<p>Columbia Marketing International, an established grower/shipper of premium quality apples, pears, and cherries, has appointed Steve Lutz as VP of Marketing.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> As a respected industry leader with more than 30 years in various areas of marketing and management, Steve has been involved with helping organizations understand and merge consumer information and supermarket sales data to develop innovative growth strategies. He has been with the Nielsen Perishables Group, a Chicago-based marketing and consulting firm, and he has been a top-rated speaker at the Food Marketing Institute, Produce Marketing Association, Canadian Produce Marketing Association, Boston International Seafood Show, and other associations around the world, according to a press release.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> “I’m thrilled to be joining the team at CMI,” said Lutz. “CMI has a legacy of innovation and leadership in the fruit industry which is really exemplified by the success they have had introducing new varieties like Ambrosia™, KIKU®, and Kanzi®. I look forward to working with the CMI staff and customers to expand sales and ultimately enhance returns to growers.”<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> “Steve brings a tremendous sense of vision and foresight to the marketing department at CMI,” said Bob Mast, CMI President. “Steve has been studying consumer buying trends and habits for many years and this insight will be very beneficial to CMI as we assist our retail partners in navigating through some very large national crops in the years ahead. We are fully committed to providing compelling sales building partnerships with our retail partners and Steve Understands this philosophy and will bring great leadership to his new role. We look forward to the many contributions Steve will bring to the CMI team and we are very excited to welcome him to the CMI family.”<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> Steve holds an MBA from City University in Seattle and a bachelor’s degree in communications/advertising from Washington State University.</p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><p><a class="btn btn-sm btn-primary col-lg-12" style="white-space: normal;" href="http://www.cmiapples.com/" target="_new"> Columbia Marketing International </a></p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">
