Christmas is just around the corner—a time when wholesale thresholds are crossed more frequently, and greater expectations are placed on offerings. This is no different at Square Melon. "From Wednesday, it has been very busy. In the week leading up to Christmas, we handle restaurant deliveries and cater to caterers and butchers preparing for the holidays. It's quite the undertaking," says Pasquino De Vuyst of the Zelzate-based catering wholesaler.
"After these weeks, you immediately notice a drop-off," he continues. "Many restaurants close their doors between Christmas and New Year, so after this week, we mainly cater to caterers and the few restaurants that remain open, though their numbers decrease yearly. Last week was extremely busy, but it was more spread out because of the weekend. Christmas falls awkwardly this year. The end of last week was already hectic, and now we're working with some gaps in our stock, but there's still a lot to sell. It's better when Christmas falls later in the week, but everything works out. Next year, it'll already be a day later," Pasquino laughs.
In terms of products, the entrepreneur notes a high demand for traditional Christmas items. "You can set your clock to it. Mini vegetables are particularly popular—mini carrots, mini beets, mini turnips. This is because they were also purchased by individuals during this period. Normally, they're mainly for the catering industry, but people also like to use them for their Christmas menus. Mushrooms are also in high demand, both cultivated and wild. We import these directly from Portugal during this time, with two deliveries a week from different suppliers."
All records broken with truffles
"Truffles are another big hit. We broke all records this year. They're always highly sought after in Belgium during the holidays, but this year, we partnered with new suppliers, which increased our volumes. We now receive several deliveries a week. Not many players in the market handle truffles, so people come to us quickly. Normally, we only stock them on order throughout the year, but during this period, we keep them in stock. The more we stock, the faster they sell, and the volumes are substantial."
Pasquino observes this trend with other products as well. "Pre-ordering is becoming less common. I remember 30 years ago, my father would have a pile of orders for items like beans, raspberries, or ceps. That's no longer the case. Now, people expect you to have everything in stock when they walk in or call. It's a strange phenomenon—while there's more awareness about seasons and local produce, the expectation remains that everything will always be available. Around the holidays, this is especially challenging."
Calm before the storm
Nathalie Sebrechts, from the Antwerp-based wholesaler of the same name, echoes this sentiment. "This year, there was a noticeable lull before the storm. Until last Tuesday, it was still very quiet, which is stressful because you have to start buying by Wednesday afternoon or Thursday morning, but no orders have been placed yet. You have to ensure everything is available, including special holiday items, so when the rush begins, everyone gets what they need. It's really just about walking around the wholesale market, picking what looks good, tasty, or visually appealing. As a result, we had an atypical and varied offering this year, including many exotics."
"On Thursday, things really kicked off, but Friday was extraordinary," she explains. "We opened at 3 a.m., and by 4 a.m., there was a rush on all the pallets. It was surreal. Everything from lemon caviar to guava, XXL avocados, French lettuce, and special garlic was in demand. Thankfully, customers were enthusiastic, and I think we met all expectations. Everything looked and tasted great, except raspberries. It's always challenging to find good-quality raspberries at this time of year. Despite that, everyone managed to get their colorful Christmas displays. I expect these two days to be particularly busy for retailers and specialty shops."
For Sebrechts Groenten en Fruit, the pace slows down starting today. "Market stallholders have focused on the weekend, as that's when most have their best markets, while retailers have already stocked up for today and tomorrow. The bakers we deliver to are finishing their preparations today, as they work with very fresh stock, so leftover products on Friday won't hurt. By the end of the week, our focus shifts to the New Year. I'm curious to see how it unfolds. While we've managed our shopping well, it's always uncertain how others handle theirs. We can't know the condition of others' stock, so I'm always a bit anxious about running into older products in Friday and Monday's purchases. That's a yearly challenge."
For more information:
Pasquino De Vuyst
Square Melon
At Sint-Jacobs 20/23
9000 Ghent
+32 (0) 9 223 34 16
[email protected]
www.square-melon.be
Nathalie Sebrechts
Sebrechts Vegetables & Fruit
Kielsbroek 4
2020 Antwerp, Belgium
+32 32374192
[email protected]
www.sebrechtsfruit.be