Papastamakis is a Greek company devoted to the ripening of bananas, importing from Costa Rica, Colombia, Ecuador and Cyprus and acting as representative for Del Monte in Greece. It also represents Cypriote growers and is in charge of distribution to all big supermarkets, including Vassilopolous, Lidl, Masoutis or Carrefour, as well as in the open market.
Owner Vangelis Papastamakis explains that, despite the difficult economic context, “This year we’ll handle between 700,000 and 800,000 boxes of bananas, compared to 600,000-700,000 last season. Two years ago, competition was much tougher, as there were many ripening houses, but many have closed now due to the financial crisis.”
It is in this difficult context that the firm has actually managed to expand; something which Mr Papastamakis attributes to the fact that they work very hard and always try going above and beyond. This expansion is not limited to distribution in the Greek market, since they also export to the Balkan countries, including Bulgaria, where they ship 20% of the bananas.
Overall, the company runs a total of 15 ripening houses in the area of Thessaloniki, and it does so with great expertise. “The key is to be very careful and familiar with the product we are selling to prevent losing money. We have quality controls in place and collaborate closely with our suppliers to find solutions to any problem. While the economic situation in Greece will make things difficult, we’ll continue doing our best,” concludes Mr Papastamakis.
For more information:
Papastamatakis SA
Vangelis Papastamatakis
Tel: 0030-2310-783-346
Mob: 0030-6932-217-843