In the last couple of years the Colombian floral industry has been facing some issues with the local airlines and its capacity to move all the flowers that departs from the country. “Especially with the flowers that go out of the city of Medellin, where in repeated occasions the logistics has collapsed and the products have been stocked in the airport”, says Andres Escobar of FlorAndina, a Colombian hydrangea grower.
FlorAndina mainly transport to the United States. Lately they have been focusing on transporting by sea freight. “Many of our customers worldwide are suffering the consequences of the current issues with the airlines not just because their products got stocked but also because air fares are constantly increasing and they are losing competitiveness.”
Facing the transport challenge
“Therefore we started our preparation three years ago, by establishing new protocols that covers all our chain value since the very beginning of our cultivation process. We want to guarantee that our product is ready to be shipped via a different system than before.” The hydrangeas of FlorAndina are put in the containers in Medellin and days later they arrive in Port Everglades, North America. By truck they travel to different destinations in the United States.
Escobar is satisfied with the choice. “Nowadays our shipments by sea represent a good amount of our weekly sales, giving the advantage to our customers to rely on us as a farm that has the knowledge and infrastructure to handle our products in a very professional way. We are able to help them face the transport challenge.”
Strengthened relation
“We found out that our customers could avoid headaches with the airlines situation. By using maritime transportation, we help our customers save money, while giving the flowers a better cold chain and the most important part, keep their clients happy with our products. Helping our customers with this transportation system has also strengthened our relation with them, since they can count on high quality products in good volumes and consistency. They still see in FlorAndina not just the first company in the hydrangea business in Colombia, but also a good ally that is always looking for innovation in its product portfolio and that goes a step beyond their competitors' understanding all the industry challenges.”
For more information:
FlorAndina
Andres Escobar
Email: ciflorandina@florandina.com|
Colombia Tel. (574) 448 45 55 ext 103
Cel. 317 492 03 36
Usa: 305 6471138