You can become a Master of Mangoes in about 10 minutes, thanks to the past 10 years of work by the National Mango Board.
Retail program manager Wendy McManus spent some time with me, talking about the Orlando-based board’s journey over the past decade. Back in the beginning, McManus says, it was all trial, error and simply getting a foot in the door.
“We had no templates – anything we were doing, we were doing for the first time,” she says.
And mangoes were a hard sell for some.
“The acceptance for mangoes, the confidence that you can sell mangoes anywhere in the U.S. — that was a struggle,” she says. “Some retailers weren’t even interested in talking to us, let alone setting up promotions.”
Fast forward ten years, and programs like the board’s Mango Mania Display Contest, Mango University and Mango Retailer of the Year are thriving.
Mango sales are thriving, too.
Volume per store per week was 132 units in 2005. It was up to 213 in 2015.
“We’re still quite small compared to other items,” McManus says, “but the opportunities are huge.”
Feed the Mango Mania
As we spoke in early September, McManus says the board was finalizing decisions for the Mango Mania display contest and preparing to select a Mango Retailer of the Year.
Over the past five years, the display contest has evolved from a small store outreach program to a national contest for all retail formats, but the core values remain the same: creativity, education and engaging shoppers. Winners aren’t necessarily going for the world’s largest mango displays.
“Some of our winners had normal size displays, but are doing it really well,” she says. “It’s also fascinating to me where we get our entries from. We get entries from places you would not expect to be mango strongholds. I’m blown away by some of the displays I see.”
Participation helps retailers really analyze what a focused mango promotion can do for their categories.
“The first time they build a beautiful display, they find out they can actually sell mangoes in Nebraska,” she says. “It’s a long lasting benefit — we prove that you can sell mangoes everywhere by creating that incentive.”
Stores that participated in this year’s display contest averaged a 103% volume increase over the previous year, too.
Building confidence
Confidence — it was used often during the conversation. McManus says the board is working hard to enhance the tools it offers to build retailer confidence, from in-store personnel, to dietitians to corporate directors.
Even the terminology the board uses for its retail training participants gives them confidence. Once they complete the Mango University training, they’re dubbed a “Master of Mangoes.” The 3-minute videos cover the basics like consumer education, handling, merchandising and temperature management. Graduates, once verified, are sent a crisp, new $10 bill and a custom “diploma” from “Professor Mango.”
The board decided to take a fun, entertaining approach that McManus says has been a popular choice for retailers. So popular, the board decided to launch some new modules focused on receiving/distribution center warehouse ripening, retail dietitians an even a module for the corporate/head office, aimed at category managers, buyers and produce executives.
The five different tracks are scheduled for implementation early next year and will have their own tests, class notes and diplomas. McManus is optimistic about the new tracks, thanks to the reputation the board has built with the retail community.
“Because of the relationships we’ve built, because of the tools we’ve developed, and the reputation we’ve built as being a good resource, most of the retailers we want to work with pay attention to us,” she says. “They’re interested in building their mango business and they see us as a good partner for helping them get there.”