The Central Market of Athens is not busy just a few days before Christmas. Truck circulation is moderate, and the same goes for clients' requests. So, there is enough time to chat. "Sub-consumption is a fact, increasing each year," says Mrs. Popi Protopsalti, owner of the importing company Theodoros Protopsaltis. "Additionally, eating habits have changed. People no longer gather in large groups and cook at home for Christmas. They prefer to go as separate families to restaurants. So, people set aside traditional fresh vegetables, like artichokes or even green beans. Fruits are considered a luxury food, especially if we talk about kakis."
"However, our company focuses on customers who are willing to pay a bit more in order to stay satisfied with the taste. So, when it comes to kakis, we import solely Rojo Brillante from Spain. This season, due to the great floods in Valencia, it seems that there will be no kakis available in March. However, Spanish kaki growers and traders are highly professional. Actually, this is the first season we are directly importing our Spanish kakis, and we are excited about the trading philosophy of the Spaniards," says Mrs. Protopsalti.
As she explains: "We import our kakis from an exporter based in Mercabarna. A few days after our first transaction, I started receiving WhatsApp messages from numbers unknown to me, with photos and offers of other, similar fruits. The numbers belonged to other Mercabarna merchants. This is exciting. They shared our contact, and suddenly our company multiplied its visibility and choices. This method opens new market horizons. It is completely different from what happens in Greece. Here, we do not act this way. It is also important to clarify that the new merchants were not sending offers for kakis but for other fruits."
Mrs. Protopsalti has had similar experiences with other newly imported vegetables from Spain. "We started last May with iceberg lettuce and continued with California peppers of all colors in 5kg packages of separate colors. The same thing happened each time. It might also seem strange, but Greek peppers of the same type are delivered here at a much higher price than the Spanish ones. It takes only four days to receive our products from Spain. They send them immediately after digitally verifying the payment."
"We are eager to expand our business with Spain. Actually, we are interested only in high-quality products. This is what we have based our offer on. Step one: We find the right quality. Step two: We negotiate the price. It is not necessary to taste the products. We always talk on a variety basis. This is the right language. We are experienced and well aware of the varieties' characteristics, so we know every time exactly what product we are discussing," Mrs. Protopsalti concludes.
For more information:
Popi Protopsalti
Theodoros Protopsaltis
Tel: +30 210 481 5734, +30 210 482 4275
Mob: +30 694 593 7952
Email: [email protected]
https://www.thprotopsaltis.com/