Packer 25 2021 — Sherrie Terry
How did you get your start in the produce industry?
I began my career as a consumer packaged goods marketer for the Dr. Scholl’s Footcare, Banquet Frozen Foods and Vlasic Pickles brands. When Vlasic headquarters relocated from Michigan to New Jersey, I joined Chiquita (then headquartered in Cincinnati). During my 16 years at Chiquita, I led innovation for their CPG division, marketing and category development for all Chiquita fresh produce, and sales operations for Chiquita and Fresh Express.
What roles have you held during you career?
I’ve worked in sales, marketing and new-product development at Dr. Scholl’s Footcare, Banquet Frozen Foods, Vlasic Foods and Chiquita Brands International. Following Chiquita, I led a group of family-owned potato and onion grower/shippers in the creation, launch and growth of Fresh Solutions Network. Today, I worked with a variety of companies through my marketing company, Sherrie Terry Consulting.
How would you describe your current role?
I provide marketing expertise on a flexible, as-needed basis. Engagements range from strategic planning to program execution. I’ve helped clients on strategic and marketing plan development; brand positioning and visual identity; innovation; consumer and trade marketing strategies and tactics; content creation; website refreshes; training and more.
What do you hope to accomplish/contribute through that role?
Helping clients identify their unique value proposition and bring it to life at all touchpoints is at the heart of what we do. We collaborate as an extension of our clients’ team, delivering expertise, a fresh perspective, expanded capacity and results.
What industry groups are you involved with?
I’ve served on the United Fresh Produce Association Board of Directors, United Fresh Start Foundation Community Programs Committee, PMA “Brand FNV” Marketing Taskforce, International Banana Association Board of Directors, and Produce for Better Health Foundation Board of Trustees. I also provide pro bono consulting on behalf of Cincinnati’s OneSource Center for Nonprofit Excellence.
What professional accomplishment are you most proud of?
I led development of the first-in-the-industry banana category management program to promote the brand, secure new distribution, and measure marketing, pricing and promotion effectiveness. It was one of the first two applications of category management in produce and helped kick-start the industry’s movement toward fact-based, collaborate decision-making and provide a foundation for many of the data sources and analytic models now available. We received the Progressive Grocer Category Captain Award nine years in a row and expanded the program to include avocados, pineapples and cut fruit.
What does leadership mean to you?
Leadership creates a vision for the future and inspires, influences and guides others towards the achievement of that vision and professional and personal growth.
I’ve had the opportunity to lead and mentor many marketing and sales professionals at various stages in their career. It’s personally rewarding to watch their career trajectories and see the leadership roles they’ve successfully taken on, both inside and outside the produce industry. Through my consulting practice, I continue to mentor marketers who are new to the produce industry or early in their marketing careers.
Who are some of your industry mentors?
Two from my time at Chiquita are Jeff Filliater, former VP of global strategies, and Fred Heptinstall, former EVP.
Jeff asked me to make the move from CPG goods to produce to lead marketing for the North American banana business, where I also worked on operations, quality measurement, category management and more.
Fred further expanded my scope to include customer service, supply chain best practices, business unit integration and participation in global strategic initiatives. He nominated me to serve on the United Fresh Board of Directors, which remains one of the most valuable and enjoyable experiences in my career.
What’s a little-known or fun fact about you?
I grew up in the northeast suburbs of Portland, Oregon. My first job was picking strawberries, raspberries and bush beans at local farms along the Columbia River Basin during middle-school summer breaks.
What’s your favorite efficiency hack?
Strategically, it’s collaboration. Collaboration may sound like an overused cliché, but successful marketers need advisors and advocates, both internally and externally. Internally, contributors and champions within sales, finance and operations are essential. Externally, we need marketing specialists as well as resources for insight and performance measurement. Collaboration can sound “messy” and time-consuming (the opposite of “efficiency”), but bringing everyone along at the same time ultimately makes approval and execution of plans and programs more efficient.
Tactically, I use Trello to organize and track client deliverables and online file sharing/collaboration tools to facilitate creative, graphic, and content reviews, feedback, edits and approvals.
If you had to pick one fruit or vegetable to eat every day for the rest of your life, what would it be?
This is a really tough question. As produce peeps, aren’t we supposed to be filling half our plate every day with colorful, delicious, nutritious produce and encouraging others to do the same? That said, if I have to pick only one, I choose berries: They’re delicious, flavorful, colorful, versatile and nutritious superfood!
