08-19-2021
News
editorial
Bosman flower trade from Bleiswijk
Bosman from Bleiswijk is one of the largest exporters of flowers in the Netherlands. The family business founded in 1920 has been around for 101 years now, Bosman does not grow flowers and plants himself. They buy their goods directly from local and national farmers, in this way they have a wider supply of different products which they sell nationally but especially internationally to their customers. The younger generation of the Bosmann family put the small company from Bleiswijk on the international map. According to CEO Jan Bosman: Our strength lies in the fact that we have a good logistics organization, short lines with farmers and a fast logistics chain, which contributes to the fact that the final product remains of high quality and reaches the customer quickly. “
When Jan Bosman took over the company from his father and grandfather in 1989, the company plunged into the financial cliff, competition was fierce and they gained an advantage over them as they engaged in new innovations. Grandfather Bosman was very stubborn and stuck to his old ways of doing business. The moment Jan officially took over, the company was reformed. He looked at the weaknesses of the company and created a new business model where they were not just a flower business but At the same time also a logistics company. This was a bold plan and many at the time thought it crazy, despite the criticism it received, made the company more successful than ever.
What does a logistics organization look like
Head Office: The head office is located in Belswick, employing seventy people who ensure that the company continues to operate smoothly. The entire organization is managed from this office, including the logistics manager who ensures that the company’s logistics runs smoothly. Manages warehouse team leaders, truck drivers and planners.
– Distribution Centers: In 1990, two giant distribution centers were built in Jan Bosman, one of which is used as cold storage. The other is used as a processing plant, here the flowers are marked, cut and packaged. Reefer containers are filled from this center and transported to Schiphol Airport.
– Fleet: This is an important factor. Without its own trucks, Bossmann could not operate as a logistics company, January bought 25 trucks and trailers in 1991. Over the ensuing years there were more, and of course the spent trucks were replaced.
The process behind the scenes is not very complicated, good agreements have been made with farmers. When they go to harvest the flowers and plants and they’re done, they call the Bossmann planners. These planners ensure that refrigerated trucks head to the greenhouses to collect plants and flowers.
Once they reach the warehouse, the factories are checked again to see if they meet the quality requirements. When they are accepted, warehouse worker comes with electric cart to drive CC containers with plants and flowers to highly advanced cold storages where flowers and plants are kept cool and dark to last longer.
The sales team makes sure that buyers know that there are plenty of items available. Whenever there are buyers purchasing the products, they are immediately taken from the cold store by warehouse workers and transported to a refrigerated container, which is then transported by an all-terrain truck which then transports them to the processing shed/factory located on the same property.
Once in the processing shed, plants and flowers are pruned, cut, cut to size, and neatly packaged ready to be sent to recipients. Once the procedures are settled, the goods are sent to the buyers. Bossmann trucks often transport products to Schiphol, where they are taken over by an international carrier. Goods to be brought into the UK to Rotterdam – Hoek van Holland for transit by boat.
