In this day and age, many long-established companies and direct suppliers of the food retailer say goodbye to the fresh markets of Germany. In some places, this tendency has already led to the end of the local wholesale market. But not in Nuremberg, where the management of the local fresh food center is looking forward to the future (FreshPlaza reported).
The local Milevski company -a service provider to all well-known chains- has even decided to open a wholesale market stall in addition to the lucrative direct delivery stall of the regional food retailer. Since Thursday (07.11.19), the family-owned company has also been serving specialist retailers and restaurateurs in the regional environment, says Goran Milevski.
Left: The sales team at the wholesale market stall.
Right: Goran Milevski, the ambitious company boss.
Father Milevski can look back on more than 30 years of experience in the fresh produce industry. Over the years, together with his son Goran, he has been able to expand the company into a well-known partner of the regional food retail trade. Meanwhile, about 1,200 m² of refrigerated storage space (6 refrigerated rooms and 3 climate zones), state-of-the-art sorting and packaging capacities and a picking area are available.
"In consultation with our equally experienced partner Mr. Akdemir, the idea arose to open a stand sale, so that we can also offer the food service and specialized retailers good quality goods at fair prices. That means: My younger brother and I will continue to work with our existing service and trading company, and my father and Mr. Akdemir will oversee the wholesale market. We believe these two businesses will complement each other." 
Father Milevski (l) and Mr. Akdemir will operate together the wholesale market stall.
Wide range of products
Nevertheless, the exhibition of goods in the stand sale will look quite different from the fixed contracts that are fulfilled on behalf of the food retailer, says Milevski. "The main focus in the wholesale market will be, among others, on the Turkish product range; products like mini eggplants, pomegranates and peppers. However, we would like to address a wide range of customers and so we will also offer merchandise from overseas, like melons and fruit exotic, and Spanish herbs.
"In addition to all this, the stand operators, in contrast to the 10 x 500g or 1kg boxes for the food, primarily laid or stocked products. "But there are also smaller specialist retailers to ask for the packed goods and we will serve them accordingly.
On Thursday, the first pickup customers were welcomed at the booth.
Digital expansion course
The opening of a wholesale market is part of a long-term corporate strategy: "Especially for the restaurant customers, we are currently working on an App, so you can easily order the goods directly from us. The basic idea is to simplify the order process a step further, so that you only have to enter the menu and the corresponding freshness products are automatically displayed," explains Milevski. This simplified order acceptance offers both the customer and the supplier a clear advantage. "So we try to stand out from the competition and offer our customers an interesting added value. We hope to get the system up and running in the course of December. "
Macedonian grapes
Apart from the constant extension of the service one also strives to gradually expand the product range. The management tries to avoid middlemen and to buy the goods directly from the producer. At the moment we are in the process of raising a project in the original home of the Milevski family, in Macedonia. "We found a good, reliable cooperative there that specializes mainly in grape growing. Last year, the modern grape variety Thomson Seedless was cultivated on a total of 140 hectares, but other tried-and-tested varieties such as Crimson, Red Globe and Italia grapes were also cultivated. At the moment we are showing the first samples to the German food retailing and we hope to be able to fulfill firm contracts from next year."
For more information:
Goran Milevski
Milevski GmbH
Großmarkt Nürnberg
Leyher Straße 107
90431 Neurenberg
+49 911 32162210
gm@milevski.de
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