The Turkish brothers Sükru and Mustafa Karahan first experienced the wholesale markets in Dortmund and Dusseldorf, before they started on the Essen fruit and vegetable wholesale market, three years ago. The excellent atmosphere makes them feel at home. With their top quality tomatoes and Turkish-style dried fruit the company, Maxime, attracts a wide variety of customers. “And our next step is delivery.”
In the Maxime warehouse you will not only find a colorful mix of fresh fruit and vegetables, but also a wide variety of pickles and dried fruit. Owner Sükru is especially proud is of his Belgian strawberries. Hoogstraten and Belorta supply the strawberries, which are selling very well and are good value for money, 1.20 Euros per 500 gram. The tomatoes mainly originate from Belgium; about 99% of the tomatoes are supplied by Flandria.
Warehouse of the company Maxime with their wide range of produce (top left, bottom left and bottom right) and one of the owners Sükrü Karahan (top right)
Competition
For more than 20 years, both brothers have been working in the food retail. “We started with a supermarket, about 15 km east of Dortmund in 1996. After that we decided to expand in to wholesale,” states Karahan. Via the wholesale market in Dortmund we went to Düsseldorf. ”But the competition was too intense. Many customers would rather drive to the Netherlands and buy their products there.”
That is why the brothers looked for a new location for their company and ended up in Essen. “Three years ago we found our warehouse and sales location here, where we work together with the family. Our customer base was very varied right from the start and consists of Turkish and German culinary companies. We are known for our tomatoes all over,” emphasizes the manager.
The next step
The company is expanding their range of exotic products. “We currently sell mangos, avocados and limes from countries such as Brazil, Chile and India.” Nevertheless, there are still plans and wishes for the future. “We would like to pack our products, but we have put that plan on the backburner, because we need approval. The same goes for the preparation of ready-meals; it requires very experienced staff.”
In the near future, Maxime wants to start delivery directly to its customers. “Delivery is our next step.” Although both brothers have enough plans, they are very satisfied with their current business model. "We really want to stay in Essen."
For more information:
Maxime Lebensmittelgroßhandel
Sükrü and Mustafa Karahan
Frischezentrum Essen
Phone: 0049 201 43666714