SOUTH AFRICAN ROSES ON WAY TO RUSSIA

SOUTH AFRICAN ROSES ON WAY TO RUSSIA

 By Mushakabvu Kajengo

African Floralush, a Mogale City-based company, which employs 110 permanent staff, is coming home from the Investment and Trade Initiative (ITI) that took place in Vladivostok, Russia with half-a-million rand order of their preserved roses.

Mr Stephanus Viljoen, who represented the company in the ITI, says he managed to secure an order for the 2014 International Women’s Day celebrations in Vladivostok. He adds that the order is going to save jobs.

African Floralush has commercialised a new process for the preservation of roses. The company attended the ITI undertaken by the Department of Trade and Industry (the dti) to increase trade and investment between South Africa and Russia.

Viljoen says the company has previously received support and funding from the Industrial Development Corporation, and says this was the fourth ITI that the company is attending and best so far, as they came back with tangible results.

“We are a distributor to the South African and few overseas markets. Large orders shipped to Europe, Japan and Canada. We are excited about this opportunity to penetrate the Russian market too. The company that placed this order wants to be our exclusive distributor for Premosky region in Vladivostok and if we do well we will create five more jobs.” Viljoen said.

According to Viljoen, a big customer dropped them recently, and they were in a process of letting some of the staff go, but with this big order, Viljoen says they will definitely save jobs.

He adds that his company selects and preserves only premium fresh cut flowers to ensure that their products are of the highest quality. The unique, environmentally-friendly, patented treatment process allows cut roses and foliage to look and feel fresh for at least six months and to retain their fragrance for extended periods, with no maintenance and no watering.

The activities for the ITI included a trade and investment seminar which addressed by the Ambassador of South Africa to Russia, Mr Mandisi Mpahlwa, business-to-business meetings, round table discussions and site visits to the Russian companies.