AAS to Celebrate 80

Jennifer Zurko

Industry promotion organization All-American Selections (AAS) will celebrate its 80th anniversary in 2012. To help prepare for the occasion, All-America Selections invited GrowerTalks along with other industry leaders to attend its Summer Meeting, held August 9-11 in Monterey, California.

The event was an opportunity for AAS to both honor its long history and announce plans for its next 80 years. Tours of Sakata Ornamentals’ official AAS trial site and the facilities of American Takii, Rogers Seed and Syngenta Flowers showcased the best of the best from each company, as well as AAS’s past and present award winners. Amidst the celebration of AAS’s long relationships with top breeders was a clear declaration of that, as AAS judge Jenny Kuhn from C. Raker & Sons put it, the organization is no longer “your grandfather’s AAS. We’ve been stagnant … but we’re looking forward and trying to get in front of the consumer.”

AAS Executive Director Diane Blazek explained that before she joined AAS two years ago, supporters and the Board of Directors made it clear that the organization needed a new direction. During the Summer Meeting, Diane unveiled exactly how AAS plans on moving toward that new future. This includes a new score sheet that allows judges to be more clear in their comments during voting, and the announcement of adding vegetative varieties in the future. The most visible change is a set of new logos. With the previous logo having been used since the ‘80s, “it was time for a facelift,” said Diane.

AAS will use three different logos: one general corporate logo; one logo for POP and retail signage for winners; and one Diane called an “icon logo” that will be used on tags and pots. The logo coincides with a new marketing campaign that will be rolling out over the next few years.

“AAS has always had a very strong public relations program in place and we’ve enjoyed a great relationship with garden writers,” Diane explained. “What we’re doing now is finding new ways to create buzz about a program that is 80 years old.” This includes using a variety of outlets in and outside of the industry, like AAS ambassadors and judges, trade and consumer press, and social media. Diane hopes that more industry professionals continue to support AAS and keep the momentum moving forward.

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AS Awards presented
The Summer Meeting was also a venue for AAS Award presentations. Kim Bodger received the Medallion of Honor for his support of AAS while he worked with Bodger Seeds. Kim presented the Breeders’ Cup Award to former Bodger breeder Yoshiro Arimitsu, who was visibly surprised at the honor. While bestowing the award, Kim read comments from Mr. Arimitsu’s former and current colleagues, including Steve Jones, owner of GreenFuse Botanicals. “If there was a Nobel Prize for breeding, Yosh would be on the plane to Oslo,” commented Steve. “He’s simply the best.” GT

This year’s Breeders’ Cup Winner Yoshiro Arimitsu with his wife Masako.