ST. LOUIS, MO - Market Fresh’s annual vendor summit welcomed and thanked attendees from multiple sides of the industry, including supplier NatureFresh™ Farms. The company invited the greenhouse grower’s Retail Account Manager, Richie Keirouz, to speak on how a healthy lifestyle goes beyond his work day with his team.
When he isn’t juggling tomatoes, cucumbers, and bell peppers, Richie is an author and fitness coach, having founded his company Rich Body and published a book and documentary about integrating health into a daily lifestyle all within the past year.
“Market Fresh had heard about my business and that I had written my book, and asked me to come speak on that and how it ties into my career in produce,” Richie told me.
Aside from the clear-cut role eating fresh produce plays in a healthy lifestyle, his experience in coaching others on eating better has made clear to Richie how much transparency has become a key point to offer consumers.
“We are in an era where transparency and communication are key,” Richie told those in attendance, though he would say they should be defined by the roles we would normally use. “No longer should we be using the terms buyer, vendor, customer, or supplier. Instead, we should be calling our relationships by one term–partner.”
He explained that there has never been a more crucial time to come together to both, overcome current challenges and create new solutions that will make the future of our industry “even better for the generations ahead.”
Market Fresh’s Vendor Summit gathers multiple sides of the industry from around the U.S. and Canada. This year’s event took place at the Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis, Missouri, with over 50 produce partners in attendance.
“The 2017 Market Fresh Produce Vendor Summit we hosted was a great success! We held the event in St. Louis with an agenda that gave our partner/growers and Market Fresh staff the ability to socialize, discuss business, and grow together,” Kaylyn Bender, Director of Marketing for Market Fresh, shared with me.
As more and more members of our industry look to various ways to elevate produce, keep checking in with AndNowUKnow for all the latest.
