Current Projects

Project: Technical assistance to facilitate Caribbean In-Store Food Promotion
Agency/Counterpart: Caribbean Export Development Agency

Overview

C-TRADECOM provided technical assistance to the Caribbean Export Development Agency (CEDA) to facilitate the organization of an in-store promotion of Caribbean food products in the USA with Fiesta Mart supermarket chain stores during the period of March 15 through 28, 2004.

Fiesta Mart is a leading retail chain of 34 supermarkets located in Texas in the Houston, Dallas/Ft. Worth and Austin areas. The company is already retailing a variety of Caribbean and International specialty foods and offers gourmet products from around the globe. Currently products from nineteen CARIFORUM companies are sold in the Fiesta Mart chain.

Specialty-food exporting companies from the OECS and the rest of the Caribbean who have distribution in the USA have expressed the need for more promotion at the consumer level. This in store promotion was planned to provide the needed exposure at this level and increase the benefits of ongoing promotion to the distributive trade at Trade Shows. This in-store activity permitted consumers to view Caribbean-cooking demonstrations, to taste and sample the products and so increase the market demand for the items.

Companies with products already in the marketplace gained greater exposure and sales from the promotion. The activity also allowed for new products from the Caribbean to enter this market area. The in-store promotion with Fiesta Mart provided the opportunity to showcase products during the period of the promotion and also to establish a strategic long-term export business relationship.

Thirty-one (31) Caribbean Companies were invited to submit product samples and price lists to the exclusive distributor for Fiesta Mart. These were reviewed with the supermarket buyers and a selection of products were carried as part of the promotion. The selected items were promoted along with more than 20 items from existing suppliers in the in-store promotion.