Club apple variety Kiku has signed a major marketing deal making it the headline sponsor of the International Mountain Summit (IMS), a festival of mountain sports and living that takes place every year in Brizen, in the South Tyrolean Dolomites.
As a result of the agreement, officially unveiled at last week's biennial apple trade meeting Interpoma in Bolzano, Italy, the alpine festival will be marketed as the Kiku International Mountain Summit in 2013.
Kiku has supported IMS since its inception in 2009, since when both the festival and the apple brand have enjoyed significant expansion.
Last year's IMS attracted around 12,000 visitors and involved major names from the world of alpine sports including Reinhold Messner and Marc Girardelli, as well as leading Italian designer Alberto Alessi.
"We have been partners and sponsors of IMS for some time now and we are developing lots of ideas together," commented Jürgen Braun, chief executive of Kiku. "You will see for 2013 there is an even closer link."
Alex Ploner established the event four years ago with Markus Gaiser, a close friend of the Braun family.
According to Ploner, forging such a close partnership with a fresh produce brand like Kiku has benefited both parties.
"An apple is always good for mountaineers. Having an apple in the bag means having enough to eat for the mountains; it's healthy and it's practical," he told Eurofruit.
"For us it's a good sponsorship," he added. "We need partners that are interested in sports and healthy lifestyles. Our festival is about taking care of nature and thinking about how we can get on with mountains, nature and the environment."
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