Dümmen Orange is a sizable floriculture company. Over 8.500 employees are spread across locations and farms in The Netherlands, Ethiopia, Kenya, Ecuador and Colombia. Just about everything that can happen in floriculture happens at Dümmen Orange. They are breeders, importers and exporters of roses. Once breeders of five different rose varieties, they have grown to over seventy-five varieties. They are one of FreshPortal’s first clients. FreshPortal is incredibly proud of that and we have learned a lot from each other along the way.
First priority
Wout Oor is a veteran in the floriculture industry and he has seen Dümmen Orange grow and expand into the company it is today. He works as sales manager of cut flowers at their De Kwakel location, where distribution, import and trade operations take place. Throughout this location, a colorful palette of diverse rose varieties can be seen, which are flown in daily from their farms. The roses are sorted, bunched and evaluated here, and subsequently processed in lots to be sent to the auction and buyers in short succession. Delivering roses in superb condition is their first priority by far. As evidenced by the whole production line, at which employees diligently work with the roses.
Early adaptor
In 2005, Oor – then working at Olij Rozen – was already flirting heavily with automation. Given his mechanical engineering background that didn’t come as much of a surprise. It was simply a part of him early. While everyone else was still walking around with handwritten notes, Oor was the only one with a computer at the auction clock in Aalsmeer. “During breaks everything could just keep running,” Oor says and continues: “And these days the same is possible with the 24-hour availability of FreshPortal. Back then we worked with various software systems. When we heard Robin Jongkind had started making similar software, we entered into a dialog with him. We grew together with the development, as it were.” How would you characterize your experience with FreshPortal? “The big advantage of FreshPortal compared to all other software, is that it is so easy to use. That makes it incredibly convenient for everyone in the company to work with. Everything we need is in there. There are no redundant features that make it unnecessarily complicated. That is important to us. We can also give feedback at any time. Whenever we need something, such as a new connection, it gets arranged immediately. That is possible at any time via their support team.”
Everything can be done with one system
What has the software contributed to your business operations and growth? “We no longer have to worry about complex digitalization and automation challenges. FreshPortal takes care of all that for us. Whenever there is an update or change in the market, FreshPortal completely adapts for us. We don’t need expensive hardware or servers because everything is in the cloud. But the by far the biggest advantage has to be that we now manage everything with one system.”
From EAB to webshop
What are some of the processes that are being managed by the software? Oor summarizes: “That is, for example, creating and sending an Electronic Supply Form (Elektronische Aanvoer Brief; EAB). On top of that, fine-tuning all business processes from stock to webshop is a delicate operation. We don’t want to be stuck with excess inventory, and we certainly don’t want to turn customers away or double sell. That definitely used to happen on occasion. With FreshPortal’s software that is now a thing of the past. Our whole company operates and flourishes with FreshPortal’s software. That just feels good, because now we can focus all our attention on the superb quality of our roses. Or enjoy moments such as when Princess Charlotte of England was recently photographed with our yellow roses and ignited a real craze.”
Wout Oor, Dümmen Orange