China Star Sells NW Cherries in Music Video

Austin Jenkins
06/22/2007

Washington is often called the most trade dependent state in the nation. When it comes to agriculture, about a third of the state's crops are exported – most to Asian countries. But marketing Northwest products overseas takes some creativity. Correspondent Austin Jenkins shows us what a Chinese pop star and Northwest cherries have in common.

SOMETHING STRANGE IS HAPPENING IN JOHN WINGERTER'S CHERRY ORCHARD. FIRST, A CAMERAMAN, HOWARD FLOYD, HAS JUST CLIMBED DOWN FROM ONE OF THE PICKING LADDERS.

FLOYD: "I've been up there with my anti-static feather duster. Dusting off the cherries."

NEARBY, ONE OF THOSE BOOM CRANES FOR A VIDEO CAMERA IS BEING ASSEMBLED. WINGERTER, WHO'S IN THE MIDST OF THE CHERRY HARVEST, LOOKS A BIT AMAZED.

WINGERTER: "I thought it was just going to be like the fruit commission coming out and taking out and taking some pictures for the China market or something. I didn't know it was MTV."

WELL, NOT EXACTLY MTV. IT'S A CHINESE PRODUCTION CREW THAT'S ABOUT TO SHOOT A MUSIC VIDEO THAT WILL AIR ON MTV IN CHINA. WINGERTER'S ORCHARD NEAR YAKIMA, WASHINGTON IS THE BACKDROP.

WINGERTER: "That's cool everybody in China will get to see it."

THIS IS THE EIGHTH YEAR IN A ROW THAT THE NORTHWEST CHERRY GROWERS HAVE BROUGHT AN UP–AND–COMING POP STAR FROM AN ASIAN COUNTRY TO THE NORTHWEST TO SHOOT A MUSIC VIDEO. IT'S A MARKETING SCHEME THAT'S PROVEN WILDLY SUCCESSFUL IN TAIWAN. SALES TRIPLED SALES IN FIVE YEARS. NOW CHINA IS THE NEW FOCUS. FORMER WASHINGTON GOVERNOR GARY LOCKE SAYS IT'S A MARKET RIPE FOR THE PICKING.

LOCKE: "Well there's just a hunger for things American. American fashions, American products, American electronics. There's a love affair with America and with the American people."

BUT SOMETIMES THE BEST WAY TO MARKET AN AMERICAN PRODUCT IN CHINA IS WITH A CHINESE STAR.

[MUSIC STARTS]

IN THIS CASE, THAT STAR IS JING TIAN, AGE NINETEEN. SHE WEARS A SIMPLE RED DRESS FOR THIS VIDEO SHOOT. AS THE MUSIC PLAYS, SHE LIP SYNCS AND STROLLS THROUGH THE FRUIT–LADEN TREES STOPPING TO ADMIRE THE CHERRIES. DURING A BREAK IN SHOOTING SHE'S ON–MESSAGE WITH A REPORTER.

TIAN: "Cherry is delicious."

TERESA BAGGARLEY WITH NORTHWEST CHERRIES EXPLAINS THE SEASONAL DELIGHT IS MARKETED IN ASIA AS THE DIAMOND OF FRUIT.

BAGGARLEY: "We try to hook it up with a status symbol like diamonds are a girl's best friend so if you want to impress somebody you buy diamonds for them – well in some of the Asian markets to impress people during cherry season they will take Northwest cherries to somebody's house as a guest. It is considered a status symbol since they are expensive over there."

EIGHT DOLLARS A POUND OR MORE.

IT'S NOT JUST CHERRY GROWERS WHO ARE SELLING THE NORTHWEST BRAND TO CHINA AND ELSEWHERE.

HEDGES: "My name's Christophe Hedges, I'm the national sales guy for Hedges Family Estate."

HEDGES FAMILY IS ONE OF THE LARGEST PREMIUM WINE–MAKERS IN WASHINGTON STATE. CURRENTLY THE COMPANY SELLS LESS THAN ONE PERCENT OF ITS WINE TO CHINA.

HEDGES: "But the potential is greater than we do in total in the United States. If you look at the sheer number of people that live in China it's easy to put those things together."

BUT IF CHINA IS QUICKLY BECOMING THE CHERRY OF FOREIGN MARKETS, THERE ARE POTENTIAL DOWNSIDES. B.J. THURLBY IS PRESIDENT OF THE WASHINGTON STATE FRUIT COMMISSION. HE SAYS NORTHWEST FARMERS ARE DOING A MILITARY–STYLE ASSESSMENT OF CHINA.

THURLBY: "Is China strength, a weakness, an opportunity or a threat? Which will it be? From our perspective as marketers we've just said, okay, we think it's an opportunity. If I'm a producer, if I'm a grower, I'm worried that possibly that possible they can produce cherries or apples someday at a quarter of the cost that we can."

BUT THAT WORRY IS FOR ANOTHER DAY. BACK IN JOHN WINGERTER'S CHERRY ORCHARD THE HOPE IS VIEWERS WHO SEE THIS MUSIC VIDEO WILL RUSH OUT TO BUY THE DIAMONDS OF FRUIT. I'M AUSTIN JENKINS REPORTING.

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