Christmas orders for premium turkeys have swung markedly towards online and late orders, according to an Essex producer.
Paul Kelly, managing director of Danbury-based premium turkey producer Kelly Turkeys and of FarmGate Hatcheries, said there had been a dramatic swing towards mobile ordering, with Christmas orders coming in online and outside office hours.
Online sales have risen in volumn by 10% and farmgate sales by 14%, he said. 12% of sales were after December 14.
“Out-of-office hours ordering increased and the move to ordering from smart phones and tablets is dramatic,” he said. “Investing in our website – and in point-of-sale material – has paid dividends.”
The major retailers close their order service on or around the December 14, but we can keep open for a further week, he said.
The firm changed its pricing structure from price per kg to price per bird, using the midpoint on every 1 kg weight band to set the price.
“I wish we had done it years ago,” said Paul. “Simple, easy and a no brainer.”
He believes that plastic and non-recyclable packaging is a big ‘No’ and that this will become a major issue.
FarmGate Hatcheries, part of the Kelly Turkeys group, is one of the UK’s leading suppliers of poults (young turkeys) for the traditional Christmas turkey market. The company has been hatching poults at Danbury, near Chelmsford, since 1971.
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