Rockit

Making it big with the world’s first mini apple

Rockit Global’s journey to success is an object lesson in taking an innovative product to the world, replete with learnings and road bumps due to cultural differences and perceptions of value. For CEO Mark O’Donnell, sometimes it’s not enough to have an innovative product; you also have to be innovative in bringing it to market.

Rockit’s innovative product is the world’s first tasty, nutritious, fully ripe miniature apple. And despite the expectation that an apple that delivers 65 percent more potassium, 21 percent more vitamin C and more energy than a full-sized apple in a convenient snackable size would be an instant success, it wasn’t.

“It was rejected as not being where consumers were heading. They wanted big apples. And in Japan and Asia – important export markets for our fruit — often the biggest fruit is seen as having the highest value,” recalls O’Donnell.

Rockit founder Phil Allison wasn’t deterred and came up with the idea that these smaller apples could be put in a tube, like tennis balls, for convenience and promoted as a healthy snack — which made its major competition manufactured foods, like bars.

But while this leap in a new direction contributed to acceptance of Rockit’s apples by a new market sector, it also raised other stumbling blocks. One was around using plastic tubes for packaging as the world shifted towards minimising both plastic and packaging. The other was at the packing sheds, where the idea was to have a fully automated process including using robotic packers.

The robots couldn’t be an off-the-shelf solution because Rockit’s apples are completely different from everyone else’s. They are the only apples that have to fit in a tube of a certain size. The tolerances required for the robots were also different, with the consequences for getting it wrong being damaged fruit or, in the extreme, a forced pivot into becoming a cider or juice business.

“It’s not like making a widget where they’re all exactly the same. You must get those tolerances right so you get the right amount of apples into tubes. Earlier on, we were scraping apples, we were bruising apples, and some of it you couldn’t see until we got the fruit to market.”

Rockit engaged with Callaghan Innovation for help with both packaging, and packing robots, and O’Donnell is very complimentary about the process. “We had Callaghan Innovation’s help in funding the initial prototyping of the robots and encouraging us to work with local partners to develop them and connecting us with some that they were already working with themselves.” The packaging was worked on iteratively and collaboratively in a process O’Donnell cites as “fantastic”.

O’Donnell also mentions a side to the company’s relationship with Callaghan Innovation that isn’t often seen: “A lot of it was facilitation and process. When you’re a small organisation trying to be a big company, you don’t necessarily have all the disciplines. They asked the right questions, helping us form the early business cases. It was that process and discipline a startup rarely has, and it’s how many waste a lot of money.”

Callaghan Innovation Student Grants have also enabled Rockit to take on university students over summer. O’Donnell says the students have been involved in the successful implementation of Rockit’s packhouse automation. “The students not only deliver high-quality work, they bring enthusiasm and energy into the organisation that aligns with our attitude and values.”

Rockit’s success as a premium product in the global healthy snack space also owes a lot to the innovative approach the company has taken to marketing it. A lot of work that has gone into making Rockit the little apple with a big personality has resonated with consumers worldwide. Despite the premium price, 84 percent of the company’s Chinese customers, for instance, are repeat buyers on a monthly or fortnightly basis. And astute partnerships with properties like Minions, Pacman and Pokémon mean that even when others are able to make small apples, Rockit’s brand will keep it dominant.

2024 update

Over the past year, Rockit Global has made impressive strides in expanding its global presence and strengthening its brand identity. A notable achievement is its partnership with Universal Products & Experiences for DreamWorks Animation’s Kung Fu Panda franchise. This collaboration includes in-store activations, special packaging, and digital and social media activities to promote Rockit™ apples in key markets, supporting its goal to become the world’s most loved apple brand. The partnership marks Rockit’s largest and first worldwide execution of its creative marketing strategies, building on previous successful collaborations in China with Pokémon, Illumination’s Minions, and Pac-Man.

Leadership changes also marked the year, with Grant McBeath appointed as the new CEO. McBeath aims to build on the successful tenure of Mark O’Donnell, under whose guidance export sales soared from $55 million to $150 million.

Further cementing its international reputation, Rockit achieved a FernMark license, signifying its pride in its origins and connection with Aotearoa New Zealand. Domestically, Rockit strengthened its grower base with further plantings in Tairawhiti and Heretaunga. Rockit is also leading the development of the high-value horticulture industry in Canterbury through a partnership with Turley Farms, a highly regarded arable grower known for its innovative approach and diversification. The 100ha Turley development will be complemented by plantings by other growers in the region over the next few years, as well as the planned development of post-harvest facilities in the region.  

While the harvest in 2024 was impacted following the cyclone in 2023, Rockit still set a record with its largest-ever export season, exporting 200 million apples to the 30 territories where it has a presence. Returns in 2024 have been challenging as a result, but plans are well established for the 2025 crop which is looking outstanding. With these achievements and a continuation of the creative partnerships and strategies that have earned the company prestigious marketing awards, the little apple with a big personality is poised to go from strength to strength. 

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