Aspects regarding the marketing strategies for small agri-food producers. A case study on "Legumele de acasă" Târgu Frumos

Abstract

The agricultural sector is one of national importance, at present over 20% of the active population of Romania working in this economic branch. Although Romania has the largest number of agricultural holdings in the European Union, with 33.2% of their total number, only provides 3.4% of the standard production of the European Union. In Romania, only 1.5% of the total agricultural holdings are represented by large, industrialized and performing farms, being registered in total over 3.5 million subsistence and semi-subsistence farms. With 91.8% of the agricultural holdings with an area of less than 5 hectares, Romania faces a paradox: the smallest ratio between the number of agricultural holdings and production. Most agricultural holdings are facing problems in terms of capitalization of production, the lack of effective marketing strategies mirroring in the low income recorded. The purpose of this case study is to analyze how a small-scale agri-food local producer managed to implement effective marketing strategies that led to an increase in the income and profitability of the activity. The analyzed data highlighted a series of main marketing strategies that were implemented by ”Legumele de Acasă”, a small agri-food producer based in Târgu Frumos, Iași County, Romania. Leading to positive results, the main marketing strategies the unit implemented successfully are: Social Media Marketing, publicity through recommendations and Word of Mouth, differentiation from competition through products and distribution and the creation of a local community around its brand by participating at and organizing events aimed at attracting more customers and studying the habits of the target audience. Through these marketing strategies, the local agri-food producer ”Legumele de Acasă” has managed to attract and maintain a stable customer base that has gradually increased over time. A notable aspect that differentiated ”Legumele de Acasă” from other local producers, is that the budget required to implement these marketing strategies was low compared to big producers, most of the strategies being implemented by the producer itself, with minimal costs.