With Sundaville, breeder MNP Suntory has a strong ornamental plant brand on its hands. This is partly thanks to the experiences with its very first brand, Surfinia, says Erwin Giezen, head of Marketing, Communication & Trade. The small margins and the many chain links in the ornamentals sector make maintaining an ornamental brand very difficult, he says.
The Japanese company Suntory stumbled upon a different petunia variety in the late 1980s. It had so much potential that the company set up a flower division and linked an ornamental plant brand to it: Surfinia. Suntory had launched groundbreaking alcoholic and soft drink labels and was using these experiences for its ornamental genetics as well. To gain a foothold in European ornamental horticulture, it joined forces with MNP.
Surfinia, also known as the hanging petunia, was unique because of its trumpet-shaped flowers and wide variety of colours. Suntory managed to master its propagation from tissue culture, where, previously, many petunia varieties were propagated from seeds. Surfinia is still one of the largest key products for MNP Suntory, although, meanwhile, breeders like Florensis, Dümmen Orange and Syngenta also have very extensive collections.
