Last Saturday the grand opening of the new greenhouse from the popular tomato brand LUST, took place in Slovenia. Lust, a young and innovative grower that markets greenhouse tomatoes through several retailers in Slovenia and surrounding countries, recently expanded it's 4 hectare greenhouse with an additional 2.2 hectares. According to Lust' CEO Dejan Sumak, the grand opening was a great success and can be seen as another chapter from the success story of the Slovenian tomato grower.
It's only 2.5 years ago when a group of young horticultural entrepreneurs from Slovenia built a state of art art 4.1 hectare Venlo greenhouse in Renckovich, a village in the Municipality of Turnišče. The group's strategy to start growing high quality hydroponic tomatoes for the local markets turned out so well, that before the second crop cycle was finished, plans were in place for a 2.2 hectare expansion.
Last December, the group finished construction and planted their new crops in the new greenhouse. "We now have a total acreage of more then six hectares", Dejan proudly stated. "With this new glass,we are able to fulfil the rising demand for our products."
The tomatoes from Lust are marketed as a premium brand in supermarkets in Slovenia and neighbouring countries. The Lust label is not only sold by Lidl, but also by more expensive luxury retailers, with a 'made in Slovenia with love' trademark. "Since the beginning of our plans, we knew that we had to come up with a good marketing strategy in order to distinguish ourselves from other big mass produced imports that would be our target market," said Kristjan Magdič, director of marketing at Lust. "Our plans turned out so well that we did not have enough product available, so this new greenhouse is a welcome addition for our company".
Besides the 2.2 hectare new greenhouse, Lust also built a new auxiliary packing hall of 2,400 square meter. The entire project commenced with turn key by Dutch greenhouse builder Looije Agro Technics. "We decided to build Turn Key because we did not wanted to have too much trouble during construction," said Dejan Samuk. "We are tomato growers that need to focus on our crop, hence we hired a turn key contractor."
During the opening, more then 2,000 people found their way to the new greenhouse of Lust. "We made a public invitation and many people and customers who came were surprised when they found out about the high end technology that we use in our production. We gave tours through the greenhouse and explained how we grow tasty Lust tomatoes. As well as this there was also a band playing, time to relax with food and beverages, and there where products on sale. "
Looking forward, Dejan Samuk is positive about the marketing possibilities of greenhouse vegetables. "In slovenia we are one of the first that entered the market with a good marketing strategy. Our brand gained much popularity and we fill a gap in the market."
Besides growing tomatoes, Lust hopes to start building a third greenhouse this year. "Our customers are asking for other products, like season vegetables and open field crops. We are now working with 5 local farmers who supply us with products like fresh garlic, potatoes and other open field vegetables. Next to this we have plans to expand with another operation 5-6 kilometres from our current greenhouse. In this greenhouse we hope to start growing Lust Bell Peppers, also grown sustainably with geothermal heat. We hope that this will become as successful as our tomato operation"
