A facility of 10 thousand square meters consisting of warehouses and yards, and 500 suppliers located mainly in the regions of Basilicata, Calabria, and Apulia, with 40 employees, and over 50 markets supplied in Italy and 3 foreign countries (Germany, Great Britain, and Luxembourg) with which it has the largest trade relations are some of the data of the Italian Fe.Vi Frutta wholesale company.
Operators at the checkout in the Fe.Vi Frutta wholesale queue
This is the entrepreneurial story of Rocco Viggiano and Antonio Ferrara, who initially focused on the retail market and then converted to BtoB. On the anniversary day (9 February 2023), we spoke to the two Lucania-based managers.
"In 1995, we started out as greengrocers, renting a small shop in the town centre of Policoro (Matera). Soon after, we started supplying the first local restaurants and accommodation facilities, until we decided to move to larger premises that would allow us to work more comfortably. The growth was unexpected and immediate. The idea of promoting and enhancing local products appealed to everyone. Hence, in 1998 we established Fe.Vi Frutta. The name is derived from the two initial letters of our surnames (Ferrara and Viggiano).”
Rocco Viggiano (archive photo)
Interregional recognition was not long in coming. "The first orders arrived from fruit and vegetable stands in the regions of Abruzzo, Campania and Apulia. The goods were delivered directly by us, as we did not yet have a dense and organized sales network at the time. In order to expand the catalogue and the sales calendar, we would load articles that were missing from our region in other areas of the South."
Antonio Ferrara (archive photo)
The Fe.Vi Frutta plant in Policoro now stands just a few metres from one of the main roads in Southern Italy (the 106 Jonica). In addition to the many contributing farmers, the company also owns 60 hectares of strawberry, stone fruit and citrus trees, which are managed by experts using modern agronomic techniques.
"What took place still remains fascinating to us. What an amazing achievement. We didn't think we could create all this; we didn't imagine that we could become one of the most important companies in southern Italy for the fruit and vegetable trade. This result proves that work, done with humility and professionalism, always pays off. Trade has changed, and so have consumers and their habits. We have faced many challenges and many difficult moments. What is important is to be here and yet still be able to narrate it,” concluded Viggiano and Ferrara.
For more information: 
FE.VI.FRUTTA S.R.L.
Via Bellini,10
75025 Policoro (MT)
(+39) 0835/902998
[email protected]
[email protected]
www.fevifrutta.it