"This summer has been very busy, as we are in preparation to get everything ready for the next season in 2022," says Erick Ciraud, Global Business Development Manager at DHMI, who now also works for Ball Horticultural Company and Florensis. In July, they officially announced that Florensis and Ball Horticultural Company had acquired the Diamantina® Dipladenia/Mandevilla breeding program from the French company D.H.M. Innovation (DHMI) as of June 30, 2021. Erick Ciraud now reflects on these busy past months and what advantages this acquisition will bring everyone.
Erick Ciraud
Supply chain improvement
Erick Ciraud explains that since the acquisition, all Ball and Florensis teams have been busy working on improving the supply chain in order to bring the commercial Diamantina product assortment to a higher level. "Before the acquisition, our structure was not secured and was not big enough to ensure the supply of plants. Now, we are in the process of creating new supply chain zones by duplicating our stocks. As a result, we can be sure that we have enough products available to fulfill the Diamantina growing demand. A reliable and sustainable supply chain is a key success factor. We have worked on each individual commercial variety and sometimes have redesigned our mother plant stocks to have sufficient supply from week ten until week 36 2022."
From left to right: Tourmaline Rose, Jade Orange Coral, Opal Red.
Trial and testing extension
According to Erick Ciraud, they have also been working on selecting the locations where they want the program to be tested. "The DHMI company by itself is small compared to Florensis and Ball. Therefore, we are now able to extend our trial and testing protocols worldwide. We now have the ability to test the varieties under different climates so that each market can be sure that there is something suitable for them. It is important for us that we can now have this global knowledge of our potential products for the future."
Worldwide sales development
Because of this new partnership, the DHMI breeding program now have access to various distribution channels worldwide. "This helps us to introduce the Diamantina range to all regions. Before, it was only available in North America, Europe, and some Asian countries, but now we are proposing the program to a higher number of countries and sales teams. We are excited to make this program global and to offer it to a wider audience worldwide."
Innovation continues
The driving force behind Diamantina is innovation. With the first Dipladenia Yellow ever introduced to the market (Opale Citrine), followed by the first compact Mandevilla type (Tourmaline Rose) and the first orange Dipladenia (Coral Orange Sunrise) presented to the market, the breeding team will continue to lead innovation in this product category. Not to forget the reevaluation of all existing commercial varieties. "The competition is active, and the expertise of product development managers involved in the Diamantina program from Ball/Florensis teams will lead to improve the global plant performance of the assortment."
For more information:
D.H.M. Innovation
Erick Ciraud
erick.ciraud@dhmi.fr
www.lannes.pro
Ball Horticultural Company
krotella@ballhort.com
www.ballhort.com
Florensis
florensis@florensis.com
www.florensis.nl