wednesday, the fact that precisely 100 years ago a couple of growers in Utrecht laid the foundation for the current cooperative and company Plantion, was commemorated at the Plantion clock. CEO Peter Bakker gave a speech and Plantion treated her clients to anniversary cake.
Peter Bakker addresses the audience (Photo credits: VVB Van Bree)
In a period of great uncertainty (World War I) a group of men in Utrecht founded the auction ‘Bloemen- en Plantenveiling Utrecht en Omstreken’ on January 12, 1917. This was the foundation for the current Plantion, which was established after a merger of the auctions Veiling Vleuten and Bloemenveiling Oost Nederland.
Plantion also provided this short video presentation featuring a lot of historical footage and a short interview with Mans Vulto (Chairman of Plantion’s supervisory board), Peter Bakker (Plantion Director) and Jos Kersten (Plantion Cooperative Chairman).
The history of the Plantion’s East Betuwe branch also goes back a long way but took a different course. Until the demerger of The Greenery in 1996 there was a mixed auction with both fruit and vegetables and flowers and plants. The marketplace exclusively targeting ornamentals arose only when Bloemenveiling Oost Nederland was established.
Cake for the visitors (photo credits: VVB Van Bree)
More turnover and transactions
In the course of one hundred years of course much has changed. At the first auction in Utrecht buyers raised their hands. At Plantion the auction process is computer controlled and three clocks run simultaneously. The number of transactions has increased from 360 to 6000 per hour. And sales went from 7800.84 guilders in the first year to 99.5 million in 2016. Without an inflation adjustment this is times 30 thousand.
In fact, Plantion’s sales in 2016 came out slightly higher than anticipated due to an excellent December month with high prices, among other things for Amaryllis. Compared to 2015 sales increased by 8.7 percent.
Grateful, respectful
The 100-year Plantion will not be obtaining the designation 'Royal' since this was already awarded to Royal FloraHolland. Management, supervisory board and staff nevertheless gratefully and respectfully look back upon Plantion’s history. Flower and plant growers in Utrecht saw the importance of collective action back in 1917 and many generations later that cooperative idea is still the basis of Plantion.
So several festivities have been planned in the course of the year. Starting with a day at Burgers’ Zoo for employees. Later in the year, on June 17, there will also be a festive day for all Plantion relations.
For more information: Plantion