Last year it was a very good season for Mexico's growers, despite the darker weather, the growers were able to make some good profits with their export to premium customers in the U.S. and Canada. According to Edgar Leyton of Leyton Greenhouse and Supply, the atmosphere in the Mexican industry is good and the spirit of the growers is positive. "Many growers are driven to become very good producers, that's why it are also busy times for us to supply them with the materials they need to become more successful", he said.
The team from Leyton Greenhouse & Supply together with their clients at last year's Expo AgroAlimentaria Guanajuato in Irapuato, Mexico.
Operating from Celaya in the state of Guanajuato, Leyton Greenhouse and Supply is a leading supplier for Mexico's greenhouse industry. On a daily basis, Leyton and his staff of 11 daily supply many growers with materials like growing bags, greenhouse twine, [organic] fertilizers, crop protection and many others.
But it is not only the materials that they supply. "We are also suppliers of knowledge", Leyton proudly states. "That is how it all started as I was working as an agronomist. Later I started to help growers to achieve better results by introducing new tools and innovations, and nowadays we are one of the leading importers and resellers of many horticultural brands."
As Leyton is very close with the Mexican industry, he is able to give a good overview of trends amongst his customers. He said that he and his team are having lots of works with supplying more high tech greenhouse materials. "The Mexican growers are very aware of the fact that good supplies can contribute to better quality and better yields and nothing is left to chance. They are willing to invest in costly materials like premium quality growing bags or even high end shading agents."
"Recently we have become the official distributor for Sudlac's advanced shading paints", Leyton said. "Mexican growers demand these products and we are very busy with consulting about the use of shading paints like Eclipse and TransPAR." Together with the help of the Sudlac team, Leyton ensures that the grower's investments in these paints will be translated into even better yields and crop quality.
That the growers are willing to invest in better supplies, doesn't mean that it is easy to sell in Mexico. "It is not that the growers want the cheapest materials, they are willing to pay, that is not the issue. But you will need to invest in your customers and help them with your knowledge, that is the foremost important thing over here, and we pay a lot of attention to this issue. If the grower only wants cheap supplies, he better can call someone else."
According to Leyton, this is also the case with the substrates that he sells. "We are the official partner of Riococo growing slabs in Mexico, and many of our clients first came to us and aksed for cheap slabs. We simply said no to them, because we don't sell cheap substrates, we sell premium slabs. We invested in the relationships with the customers in trials on small scale, and showed them the benefits of investing in good premium materials on a small scale, and that better, but more expensive materials materials can pay off for them."
For more information: Leyton Greenhouse and Supply
Edgar Leyton (e-mail)
www.leytongreenhouse.com.mx