Zespri’s first-ever charter vessel to the U.S. arrived in the Port of Los Angeles on May 9, kicking off a new season with the New Zealand grower and marketer focused on its SunGold kiwifruit brand

“Our SunGold Kiwifruit continues to be on-trend and is driving the category,” Susan Noritake, Zespri’s head of sales for the North American market said in a statement.

 “Zespri is the  fastest growing fruit in the fruit bowl, outpacing total fruit by 12 points (according to IRI). SunGold Kiwi accounts for 63% of the category’s growth. We have a lot of marketing resources available for retailers, including customized programs and free shipper displays, to help them capitalize on the increasing demand,” she added.

In an effort to drive brand awareness and purchases, Zespri’s “Go Sweet. Be Bold” consumer campaign includes digital media, social media, and influencer marketing along with mass sampling efforts at major events. 

The campaign encourages shoppers to break from the mundane and shake up the contents of their fruit bowl with Zespri’s sweet and refreshing SunGold Kiwifruit, and is targeting health conscious consumers using high-reach digital channels including Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube., 

Zespri’s new shipper displays feature bright, eye-catching graphics highlighting the sweet taste and nutrition messages from the integrated campaign.

“Retailers can increase their sales more than 200 percent by placing our display merchandisers in their produce section,” explains Noritake. “Kiwi is also a basket builder in the fruit department. Just by adding kiwi to the basket with other fruit items, the basket size increases +$34 on average.”