Del Monte Foods is one of America’s largest producers, distributors, and marketers of branded processed food for the country’s retail market, generating approximately $1.8 billion of annual sales. The current Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Del Monte Foods is Gregory Longstreet.
Many of the Del Monte products hold the number one or two position in the market share.
A Little About Its Origin
In the 1880s, a California based foods distributor used the ‘Del Monte’ name to market a premium blend of coffee that had been prepared for the hotel Del Monte (famous resort hotel on the Monterey Peninsula which first built the Pebble Beach Golf Links).
By 1892, the firm expanded its business and selected Del Monte as the brand name for its new line of canned peaches.
In 1898, Del Monte along with 17 other West Coast canning companies merged and formed the California Fruit Canners Association (CFCA).
The CFCA introduced the Del Monte shield in 1909. The shield was used in its early ads as an assurance to its customers as a guarantee for quality.
After WWII, CFCA went on and established more facilities overseas. As a managerial decision, in June 1967, the corporation adopted the name of its leading brand to be Del Monte Corporation.
In 2014, Del Monte Foods Inc. was acquired by the Filipino multinational food and beverage company Del Monte Pacific Limited in an acquisition deal that cost US$1.67 billion.
For the assets that fell under Del Monte Foods Inc. but were not part of the deal, continued to operate as a separate company under the name Big Heart Pet Brands, Inc.
It’s Emergence In India
In 2009, Del Monte was launched in India under the umbrella of FieldFresh Foods as a partnership with Bharti Enterprises.
Despite having a wide array of products like packed fruits, fruits drinks, sauces & ketchup, Del Monte had a lot of competitors in the Indian market.
Though its competitors were spending huge in the advertisement department, Del Monte has seen shying away from any sorts of marketing. In fact, the brand’s last big campaign took place in 2011.
So how did the brand make its place in the Indian Market?
Yogesh Bellani, CEO of FieldFresh Foods, has many times attributed the brand’s success to its initial focus on the B2B market.
Notably, the brand is the preferred supplier to all the major fast-food chains in the country, such as Domino’s, Pizza Hut, KFC, Subway, McDonald’s, Burger King and Carl’s Jr., to name a few.
Post achieving great success in the B2B sector, it was easier for the brand to gain momentum in the B2C sector as well.
As far as the brand’s marketing campaigns are concerned, the brand feels that they quite active on the digital front. which has a better reach to the young, affluent target audience.
