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Leon Bol and Martin van der Sande, New Green:

"We see opportunities to double our sales within five years"

The careers of Leon Bol and Martin van der Sande have run parallel for years. After long tenures at The Greenery and its predecessor P. Hanemaaijer, and a brief stint at salad brand StarMeal, they founded New Green in 2012, followed a year later by New Green Overseas. With 20% growth last year, the biggest challenge for the Dutch-based company is, by far, available space. "But ultimately, that's a luxury problem. If we solve it, we see plenty of potential to double our turnover within five years."

At the start of New Green in 2012, Leon explained that he wanted to bring growers closer to the wholesale market. Thirteen years later, he reflects: "It turned out completely differently. We had some growers behind us, but just two weeks before launch, they pulled out after learning they would lose their CMO. So there we were, sitting across from each other with a desk, a phone, and a computer — but no customers and no product."

© New Green B.V.
Leon Bol and Martin van der Sande

"Then I just started buying and selling," Martin adds. "I called an old contact and asked for the vine tomato price for the following week and whether we could deliver. They asked where the tomatoes were coming from, and I said, 'I don't know yet, but I'll find a supplier.' Leon still had connections in the U.S., and that's how we got started. We'd finish work around 10:30 p.m. most days, after selling two or three truckloads to an exporter — then we could finally go home."

Low-cost structure
"Some people came back to work with us right away; with others, it took longer, but eventually things picked up. We were given the green light to build from there, just not in the way we had imagined. We ultimately became exporters with a broad sales reach and a diverse assortment. Part of our sales is aimed at the German discount channel, where a very low-cost structure is essential. Thanks to strong relationships with growers' associations, we deliver fresh, well-packaged products straight from the yard. You might call it a modern box shop, which may carry negative connotations, but that's essentially what we do. No bells and whistles, just a great account manager in Dirk Theisen, who is there for the customer day and night."

Despite the trend toward consolidated retail purchasing in Europe, Martin believes there's still ample opportunity. "Customers don't want to rely on a single supplier or put all their eggs in one basket. The bigger retailers become, the more space opens up for us. There's always room for experts who understand the customer and are there 24/7. I think we can still achieve significant growth in the German market. Of course, we have to deliver at a price where the customer can still earn a margin, so keeping our cost structure lean has been key to our growth. And our account managers are deeply committed. In the end, it's still about trust — customers prefer to buy from someone they know and rely on."

"We've experienced strong growth, though it hasn't always been a straight line. Five years ago, we moved into this new building — just in time for the COVID pandemic to hit. Suddenly, we had high fixed costs and reduced turnover. We lost quite a bit of margin that year, but still closed out the year in the black. Thankfully, Leon had the idea to start shipping peppers to the U.S. in climate-controlled bags. We were packing peppers with our kids on Saturdays, and that helped a lot. Our New York partner, who was willing to inspect and remove any bad ones, really made it possible."

Overseas markets
Within a year of launching New Green, the company began overseas operations. Former colleagues Marianne van der Gragt and Pat Dekker started exports from North Holland to markets including Japan. In 2016, exports to the UK began under Annemieke van den Ende and Martijn van den Burg, and with the arrival of Jelle van Dijk in 2018, trade with the Middle East took off.

While fruiting vegetables are the core of New Green's business, the overseas branch handles over 1,100 different items. "For North America, 80–90% of the trade is still peppers, but for the Middle East, we supply nearly every type of fresh produce imaginable. Avocados are a major category, as are blueberries — but we cover the full range. Just this week, a Middle Eastern client needed three hundred oysters, and we made it happen," says Leon. "The major volumes from South America and Spain go directly, but if a container of melons is delayed, we step in and move a truckload at a time, alongside our constant flow of specialty items. The gap-filling role is the same in North America. That market is dominated by Canada and Mexico, but when they face shortages, we step in."

He sees strong market potential for fresh produce exports to the Middle East. "It's a region of significant economic growth, with a large expat population. Because it's tax-free, entire industries have sprung up. Dubai has essentially become the new Switzerland. It used to be a bit of a cowboy world, but many companies are now very professional. You just have to choose the right customers."

Local production
"There's been a lot of investment in local production as well. As a result, volumes of some products we used to export in large quantities have dropped, but growth across the board has returned, especially in specialties. Organic is also booming in the Middle East," says Leon. He has never been tempted to participate in local cultivation. "There are amazing projects there, hydroponic lettuce, for example, but the cost price can't compete with what we harvest in Italy and ship by air. So we stay well clear of that."

According to Leon, the newly announced U.S. import tariffs are having a significant impact. "But it's the combined effect. Not just the tariffs, there's also the 10% drop in the dollar and stricter airport regulations. Our product has become much more expensive. And based on current news, I don't expect the dollar to return to parity anytime soon. It's uncertainty stacked on uncertainty. We have to deal with it, but who am I, as a European, to pass judgment? I wouldn't be surprised if the Americans come out of this stronger. I've always had great respect for the American business approach; they're straightforward and don't shy away from difficult topics."

"The collapse of Levarht really shook up overseas exports. That gave Freshclusive momentum and also boosted operations at Be Fresh and here at New Green. So now there are three major players in that space," says Leon. He doesn't expect many new entrants to overseas exports. "We know what this business costs. If you're already in it, you account for that. But new entrants can easily lose money or pay a lot of tuition. India, for example, is emerging as an import market. A billion people, and a wealthy upper class with a lot of spending power. But it's also a risky market, and the learning curve is expensive."

Cruise ships' new market
Asked about future plans, Martin shares that New Green Overseas is increasingly supplying cruise ships with a full range of fresh produce. "We held off on that for two years because we didn't have the space to handle it properly. We simply needed more room to prepare the shipments. Space is tight, and it's not easy to find new premises — you don't want to jump at the first available location either. Since acquiring Global Green Team's operations, we've also outsourced some logistics to Harvest House Logistics."

"So our biggest challenge now is facilitating the growth of all these young go-getters who want to push forward. It's hard enough to plan three years out. Five years ago, we never expected to outgrow this building so quickly," Leon adds. In recent years, private equity firms have come knocking, but that's not something the partners are ready for. "Why give up control for money? Sure, we could probably triple the size of the company in two years with private equity, but we value control more than that extra turnover. We'd rather grow organically."

With Sophie (Martin's stepdaughter) and Thijs (Leon's son) now fully active in the company, the next generation is getting involved. "What's funny is that Thijs is commercially driven like me, while Sophie is strong in administration, more like Leon," Martin says. "Leon and I are very different. I come up with ten ideas, and after Leon runs the numbers, seven get scrapped, but that balance has always worked. We've been together since school. We don't need to monitor each other, but it's good to have someone to spar with."

© New Green B.V.For more information:
Leon Bol / Martin van der Sande
New Green
Jochem van der Houtweg 16
2678 HA De Lier
Tel no: +31 174 522555
leon@new-green.nl
www.new-green.nl