July 7, 1999

Business is the pits for entrepreneur

Local cherry pit pillows and teddy bears a hot and cold commodity

By Carol South
Herald contributing writer
       It's a marriage made in heaven.
      Take tons of useless cherry pits, a European craze and some spiffy product design and you have a recipe for success.
      That's the concept behind CherryHug, a new local company that offers three cushions filled with cherry pits and will soon release two teddy bears with the same filling. A few minutes in the microwave or freezer brings out the pillows' true nature: a therapeutic and comforting hug that will either cool you off or warm you up.
      "It is the hottest and the coolest product on the market today," said Frans Segers, a Belgian businessman who brought the idea to Traverse City 15 months ago. "This product is already very big business in Belgium and Holland, sold by the hundreds of thousands."
      When Segers, an international businessman, saw the cherry pit pillows were such a hit in Europe, he decided to get into the business himself. He found that pits were the limiting factor; the supply from Poland, Russia, Hungary, Belgium and Holland was quickly snapped up and he could not start his business without any pits.
      Then he discovered that Traverse City was the cherry capital of the world and he picked up the phone. His first call was to Cherry Growers in Grawn, where he eagerly asked them what they did with the cherry pits.
      "They said, 'We throw them away,' and I said, 'Can I buy them?'­" Segers recalled, thrilled to discover that every year the plant trucked away and buried hundreds of thousands of pounds of cherry pits. "They said, 'Are you crazy?!?' So I came and bought 250,000 pounds of them and shipped four of the five containers of them to Europe."
      Segers sold the four containers of pits within three months, but he was still thinking about the remaining container in Traverse City. He decided to start a business in Traverse City to produce and market the same pillows that were such a hit back home. By January of this year he had formed CherryHug, which is a partnership with Cherry Growers and Traverse Bay Manufacturers in Elk Rapids.
      The company began designing products, packaging and marketing plans, with the help of Knorr Marketing in Traverse City. CherryHug is using local businesses for all aspects of their operation and Cherry Growers and Traverse Bay Manufacturers have added staff to keep up with production demands. In addition, 70 area stores are selling CherryHug pillows.
      "We are very proud of what we are doing and the people in the Elk Rapids plant are putting their heart into it, making suggestions," Segers said. "Within a couple of years we will create tens of tens of jobs in Traverse City."
      Segers also decided to do some hands-on test marketing at the Cherry Festival. People stopping at his table, strategically located at the entrance to the Cherry Festival on the Open Space, showed him how the pillows and bears would appeal to customers. Most were enthused by the idea, especially after testing one fresh from the freezer nearby, and many signed up to be notified when the teddy bears were ready.
      "I can see a real use for these pillows on such a hot day," said Denise Busley, co-owner of Grand Traverse Pie Company, who is staffing a booth at the Cherry Festival this week. "I like to support local businesses and I hope as many local businesses would support them as possible."
      For Segers, now in the United States on a five-year investor's VISA, the next step is placing CherryHug products in catalogues and department stores nationwide. He is meeting with representatives from various companies in the next few weeks, trying to determine the demand for his product.
      This is crucial because the tricky part of using cherry pits is that they have to be fresh when dried and processed for use in the pillows. That means CherryHug has to place their order very soon for a whole year's supply of cherry pits. Too few and they will not be able to meet demand, too many and they will be rolling in pits all year.
      "I am planning to order a minimum of 500,00 pounds for the local company but it may be a lot more," said Segers, undaunted by any uncertainty. "A year and three months ago I never even knew where Traverse City was and now I'm having the time of my life and living on top of the world."