"We're proud of our purpose and our values, including our role as kaitiaki (guardians) for our future generations, and consumers can expect to see that increasingly brought through in our refreshed visual identity."
The refresh follows the company's operating revenue hitting $3 billion for the first time, and its announcement in late 2019 that Zespri is commercialising a new red kiwifruit variety which will play an important role in attracting even more consumers to the kiwifruit category.
With operating revenue of $3.14b in 2018/19, Zespri continues to make excellent progress towards its goal of reaching $4.5b in sales by 2025.
That is driven by the commitment of its 2800 New Zealand and 1500 offshore growers to produce premium-quality kiwifruit.
Shih said the refresh had been an extensive process, including looking at how Zespri could better connect emotionally with consumers and build a stronger, more intuitive brand identity.
"We're confident that our new brand will resonate not only with our loyal fans but pique the interest of new ones, helping differentiate Zespri in the fresh produce market so that we can continue to grow our share of the global fruit bowl."
Customers and consumers will see a refreshed Zespri logo featuring the use of a green fan, inspired by the vibrant cross-section of a kiwifruit with different shades of green bursts, and a red wordmark reflecting the energy and dynamism of the Zespri brand.
Zespri worked extensively with some of the world's leading market research agencies on the development and validation of the new brand direction. The new logo was tested and clearly recognised by regular Zespri users with higher predisposition to choose Zespri.
Shih said the refreshed brand also recognises the fact that consumers are increasingly health-conscious, looking for snacking options that are healthy, tasty and natural.
"Zespri Kiwifruit are not only among the world's most nutritious fruits, but they also taste amazing, so consumers can make the better choice of reaching for a snack that is both healthy and delicious.
"And to celebrate the importance of being healthy, we've introduced a new tagline, empowering our people to 'make your healthy irresistible'."
The new brand will be progressively rolled out across Zespri packaging and collateral and enter markets from May 2020.
Zespri was also set to make its biggest ever investment in marketing in 2020 to ensure a strong brand impact and reach as many consumers as possible.
The company will also host its industry conference – Momentum 2020: Standing Up and Standing Out – next week in New Zealand, which will introduce how Zespri is transforming to a future-proof organisation in a fast-changing environment.
"This is a really exciting time for Zespri and our industry on the back of the strong growth we've seen and the increasing global demand for nutritious products like our Zespri Kiwifruit," Shih said.
"We can't wait to share our new look with growers and consumers, and look forward to helping even more people, communities and the environment around the world thrive through the goodness of kiwifruit in the years ahead."
