Freshtom LLC, a brand new import agency for fruit and vegetables based in Wuppertal, was founded last summer. The young company has set itself the task of importing Moroccan fresh produce on its own and marketing it in Germany and neighbouring countries. Thanks to s good network in the neighbouring country of the Netherlands, the goods even end up in the well-known food retail markets, says Yassine Archi, Managing Director of the Wuppertal trading agency.
Even in times of Corona, new entrepreneurs are opting for the fresh produce sector, including the Archi brothers. "My brother had already been working in the fruit and vegetable trade for about 12 years and was accordingly well connected in the industry. That's how the idea of founding our own company came about in the end," Yassine Archi explains. In fact, the group of companies includes two companies: The Moroccan company Fresh Produce was already active in the Dutch and French markets, and nowo the new Freshtom LLC will dedicate itself further developing the German and Western European trade in the immediate vicinity of the sales market.
The activities of Freshtom are mainly concentrated on the product lines of fruit vegetables, legumes, (water) melons, stone and soft fruits and citrus. However, other products are possible on request.
Direct import from Morocco
The main focus of the new company is direct import from the important cultivation areas of Morocco. Freshtom acts purely as an import agency and delivers the goods - depending on the customer's needs - directly to the trade without intermediate storage. Archi: "At the moment, we mainly sell fruit vegetables, whether aubergines, peppers, courgettes or tomatoes. At the end of March, we will probably also be able to obtain the first Moroccan watermelons from our fields."
Fresh fruit and vegetables, straight from the source: that is the intention of the new trading agency. "We either source the produce from our own contract farming or buy it from growers there. We also have all the necessary certification, such as Global Gap, and reliable logistics partners, so that we can guarantee short delivery times to the customer. Despite Corona, we have not experienced any major problems so far, neither with import handling nor with transport."
Supplying retailers
Freshtom has been able to win over both wholesale and food retail customers. "We have several customers at the nearby Düsseldorf wholesale market. However, wholesalers do not usually request full trucks, but rather order the goods by the pallet. In this respect, supplying supermarket suppliers is more lucrative for us. At the moment, for example, whole lorries full of tomatoes are going to Holland for the food retail trade there."
For more information:
Freshtom GmbH
Yassine Archi
Alhausstraße 13
42281 Wuppertal
t: + 49 157 53326531
f: +49 202 25316483
archyassine82@gmail.com
contact@fresh-tom.com
www.fresh-tom.com