Nieuwkoop Europe: “Growers and buyers need to sit down and talk to one another"

We are walking through the greenhouses and warehouses of Nieuwkoop Europe. The company, based in De Kwakel in North-Holland, offers a complete concept: hydroponics, its very own spray nozzle, a wide range of pots and plants imported from all over the world. According to platform administrator Leo van Ruiten: "Nieuwkoop is all about tailor-made solutions. Here the customer truly is king".

The wholesale trade deals with a lot of interior planting. Alongside products grown on site, products are bought in and grown into end products before being put on sale. Leo: “We use Floriday as both a grower and buyer".

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Leo' focus is on the nursery's offering within the wholesale trade. "I make sure the whole range is well represented on Floriday. Every day, I make sure the price groups, delivery conditions and all other trade items are all correct. The purchases and sales department then continues this process and takes care purchases and sales in Floriday".

Partly in our software package, partly in Floriday

The team at Nieuwkoop Europe use a combination working method. Leo: "I put our stock straight up on Floriday. Sales are then conducted through our own software system with the API link to Floriday. Intake of sales orders and offers for purchase orders are also carried out with Floriday via the API link, which works well, and we also sell through our own webshop, All these systems communicate with each other, and we feel it's important to present our supply of stock in real-time".

A deal's a deal

"We used to trade our stock on FloraXchange, but that way of working, with all the tiers, wasn't really for us. We want to offer everything and at a pre-determined price. More importantly, we make our living from the constant of having a set price. This is good for our customers, as we almost always make long-term price agreements with them, with everyone knowing where they stand and there being no discussion about it.
On Floriday you know that a deal's a deal. We think it's important that our stock is guaranteed, as we work a lot with parties who make longer-term purchases.
Since 1st August, our stock is no longer available on FloraXchange, which I'm pretty happy about, as I now save so much time not having to keep up with two different systems!"

Actively using the roadmap

Leo also has a lot of improvements for Floriday. "I also focus a lot of my attention on Floriday's Interactive Roadmap. I've made my demands known and I've voted for other requests. If you vote, the higher chance you have of having your request being taken further. Recently there was a rather good request that we also voted for: minimum delivery costs".

"There will always be request that cannot be fuflilled immediately, especially if they're very specific," Leo continues. "This is what makes our broad range of hardware a particular challenge still, as not everything fits within the current VBN (Dutch Flower Auctions Association) structure".

Just get started

Leo wants to encourage the growers with whom Nieuwkoop Europe does business to also use Floriday. "We currently still don't buy everything via Floriday, but it would be great if we could. Floriday lets you make very exact specifications about how you want to receive plants, for example, if you want them with or without a cover, which is very useful for us when it comes to growing on site. It's also easy for growers to provide this option on Floriday, plus it saves everyone a lot of work. Right now the number of growers working with Floriday is increasing, which is a step in the right direction.

I understand that working with a platform like Floriday can be a bit of a hurdle, but for the future of ornamental horticulture and everyone's business, it's an essential. I encourage growers to just get started with it: it's much easier to use than you think. plus if you're working via the API link, it's important that you have a software package that works properly, as all these systems communicate with each other."

Talking to one another

Leo has one final tip: "Talk to each other. This is something that can really help both growers and buyers. A grower needs to know what a buyer wants, and a buyer needs to know what a grower can do for them. This will help to create an understanding between the two parties and will make trading with and on behalf of each other much easier and more pleasant".