Hielke van Dijken - Managing Director, De Weerd Specerijen B.V.
Every company has the obligation to show growth, because according to Managing Director Hielke van Dijken, growth is important for development. "If growth is no longer there, you run the risk of continuing to do the same thing while the world changes. In other words: stagnation." And growth is something that De Weerd Spices has indeed demonstrated in recent years.
Hielke van Dijken - Managing Director
Imagine your company has been successful in the herbs and spices industry for 61 years, serving both large and small food companies as clients, and the growth continues. Do you stay the course, or consider additional steps or a different approach? Managing Director Hielke van Dijken is very clear on this. "You should repair the roof when it's dry. Even when everything is going well, you should question where the growth will come from in two or three years."
Hasn't De Weerd already secured a good position in the market?
"Definitely. Over the past ten years, we have grown significantly in volume. Even this year, despite a stagnant market, we continue to grow rapidly. This means we are doing something right. We supply blends of spices and herbs that our customers in the Dutch and Flemish food industry use to add flavor, aroma, and sometimes color to their products. It mainly involves blends for savory applications such as meat, chips, soups, and sauces."
What do you think you are doing well?
"I believe we have two key strengths, namely product development and fast delivery. We work very closely with our customers to develop new blends for their products. Secondly, as a relatively small player in the market, we can offer flexibility. We are able to deliver a product within four days of receiving an order. Furthermore, we can do this in small batches, averaging between 500 and 1000 kilos. This is crucial for our customers as it allows them to respond to changing demands. For example, if the weather suddenly turns nice and consumers want to barbecue, different products need to be on the shelves. In both cases, we solve the customer's problems. This customer-centric approach is what drives our growth."
Four days delivery time for a customer-specific blend. That's quite a challenge, isn't it?
"It's absolutely a remarkable achievement, and it's fantastic that we achieve this together. We succeed because we have highly efficient product development and production processes in place. Our customers work closely with our blenders in our test kitchen to achieve the desired flavor application. Every day, we send out 15 to 20 samples to our customers. We manage around 2000 active recipes, of which 20 to 30 percent are regularly adjusted and renewed."
What happens next in the production process?
"A few years ago, we started a significant investment program. We modernized the blending process, implemented quality improvements, strengthened food safety, and maintained our flexibility by investing in automation and robotics. Unlike aiming for the largest possible factory focused on processing as many kilos as possible, we consciously chose a strategy centered on flexibility and fast delivery times. This approach is appreciated by both small and large players in the industry, as the orders keep increasing."
What can you say about the long-term vision?
"I was once inspired by the book 'Good to Great,' which emphasizes the importance of understanding the essence of your business, the engine that generates revenue. In our case, it revolves around intensive collaboration in product development with customer-specific products while remaining flexible and service-oriented in our deliveries. This is the core of our success in the current market, but we are also thinking about the future. Perhaps we need to find new ways to grow, whether in terms of products or geographically."
Growth phases always bring challenges. What challenges are currently central for you?
"With a growing production apparatus, it is a challenge to remain flexible and meet the high standards we set for ourselves. This means that we need to further refine and optimize our processes."
How do you plan to achieve this?
"We aim to achieve this by placing the right people in the right positions. When that happens, they can truly excel. This leads to new ideas and initiatives. The best scenario is a team of people who strive together for continuous improvement. A team that doesn't wait for instructions but takes initiative and seeks dialogue. A culture of openness and entrepreneurship is essential in this regard."
Ready to take that next step? Then get in touch with us.
Photographer: Almar Setz
[Published: October 2023]
