“Gardens of Prykarpattya” is a Ukrainian producer of premium segment organic juice from Ivano-Frankivsk region. The company started more than 5 years ago as a small family business growing apples and making directly expressed juices. Currently, the “Gardens of Prykarpattia” employ 14 permanent workers (up to 120 seasonal) and produce about 150 thousand liters of juice per year.
Interested in the potential of the Canadian market for their product, the company joined the trade mission to Canadian-Ukrainian Trade Show in Toronto in early April 2017 organized as a part of a CUTIS project. Together with the delegation of representatives of the Ukrainian food industry, “Gardens of Prykarpattia” presented their products to Canadian customers and had a chance to pitch their product to potential partners in Canada.
Communicating with Canadian supermarkets has made it clear to the company that it still lacks sufficient volumes to meet the demand of large networks. However, “Gardens of Prykarpattia” see small ethnic shops as the promising niche for their juices. They are already negotiating with several such stores to start exporting.
Free trade between Ukraine and Canada will facilitate “Gardens of Prykarpattya” entering the Canadian market, since it allows the exporting juices to Canada duty-free.
Check out a video success story of the company:
Nazar Romaniv, co-owner of “Gardens of Prykarpattya”:
- “Our company is located in an ecologically clean zone in the Carpathian region of Ukraine and the nearest harmful production is in 200-300 km from it. We have a special microclimate”
- “Everything started with the birth of our children. I realized that I could not give my children anything from a shelf. So, at first, we did not have any business goal, we did it for ourselves. Gradually we began to promote our products and now we already have a line of five juices. “
- “We choose markets where our products can be bought. We make juice not from water, but from natural fruits, so the price is corresponding. “
- “Sufficient volumes of goods, good quality and at least minimal certification are the main preconditions for entering international markets. Without those it is impossible to be a successful exporter.”
- “We did not have a big marketing budget in Ukraine. As they say, “rumors spread”, a neighbor told the neighbor. In Canada, diaspora can take be such “word-of-mouth” power. It can significantly increase sales. “
- “There is a lot of nostalgia in Canada for Ukrainian taste. At the trade show, in the first two hours all my bottles were empty! “
- “Our priority is to populate Canadian ethnic products with high quality goods. The motto of our company is “We are for a healthy nation”. So we also want to take care of our Ukrainians there, in Canada. “